New research challenges traditional views and myths in psychology, such as the long-held belief that parenting is the biggest influence on adult personalities.
A comprehensive review of current psychology has revealed that many long-held beliefs about mental health and the function of the brain need significant revision. Renowned psychologist Michael W. Eysenck pulls apart some of these commonly-held beliefs in a new book, Rethinking Psychology: Finding Meaning in Misconceptions.
Popular psychological myths debunked
One of the myths held under scrutiny is that men and women have entirely different personality traits, a topic which Dr Eysenck believes has attracted 'more nonsense than almost any other topic in psychology'. In fact, studies have shown mixed outcomes and results tend to vary according to geography, culture and demographic.
Another pervasive myth is that parenting is the biggest influence on personality, when a review of literature showed genetic factors played a much more significant role in the shaping of an adult personality.
Similarly, the author presents research to suggest most of the public believe in the power of subliminal messaging, partly due to its presence in the media, but a relatively weak body of evidence supports the theory.
Dr. Eysenck also debunks the idea that brain training increases your brain function, when the biggest factor for intelligence is genetics.
"Sometimes the reason for distorted interpretations of psychological research lie within ourselves," he explains. "We choose to believe myths in psychology because they confirm what we would like to believe is the case, or what appears to be consistent with our general knowledge and/or personal experience."
Mental health myths
The author also tackles numerous widely-held beliefs about mental illnesses, saying misconceptions are 'surprisingly prevalent'.
For example, many people believe mental illnesses are due almost entirely to life experiences, when in reality, research shows a complex interaction between social, environmental and genetic factors.
"It is indisputable that life experiences play a role in triggering virtually every mental disorder," he explains, "however we should not focus on severe life events in isolation. Their impact varies considerably across different individuals.
"An important factor is the quality of social support they receive."
Another myth is that antidepressants are much more effective than psychotherapy, when in reality depressed patients are much more likely to relapse following antidepressants because the drugs don't resolve the underlying problems.
One challenge posed by the author is the effectiveness of current psychological research and the mental health classification systems. The book reveals that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) now lists 541 distinct disorders, which indicates excessive categorisation. Given that many disorders share underlying characteristics, it is time to revise the trend of granularity – developing increasingly specific treatments for narrowly defined conditions.
Recognizing and avoiding myths
To tackle some of the pervasive myths, Eysenck suggests people need to be more critical. He demonstrates how media representations often distort psychological realities, as films dramatically misrepresent mental health conditions, news coverage tends toward sensationalism, and popular psychology books often oversimplify complex issues.
He advises people to be aware of oversimplified reporting and suggests they should also be wary of anecdotal evidence, confirmation bias (believing something just because it aligns with what they have previously believed), and wishful thinking.
In academic circles, the author suggests significant changes in how psychological research is conducted and reported. He lists serious concerns about reproducibility, and commercial interests significantly influence research findings by introducing significant bias.
The book comes with a call for greater research transparency, reduced influence from business, and improved reproducibility standards in research.
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