Psych Attack

Snack Attack: Why analyse fictional texts? (Ep. 30)

Snack Attacks are short segments taken from a full episode, so you can have a quick topic taster. This Snack Attack comes from episode 30 'Apple Cider Vinegar: Panel discussion about the Australian TV drama' Dr Suzie Gibson explains what we can learn about ourselves and the society we live in by analysing fictional texts. For links to related research articles and books mentioned in this Snack Attack, go to the full episode show notes.

Snack Attack: Parasocial relationships (Ep. 30)

Snack Attacks are short segments taken from a full episode, so you can have a quick topic taster. This Snack Attack comes from episode 30 'Apple Cider Vinegar: Panel discussion about the Australian TV drama' I describe what parasocial relationships are and some interesting related research findings. I also share some of my own parasocial relationships. Dr Erica McIntyre and I discuss examples of parasocial relationships in 'Apple Cider Vinegar'. For links to related research articles and books mentioned in this Snack Attack, go to the full episode show notes.

30. Apple Cider Vinegar: Panel discussion about the Australian TV drama

'Apple Cider Vinegar' is an Australian TV series that was released in 2025. It presents a dramatised version of the real world story of Belle Gibson, an Australian social media wellness influencer. In the series, Belle posts publicly about her experience of brain cancer and promotes alternative approaches to treatment to her millions of Instagram followers. And through a recipe app that was promoted by Apple called 'The Whole Pantry'. The primary conflict of the series being that Belle never had brain cancer. This episode of Psych Attack is a panel discussion between myself (Dr Jaz MacDonald), Dr Erica McIntyre, Dr Suzie Gibson, and Associate Professor Donna Bridges. Each of us brings a unique lens to our viewing of the series, informed by our own life experiences and professional expertise. The panel Dr Jaz MacDonald [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/]: my area of expertise is trauma exposure and reactions, as well as mental health. I have a PhD in psychology and am a trained social worker with experience in mental health assessment. I mostly spend my time doing this podcast and working at an Australian research agency, creating practice resources for practitioners supporting children and families. Dr Erica McIntyre is a psychology and public health researcher and educator [https://profiles.uts.edu.au/Erica.McIntyre], now working as an ADHD Coach and Career and Leadership Coach [https://www.ericamcintyre.com.au/]. Erica has a PhD in psychology and has also practiced as a herbalist. Her research focuses on health and wellbeing, specifically health care decision making. Dr Suzie Gibson [https://arts-ed.csu.edu.au/schools/social-work-arts/staff/profiles/teaching-and-research-staff/suzie-gibson] (PhD in literature and philosophy) is a Senior Lecturer in English Literature at Charles Sturt University. Trained in close textual analysis, Suzie surveys texts across fields and disciplines — literature, film, television and philosophy. She is interested in the ideological underpinnings of texts as well as with their aesthetic import and how it impacts upon their social and cultural meaning. Associate Professor Donna Bridges is a sociologist and a gender theorist at Charles Sturt University. Donna's research focuses primarily on gender inequality and work – specifically women integrating into male dominated fields and the barriers they encounter. This led her to an interest in sexual harassment and violence. Donna is also a creator and host for the podcast 'Conversations for a Brave New World' [https://2mce.org/podcast/16-days-of-activism-against-gender-based-violence-coercive-control-and-digital-violence-with-dr-jasmine-macdonald/] produced by the Gender Network [https://www.csu.edu.au/research/gender-network/home] at CSU. Each month, the podcast shares knowledge, scholarship and research about gender from the diverse perspectives of experts and scholars. The episode I have linked to is one where Donna interviews me (Jaz) about my team's coercive control research and practice resources. Sensitive content warning This episode refers to cancer, mental illness, and intimate partner violence. Please take care while listening and if you are feeling discomfort and would benefit from some support, please reach out to your GP or contact a service like Lifeline [https://www.lifeline.org.au/]. Content mentioned in this episode Apple Cider Vinegar [https://media.netflix.com/en/only-on-netflix/81637595], Netflix The Search for Instagram's Worst Con-Artist [https://www.netflix.com/au/title/81987249], Netflix Dederer, C. (2023). Monsters: What do we do with great art by bad people? [https://www.booktopia.com.au/monsters-claire-dederer/book/9781399715072.html] Sceptre. Schur, M. (2022). This sandwich is morally problematic. But it's also delicious. Can I still eat it? In How to be perfect: The correct answer to every moral question [https://www.booktopia.com.au/how-to-be-perfect-mike-schur/book/9781529421361.html?srsltid=AfmBOopupbb3gBtpIvE57qbj5fqjlIdQwgapzxThbXq4E57_G28u-E29](pp. 185-208). Quercus. Research articles on parasocial relationships Baek, Y. M., Bae, Y., & Jang, H. (2013). Social and parasocial relationships on social network sites and their differential relationships with users’ psychological well-being. [https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1089/cyber.2012.0510] Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 16(7), 512-517. Balaban, D. C., Szambolics, J., & Chirică, M. (2022). Parasocial relations and social media influencers' persuasive power. Exploring the moderating role of product involvement. [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001691822002463] Acta Psychologica, 230. DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2022.103731. Bennett, L. L. (2024). Understanding parasocial relationships and the mental health impact. [https://digitalcommons.latech.edu/theses/120/] [Master's thesis, Louisiana Tech University]. Hoffner, C. A., & Bond, B. J. (2022). Parasocial relationships, social media, & well-being. [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35219157/] Current Opinions in Psychology, 45. DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101306. Liebers, N., & Schramm, H. (2019). Parasocial interactions and relationships with media characters–An inventory of 60 years of research. [https://scholarcommons.scu.edu/crt/vol38/iss2/1/] Communication Research Trends, 38(2). Madison, C., & Adam, A. (2023). Perceived marginalization, social support, and mental health: The role of parasocial relationships. [https://scholar.utc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1553&context=mps]Modern Psychological Studies, 28(2). Su, B.-C., Wu, L.-W., Chang, Y.-Y.-C., & Hong, R.-H. (2021). Influencers on social media as references: Understanding the importance of parasocial relationships. [https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/19/10919] Sustainability, 13. DOI: 10.3390/su131910919 Cite this episode MacDonald, J. B., McIntyre, E., Gibson, S., & Bridges, D. (2026, March 12). Apple Cider Vinegar: Panel discussion about the Australian TV drama (No. 30) [Audio podcast episode]. In Psych Attack. www.psychattack.com [https://www.psychattack.com/]   Transcript The transcript for this episode was developed using transcription software. There may be errors in the content as I do not have capacity to review for accuracy.   Acknowledgements Psych Attack is created and hosted by Dr Jasmine B. MacDonald [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/]. The video and audio for this episode was edited by Morgan McRae. Special thanks to Dr Erica McIntyre, Dr Suzie Gibson, and Associate Professor Donna Bridges for sharing your time and expertise.

29. Organised / disorganised typology of serial killers: A statistics deep dive on the 1986 study

Are you a true crime enthusiast but an even bigger research methods nerd? I see you. If you have watched Mindhunters, read Silence of the Lambs, or are an old school Criminal Minds fan then you already know this study and this team of researchers. In the 1980s a team of FBI agents and researchers teamed up to advance what we knew about serial sexual offenders (serial killers). In this episode, Dr Monsurul Hoq and I nerd out on the research methods and statistical analysis used in the first peer-reviewed research article that compared crime scene characteristics for organised and disorganised serial killers. The beauty of this episode is the practical application of statistical methods. We talk about statistical power, alpha inflation, p-hacking, the obsession with p = .05 (conventions in determining statistical significance), and the importance of subject matter expertise and clinical / practical significance. The paper this episode focuses on Ressler, R.K., Burgess, A.W., Douglas, J.E., Hartman, C.R., & D’Agostino, R.B. (1986). Sexual Killers and Their Victims: Identifying patterns through crime scene analysis. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 1(3), 288-308. https://doi.org/10.1177/088626086001003003 [https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/088626086001003003][not open access] About Dr Monsurul Hoq Dr Monsurul Hoq [https://www.linkedin.com/in/monsurul-hoq-3a5614190/] has 10 years’ experience as a Biostatistician in medical and health research (in prevention and cure of common childhood illness, transgender health, vaccine uptake, paediatric reference intervals, disability, and mental health), leading, consulting, and performing statistical analysis of data, interpreting findings and reporting results. Prior to working in academia, Monsurul Hoq worked in non-government organisations in Bangladesh and South Sudan, monitoring and evaluating integrated community-based projects in education and child health sector. Monsurul completed his PhD in Biostatistics at the University of Melbourne. His research [https://findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/scholarlywork/1525139-estimation-of-age-specific-reference-intervals-for-laboratory-blood-tests-in-children] established continuous age-specific reference intervals for blood biomarkers in children using a novel statistical method. You can find a list of Monsurul's publications here [https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0504-9335]. Jaz is writing a book This interview was conducted in preparation for a book I am writing. If you'd like to be notified when the book is finished, please email me and I will store your email and only contact you when the book is ready for you to read. [hello@jasminebmacdonald.com.au] Cite this episode MacDonald, J. B. & Hoq, M. (2025, December 29). Organised / disorganised typology of serial killers: A statistics deep dive of the 1986 study (No. 29) [Audio podcast episode]. In Psych Attack. www.psychattack.com [https://www.psychattack.com/]   Transcript The transcript for this episode was developed using transcription software. There may be errors in the content as I do not have capacity to review for accuracy.   Acknowledgements Psych Attack is created and hosted by Dr Jasmine B. MacDonald [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/]. The video and audio for this episode was edited by Morgan McRae. Special thanks to Dr Monsurul Hoq for sharing your time and expertise. Serial killer related blog posts Serial killers of ‘Mindhunter’: Childhood experiences [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/serial-killers-of-mindhunter-childhood-experiences/] The original research report behind ‘Mindhunter’ [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/the-original-research-report-behind-mindhunter/] Comparing the brains of successful and unsuccessful psychopaths [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/comparing-the-brains-of-successful-and-unsuccessful-psychopaths/] The Crime Classification Manual [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/the-crime-classification-manual/] The first offender profile [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/the-first-offender-profile/] Forensic psychology related episodes MacDonald, J. B. & Ashton, S. (2024, June 5). Sex therapy, kink and paraphilias (No. 18) [Audio podcast episode]. In Psych Attack. www.psychattack.com [https://www.psychattack.com/episodes/sex-therapy-kink-and-paraphilias] MacDonald, J. B. & Malloy, L. (2024, March 2). Developmental insights for investigative interviewing about maltreatment (No. 17) [Audio podcast episode]. In Psych Attack. www.psychattack.com [https://www.psychattack.com/episodes/developmental-insights-for-investigative-interviewing-about-maltreatment-with-associate-professor-lindsay-malloy] MacDonald, J. B. & March, E. (2022, June 5). An evolutionary perspective of online behaviour (Part 2: Cyber dating abuse)(No. 11) [Audio podcast episode]. In Psych Attack. www.psychattack.com [https://www.psychattack.com/episodes/an-evolutionary-perspective-of-online-behaviour-with-dr-evita-march-part-2-cyber-dating-abuse] Research methods related episodes MacDonald, J. B. & Braund, T. A. (2024, Oct 1). Digital phenotyping: Using smartphone metadata to predict mental health symptoms (No. 22) [Audio podcast episode]. In Psych Attack. www.psychattack.com [https://www.psychattack.com/episodes/digital-phenotyping-using-smartphone-metadata-to-predict-mental-health-symptoms] MacDonald, J. B. & Sugden, N. (2021, September 30). Psychometrics and psychological assessment tools (No. 6) [Audio podcast episode]. In Psych Attack. www.psychattack.com [https://www.psychattack.com/episodes/looking-at-the-psychometrics-of-psychological-assessment-tools-with-dr-nicole-sugden] MacDonald, J. B. & Tillman, G. (2021, June 22). Mathematical models of how people make decisions (No. 2) [Audio podcast episode]. In Psych Attack. https://www.psychattack.com [https://www.psychattack.com/episodes/dr-gabriel-tillman-mathematical-models-of-human-decision-making] Research methods related blog posts The pragmatic researcher [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/the-pragmatic-researcher/] What international literature is useful in the Australian context? [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/what-international-literature-is-useful-in-the-australia-context/] Interpretivism in qualitative research [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/interpretivism-in-qualitative-research/] Experiences are socially constructed, but by whom? Constructivism vs constructionism [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/experiences-are-socially-constructed-but-by-whom-constructivism-vs-constructionism/] Interested in going deeper of p-values? Amrhein, V., Greenland, S., & McShane, B. (2019). Retire statistical significance. Nature, 567, 305-307. [https://www.jvsmedicscorner.com/Statistics_files/Retire%20statistical%20significance.pdf] Gelman, A. & Stern, H. (2006). The Difference Between “Significant” and “Not Significant” is not Itself Statistically Significant. The American Statistician, 60(4), 328-331. [https://sites.stat.columbia.edu/gelman/research/published/signif4.pdf] Greenland, S., Senn, S.J., Rothman, K... [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27209009/]

28. In the minds of ancient Romans

Professor Emeritus Gregory S. Aldrete [https://gregorysaldrete.com/] explains some of the hallmarks of Ancient Roman psychology (i.e., their values and motivations). Greg shares rich context and examples, weaving together a story of similarities and differences between life in Ancient Rome and life now. We discuss a wide range of topics, from hand gestures used to compensate for lack of microphones in large arenas, tombstone engravings and graffiti messages, common pets, and sources that historians draw on to find the lesser heard voices of ancient Rome. Greg is Professor Emeritus of history at the University of University of Wisconsin-Green Bay [https://www.uwgb.edu/]. Greg is an ancient historian specialising in the study of civilisations, cultures, and history of the ancient Mediterranean world, particularly Ancient Greece and Rome. Greg is driven to figure out how stuff really worked in antiquity. You can reach out to Greg via email: aldretegs@gmail.com Explore other interesting work by Greg Books [https://www.amazon.com/Books-Gregory-S-Aldrete/s?rh=n%3A283155%2Cp_27%3AGregory%2BS.%2BAldrete] The Great Courses [https://www.thegreatcourses.com/professors/gregory-s-aldrete] Website [https://gregorysaldrete.com/] I highly recommend subscribing to The Great Courses to access Greg's lecture series The Roman Empire: From Augustus to the Fall of Rome. [https://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/the-roman-empire-from-augustus-to-the-fall-of-rome] Tim and I spent much of our end of year break in 2024 watching it. Cite this episode MacDonald, J. B. & Aldrete, G. S. (2025, June 22). In the minds of ancient Romans (No. 28) [Audio podcast episode]. In Psych Attack. www.psychattack.com [https://www.psychattack.com/]   Transcript The transcript for this episode was developed using transcription software. There may be errors in the content as I do not have capacity to review for accuracy.   Acknowledgements Psych Attack is created and hosted by Dr Jasmine B. MacDonald [https://jasminebmacdonald.com.au/]. The video and audio for this episode was edited by Morgan McRae. Special thanks to Professor Emeritus Gregory Aldrete for sharing your time and expertise.