The Honest Psychologist

What does concept creep have to do with the mental health crisis?

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit honestpsychpod.substack.com [https://honestpsychpod.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_7] This week the docs go deep on concept creep. We look at work by Australian researcher Nick Haslam that questions how expanding definitions of harm-related concepts have influenced our perception of worsening mental health. From his most recent article, linked below (2026): “In essence, cultural changes, some of which are intended to increase our knowled…

How did trauma become part of everyday life?

In the third installment of our trauma series, the docs bring the discussion of trauma into the present. Paige gives us some fascinating research from the world of social psychology. We look at how the term “trauma” gets used in different ways, concept creep, adverse childhood experiences (ACE’s), The Body Keeps the Score, how social media reflects (often inaccurate) representations of trauma, how shifting definitions and expanding use of trauma to explain psychology impacts how real people feel, and more. Mentioned in this episode: New article by Nick Haslam on “concept creep” [https://spssi.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/sipr.70007] Article by Michael Scheeringa: Evaluating evidence behind popular trauma narratives: Neurobiological and treatment claims in [https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bjpsych-bulletin/article/evaluating-evidence-behind-popular-trauma-narratives-neurobiological-and-treatment-claims-in-the-body-keeps-the-score/5DE000F0254747495B1CAFF4051C3B75]The Body Keeps the Score [https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/bjpsych-bulletin/article/evaluating-evidence-behind-popular-trauma-narratives-neurobiological-and-treatment-claims-in-the-body-keeps-the-score/5DE000F0254747495B1CAFF4051C3B75] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit honestpsychpod.substack.com/subscribe [https://honestpsychpod.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

Trauma Series Part 2: Where did our ideas about trauma come from?

This week Dr. Graff takes Dr. Hover on a thrilling ride through history, with brief mentions of: The Odyssey and the ancient Greeks, Victorian psychiatric culture, Freud’s contemporaries, hypnosis and suggestibility, the birth of personal injury lawsuits, and the re-emergence of certain ideas in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Mentioned in this episode: The Memory Hole Podcast hosted by Jana Martin: https://www.memoryholepodcast.com/ Making Minds and Madness by Mikkel Borch-Jacobsen [https://www.cambridge.org/ag/universitypress/subjects/psychology/health-and-clinical-psychology/making-minds-and-madness-hysteria-depression?format=PB] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit honestpsychpod.substack.com/subscribe [https://honestpsychpod.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

Trauma Series Part 1: What is trauma?

Welcome to Part 1 of our much anticipated trauma series! This week the docs breakdown what we (psychologists) mean when we say “trauma,” why it’s important to have a definition of this term, what it really means to have a trauma-related disorder, and what the research shows about trauma recovery and resilience. Stay tuned for Part 2, where we look at the origins of the idea of psychological trauma, and Part 3, a look at how this is presenting in our current culture. Mentioned in this episode: The End of Trauma by George Bonanno [https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/george-a-bonanno/the-end-of-trauma/9781541674387/] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit honestpsychpod.substack.com/subscribe [https://honestpsychpod.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

Does it seem like "trauma" is everywhere?

We are excited to bring you 3 new episodes, all on the subject of trauma: what the term means and how we define it, how our thinking on trauma has evolved over time, what the current research offers us, and where we see this is media and everyday life. Stay tuned! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit honestpsychpod.substack.com/subscribe [https://honestpsychpod.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]