Psychology Takeaway Podcast

  In this episode, Jim and Ralph, the dynamic hosts of the popular Psychology Takeaway podcast, sit down with artist Kimberly Chapman, whose captivating work is currently featured in the Baber Room Gallery, located on the first floor of the Park Library at Central Michigan University. The conversation delves into Chapman's artwork, which offers a unique historical and cultural lens. This podcast e...

  Today we are joined by Ralph’s wife Karen as we continue to explore the psychology of color. This time focusing on the interior and exterior of the house. When choosing colors for rooms in an apartment or house, consider the room's purpose, size, and lighting. Lighter colors work well in small rooms or areas with little natural light to make them feel more spacious and airy, while darker colors...

Ralph interviews Jim about his new book.  It is available at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DSJRD176 FREE OFFER: If you would like to read it and submit a review, I will send the first 100 people a PDF. Contact Jim at: carro1jl@cmich.edu .  

Jim and Ralph explore why red makes you hungry, why blue might make you trust someone more, and why you probably shouldn't paint your office all yellow (unless you're a fan of chaos)." The psychology of color explores how different colors influence our emotions, behaviors, and perceptions. It plays a significant role in marketing, design, and art, where understanding color psychology helps create...

Positive Psychology: Optimism   Today Ralph and Jim look at one of the pillars of Positive Psychology - Optimism In Positive Psychology, optimism is central to promoting well-being and psychological resilience. It is the tendency to expect positive outcomes and believe that challenges can be overcome. Optimism is closely linked to improved mental health, as optimistic individuals tend to experienc...

  This is a follow-up to our recent podcast on loneliness. Today we looked at it in music. Loneliness has been a powerful and recurring theme in popular music from the 1960s to today, reflecting both personal emotions and broader societal struggles. In the '60s, songs like The Beatles' "Eleanor Rigby" and The Righteous Brothers' "Unchained Melody" explored isolation and yearning, resonating with l...

The Super Bowl advertising certainly made it plain that AI was now part of the national fabric; for better or worse Since Jim is out, because of this circulating virus hitting Mid-Michigan hard, we thought we would revisit a podcast from last July. Learn More Bill Gates, a fan of AI, expresses some reservation. Read his thoughts: https://time.com/6293735/bill-gates-ai-risk/  We mentioned the movie...

Jim and Ralph discuss some new data from Harvard University indicating that 21 % of adults in America report feelings of loneliness. According to a global survey, about 33 percent of adults experienced feelings of loneliness worldwide. Brazil had the highest percentage of people experiencing this, with 50 percent of respondents declaring that they felt lonely A survey of approximately 1,100 U.S. c...

After talking about failed New Year's Resolutions and holiday stress, Ralph and Jim get a bit more upbeat

Here is the link to the Guide Andrea is willing to share: https://drive.google.com/file/d/17gmvFury-TmB4dO39OMEVuAO4zwjo_fr/view?usp=sharing Enjoy!

    Join Jim and Ralph as they travel north of the Arctic Circle to see how local inhabitants deal with nearly 24 hour darkness for days on end. Long, dark winters are associated with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and depression. Common effects include being moody, sluggish and unmotivated. The key is our circadian rhythm; it’s like your brain is making up its own time zone based of a 25, not...

Jim and Ralph are joined again by Andrea Kirk Assaf who has returned to Mid Michigan from Rome on Christmas break. She has revived an old, somewhat lost concept- Kalokagathia, a term relating to holistic health, holiness, and happiness. She explains its relationship to Mind, Body, Soul and Spirit and how we can nurture each in the New Year. LEARN MORE Here is a link to the last podcasts we did wit...

Jim and Ralph discuss why keeping New Year's resolutions is so hard. They recommend the SMART approach. HAPPY '25.

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A while ago Jim and Ralph did podcasts on the use of Psychedelics to treat previously unresponsive cases of anxiety and PTSD. Psychedelic therapy works when nothing else works. But not everyone is supportive. A news story detailing the conflict appeared today. We have posted a link to the story in the Learn More section. We are reposting some of our previous podcasts on psychedelics so that you ha...

The period between December 25 and December 31 can present unique challenges, both socially and emotionally, the week before Christmas also carries its own pressures. But mental health concerns during the week following Christmas and the end of the year are particularly significant for many. Jim and Ralph look at some of the causes including: Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), Social Isolation, In...

After the last podcast about brain-eating bacteria, we thought we should discuss seasonal stress in this week's podcast. A lot of people get stressed out around the holiday season. Right now, I am stressed about a huge dump of snow that is affecting my holiday travel plans. I can't do anything about the weather, but I can control my response. I can choose to be frustrated and upset, or I can just...

Yes, it seems like something out of a cheap sci-fi movie. We know that unchecked, bacteria can wreak havoc. Just this Fall there were news stories of flesh-eating bacteria  coming out of Florida https://www.the-scientist.com/are-flesh-eating-bacteria-causing-infections-in-florida-not-exactly-experts-clarify-72281 It seems that was sort of an anomaly but Ralph has some new research that is much mor...

After the sweet dreams of last week, today Ralph, Jim, and Alex look at the scary world of nightmares. But things get even more weird and scary next week!

Sleep, perchance to Dream Jim and Ralph visit the world of nighttime mentation – that is, dream states. They look at some theory behind the purpose of dreaming. There is no single dream theory that fully explains all of the aspects of why we dream. The most prominent theory is that dreams help us to process and consolidate information from the previous day.  Ralph does not usually remember his dre...

In our last podcast, we discussed insomnia. Most of us realize it when we have had a restless, sleepless night. But what about waking up and feeling that you didn’t sleep at all? Or maybe you have been told that you snore like a chainsaw. If either sounds familiar, this episode is for you. ; unrecognized and untreated sleep apnea can lead to high blood pressure, heart problems, and even stroke. If...

As a follow up to last week's podcast on revenge procrastination, today we deal with involuntary sleep deprivation - insomnia. At any one time about 12% of American adults suffer from chronic insomnia. Do the math - it is a huge number. Jim and Ralph look at sleep and the causes of this elusive disorder. LEARN MORE E-mail Jim for our book on Sleep Disorders: carro1jl@cmich.edu

Jim and Ralph are in new studios. Please join us as we talk about sleep. Mainly voluntary sleep deprivation - it is a dangerous concept . LEARN MORE If you want our e-book on sleep just send a request to Jim at: carro1jl@cmich.edu    

  Jim and Ralph look at some numbers that medical doctors (and psychologists) use to classify disorders and interpret data. It is not exactly lying with statistics but, in the words of the Chester Cat, “Things are not quite as they seem” LEARN MORE You Tube video on WEIRD numbers: https://youtu.be/vRqCs2SUdxY?feature=shared

Jim and Ralph continue talking with Master Chef, Cindy Walz about food and how we consume it. Get a free copy of the Mediterranean and Mind Diet by contacting Jim  at:  carro1jl@cmich.edu LEARN MORE Here is a link to Cindy’s web site: http://Yinyang.com Stanford has a 30 minute You Tube video devoted to the psychology of eating: https://youtu.be/8lkhpkcfMjI?feature=shared Read more about Cindy and...