The Psychology Thread

IMO, the best way to depict PTSD realistically is to have multiple people who are afflicted with PTSD, perferably with the causes of their trauma being diverse, and each one exhibits markedly different symptoms — one is prone to violently lashing out at perceived threats, another are exceedingly averse to any form of confrontation (physical or non-physical), etc. Show the whole spectrum, you know? Bonus points if you show that the symptoms do not always parallel the trauma's cause, to emphasize the sometimes-unpredictable complexity of the human mind.

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

Again, Hunger Games.

From the game players to the civilians to even the soldiers, you see the gambit of how people are dealing based on their experiences.

"Psssh. Even if you could catch a miracle on a picture any person would probably delete it to make space for more porn." - Aszur

To all of ya crazy psychologists over here.

Talking with a teacher of mine (whom I love to death cuz she is all sorts of fucking awesomeazing) I happened to discuss some vidjagames and other sort of stuff so it gave me the idea of tossing this sort of question to you people.

What sort of "non conventional" tests have ya ever wondered if they would work in a psychological test situation?

As her own example I spoke to her of the game and she thought it sounded like an amazing idea to confront people who have problems reaching decisions In the game, you play a borders agent who has to quickly accept or decline people through the frontier. You get fined for each person you do wrong and you need a certain amount of money each day to do things like buy presents for your childs birthday, medicine if they get sick, and food. And then the immigrants with their own problems appear. The man had his papers right and he begged you to let his wife through. But she does not have her papers right...will you take the fine, or will you take the money for yourself?

Another example I like (For obvious reasons) would be this card game. It is a brief read.

Dunno what ya guys think.

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes

Turning most question or choice arrays into games would be challenging, but could well be worthwhile if done well.

Just as long as you don't write crap games around the arrays and any other data gathering and metric tools.

You feel depressed.

>>PUNCH SOMEONE

"SOMEONE" NOT RECOGNIZED

>>PUNCH MYSELF

"MYSELF" NOT ACKNOWLEDGED

>>BOOZE IT UP

You booze it up. You are now in an endless vortex of depression.

>> PICK UP endless vortex of depression

You pick up your endless vortex of depression

>>DRINK endless vortex of depression

You are eaten by a grue.

edited 4th Sep '15 10:09:49 AM by Aszur

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes

What's the difference between "hypersexuality" and "erotophilia" as clinical terms?

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

Personally, I think both are bunk and a holdover from the last century. The problem isn't the sex drive, but how it's integrated within the holistic package. In short: crummy coping strategies are crummy.

Difference between them? "Hypersexuality" is less pretentiously Victorian. *shrugs*

If that's so, then what's the term for someone has a pathologically high sex drive, i.e. it clearly has a negative impact on their social life — perhaps even if their basic livelihood and mental health — and the afflicted person seems addictively obsessive about attempting to satisfying it?

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

An addict with management issues. Why does there have to be a specific term for every last physiologically-based addiction?

I don't know, but it seemed to me like something that it would already have a term assigned to it by now.

edited 6th Sep '15 8:35:53 AM by MarqFJA

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

I've just heard it called "Sexual addiction" The reason it doesnt need a special term is because all psychological addictions (as opposed to the physical ones) are treated the same way- with cognitive behavioral therapy. It doesn't matter that much what the person is addicted to.

"We learn from history that we do not learn from history."

Yeah "sex addict" seems like the correct term, same as "gambling addict" and such, alcoholism has a special term due it being so common (also I guess due to it being both a physical and psychological addiction? I don't know).

"And the Bunny nails it!" ~ Gabrael "If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we." ~ Cyran

All addictions are, at root, physiological. That always comes first, then the psychological dependency and other cognitive issues. You are born more likely to become an addict through no fault of your own: what you get addicted to is often down to your environment or the luck of the draw with other genetic or socioeconomic surprises thrown in. It's easy for those born without the neurological traps to dismiss it all as a "weakness"... mainly because it's very hard to imagine a form of data processing you were not born with.

Alcoholism only gets a name like it does because it's the one addiction that's been visible longest and clearest in the literature. It's been around long before it was recognised that addiction itself was the problem, not just the substance somebody gets addicted to.

Oh, and just as somebody can be born with a good head for drink, but not become addicted to it... so, too, can somebody with a high libido and enjoyment of sex not be addicted to that, either. FYI. Luck of the draw. :/

edited 6th Sep '15 10:11:39 AM by Euodiachloris

Sorry I should have said chemical, there are chemical components in stuff like tobacco and alcohol that are addictive, while things like weed, sex and gambling lack those chemical components in the product, they are still things you can become addicted to. In the end it's possible to become addicted to anything isn't it?

"And the Bunny nails it!" ~ Gabrael "If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we." ~ Cyran

I believe that there is a physiological difference between a chemical addiction and a purely psychological one. A chemical addiction requires a medical component to the treatment, hence such things as nicotine patches and so forth. No medical treatment is required in the case of a sexual or gambling addiction.

"We learn from history that we do not learn from history."

Just because a non-chemical cue triggers the dopamine cascade doesn't make it any less physiological, though. If anything, it makes treatment that much harder and the temptation to substite the overt trigger to something else all too easy. :/

It's basically the same set of wiring behind it, however it's first primed. Why should the nature of the initial trigger matter in deciding what in the body-mind partnership is "at fault" once the feedback behaviours are there?

edited 6th Sep '15 11:32:57 AM by Euodiachloris

Both are just as valid and real. The only difference is how you treat it, sometimes.

I am reluctant to make strong distinctions between physically based addictions and mentally based addictions because it is very easy for someone to pull the whole "it's all in your head so it's fake" invalidation.

"Psssh. Even if you could catch a miracle on a picture any person would probably delete it to make space for more porn." - Aszur

The tendency of some people to use invalid and ignorant distinctions between two things does not invalidate any real distinctions between those two things. There are distinct differences in the way physically harmful and non-physically harmful addiction work. Esp in the aftermath: a physical addiction leaves you with a craving, a painful mental state that drives people to extreme behaviors in order to alleviate the pain. Psychological addictions generally do not have that effect- they generally leave you missing a "high", but I have never heard of any one in physical pain due to a sexual or a gambling craving. They want that high back, but they aren't suffering from visual hallucinations or body cramps. I suppose I could be wrong- this isnt my particular area of expertise. Provide me with a study and I'll revise my opinion.

edited 6th Sep '15 9:38:44 PM by DeMarquis

"We learn from history that we do not learn from history."

Gamblers often do complain of pain while trying to reform, you know. It's a different set of pains, but I've seen enough shake and sweat to not discount real physical effects.

Just because you can't point to an outside poison doesn't mean their unbalanced and shifting neurochemistry isn't screwing with their pain receptors, lymph and vascular systems quite directly.

Unless you want to try telling me heart pain and anxiety don't go together like bread and butter, either?

Just because they didn't introduce as many complications by getting addicted to pure stimuli-response rather than going for a toxin-induced stimulus cascade doesn't negate what both groups share: the anomalous neurochemical reaction to intense stimulus. And, the knock-on physiological effects of that.

edited 6th Sep '15 10:08:27 PM by Euodiachloris

Say, is there a brain disorder where instead of being addicted to sex, the afflicted person simply has a constantly active libido that never seems to be satiable? Or is that just synonymous with sex addiction?

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

Just as some people have no interest in sex, some have tonnes. It's a "disorder" in the same way the bell curve for height is one.

Sure, people can get brain damage that impacts their baseline libido... but, that's not a common side effect. :/ Manic episodes can get sexy, but that's more to do with the risk assessment filters getting fried, along with problems finding the off switch in general.

Why all this sudden interest in the libido?

No particular reason.

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

As someone who has struggled with addiction, I assure you it is very hard to tell where the physical part ends and the mental part begins and visa versa. Depending on what chemical Substance you were hooked on, that line gets even more fuzzy of not nonexistent because you could have damaged your brain to the point it needs your drug and it continues.

There are very rare but devistating medical conditions Like constantly having orgasms. But those are insanely rare and no one is happy to have them. It can kill you because of the stress it puts on you mentally and physically.

"Psssh. Even if you could catch a miracle on a picture any person would probably delete it to make space for more porn." - Aszur

Yeah, I saw that one TV news report about the woman who got stuck in a constant state of orgasm for three hours after having sex with her boyfriend/husband, and only had "run its course" an hour or so after she went to the hospital. Reality deconstructing the common porn setup of putting someone through hours or even days of a constant stream of orgasms in order to brainwash the victim into an obedient slave.

edited 7th Sep '15 6:09:01 AM by MarqFJA

Fiat iustitia, et pereat mundus.

If you like the funky weird parts of sex psychology theories you might wanna read Freud

edited 7th Sep '15 1:25:49 PM by Aszur

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes