I dont know if this is the right place to foster this discussion, but there are some interesting dicusssions taking place on the promotion of science and the involvement of psychologists in the media.
The Guardian posted on Media psychology ethics about ten days ago http://tiny.cc/jRIqg
Then the BPS newsletter hard copy posted about media psychology ethics one week ago, then (so I have been told as I dont watch the show) a Big brother contestant from Hertfordshire University slashed his wrists and the BPS issued a crisis statement on media psychology ethics yesterday
http://tiny.cc/eutlT
see also
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009...slashes-wrists
On some unrealted but equally interesting issues see also Twitter post by "Bad medicine" columnist and ego-preener Ben Goldacre
In relation to attempts to promote 'science' see also
http://tr.im/vkc2 "
Here is another link
http://www.drpetra.co.uk/blog/?m=200908
Thoughts for discussion most welcome? Note there are two issues here - one relating to the use of psychologists in the media and other about media-based 'science' and how useful / helpful it really is.
Last edited by Dr B; 5th August 2009 at 10:25 AM.
I was looking into this yesterday particularly looking at the ethics of 'pop psychology' whereby media psychologists analyse the minds of people like Michael Jackson or speculate on the psychological damage that may have occurred in his children, for example.
Of course, such 'psychological insight' is a load of nonsense (it sounds no different to what anyone could guess at) but the main area of concern here is with the ethics of psychologists providing this sort of crass service to the media.
The British Psychological Society (BPS) issues guidelines for psychologists on what to do (or not) when engaging with the media but they are not enforceable rules (AFAIK). This leaves it down to the individual psychologist's choice as to what they do in the media.
The BPS recommends that psychologists do not talk about specific cases (such as Michael Jackson or other celebrities) but that they can talk generally about psychological issues. But with the advent of 'celeb TV' and shows like Big Brother, there's now more scope that ever for pop psychologists to get their faces on TV and promoting themselves rather than psychology.
There's probably a fine and ill-defined line between engaging responsibly with the media to promote the understanding of psychology and engaging with the media whereby the psychologist may benefit (when selling books etc.) at the expense of the public understanding of psychology.
And I think that's the bottom line here. If a psychologist wants to 'sell out' and engage with the media to promote themselves under the guise of promoting psychology, it can be very lucrative; and there doesn't seem to be a down side to it for the psychologists who do this. The BPS has guidelines as to where this fine line is but they don't seem to be doing anything about those who cross it.
Perhaps we should start a "Bad Psychology" website and highlight some of the crass opinion and experimentation going on in the public arena regarding psychology!
.
This could be called the "Bad Psychology" blog:Originally Posted by John Jackson
http://www.drpetra.co.uk/blog/
It carries out a similar function to "Bad Astronomy", etc.
Petra specifically addressed the same Michael Jackson point at Skeptics in the Pub just after his death.
At the risk of derailing this thread, how many psychologists take psychoanalysis seriously?
No empiricist I know of...However, the links above are not all directed at psychoanalysis. Areas like social psychology and many so-called 'applied' fields are implicated in these observations. No need to mention Freud in order for it to be bollocks...
I think we gave that link earlier
One problem is it might look like a hatchet job as some os these 'psychologists' repeatedly make these mistakes and to document the failings in a trail of mess spanning say, the last 10 years, might detract from the merits of such a site. Having said that, I still think its a good idea
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