SciShow Psych: The Dark Side of Disgust

 We’re all super familiar with the feeling we get when we smell rotten food or see gross bodily fluids. But this visceral emotion does a lot more than that, and it’s important understand to how the darker side of disgust can influence us.

SciShow Psych: Identity Politics: How All Your Identities Sway Your Vote

People throw out the term "identity politics" as a way to say that someone is wrong, but the truth is, it's something that affects the way all of us vote.

SciShow Psych: Why Can’t I Remember My Dreams?

Everyone has dreams, but some people are better at remembering them than others. Scientists aren't sure why we dream, but remembering them has a lot to do with the activity in your brain, and with how well you sleep.

SciShow Psych: Why More Choices Don't Make You Happy

We're surrounded by choices in life, but psychologists have found that having those choices doesn't necessarily make us happy.

SciShow Psych: Spelunking in the Uncanny Valley

With all the CGI cat-humans going around on the internet these days, it’s hard to deny the sense of yikes known as the uncanny valley. But what exactly is this phenomenon, and why do we feel it when we do?

SciShow Psych: The Dark Side of Needing Closure

Seeking closure is normally a good thing, but it also has a dark side. And if you’re not careful, chasing after it could set you up for some pretty bad decisions.

SciShow Psych: The Stroop Task: The Psych Test You Cannot Beat

The task sounds like it should be pretty easy, but the Stroop task is a fantastic, and very well studied, example of how your brain’s automatic processing can trip you up!

SciShow Psych: When Waking up After Decades Turned out to Be Temporary

Around 1917, an unknown illness dubbed "sleeping sickness" caused people to suffer severe sleepiness and delirium. Some even became paralyzed for decades until a temporary cure was discovered in the 1960s. The story of this illness is tragic but offered new insight into how our brains function.

SciShow Psych: Why Do We Still Teach Freud If He Was So Wrong?

Freud is one of the most famous psychologists ever, but a lot of the things he taught are just… well, wrong. So why do we still spend so much time talking about this dude in psychology classes?

SciShow Psych: When Everything Feels Like a Dream | Depersonalization-Derealization Disorder

It's not rare to feel like we're dreaming, even right after we wake up, but when it sticks around for longer than it should, it can merit its own diagnosis: depersonalization-derealization disorder (DDD). Hank unpacks what this disorder is and how scientists and doctors are working to understand and treat it.

SciShow Psych: How to Keep Power from Going to Your Head

The famous British historian Lord Acton once said, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” And science tends to agree, but how we can prevent power from going to our heads?

SciShow Psych: Why Do People Join Cults?

It’s easy to assume that people who join cults have something wrong with them, but usually the people who join cults are just like the rest of us. So, how does it happen?

SciShow Psych: What Does Pornography Do to Your Brain?

SciShow Psych: How Auditory Illusions Trick Your Brain into Hearing Things

Your brain relies a lot on context to tell you what sounds are bouncing around in your ears, and without enough of that context it can get a little confused.

SciShow Psych: Brain Hacks to Make Your Food Taste Better

SciShow Psych: Why Does Pet Therapy Work? (It's Not Just Cute Dogs)

Many studies have shown that pets can relieve anxiety, stress, and provide comfort, but why pet therapy is effective has a lot more to do with us than our furry pals. 

SciShow Psych: Does LSD Really Have A Medical Use?

SciShow Psych: Humanity's Deepest, Darkest Fear

Most of us experience specific fears at one point or another, like of death or the future, but psychologists believe there might be one underlying fear from which all others originate.

SciShow Psych: Why Do So Many People Share and Believe Fake News?

SciShow Psych: How Your Baby Changes Your Brain