Podcast appearances and mentions of catherine loveday

Do you look back on the past with rose-tinted spectacles, memories of the good old days accompanied by warm, fuzzy feelings? Or when you reflect on the past is it hard to do so without a tinge of sadness? Whether you fall on the more bitter or more sweet side, this is the bittersweet feeling of nostalgia. But nostalgia was not always just a feeling. Historian Agnes Arnold Forster tells Claudia and the panel that once it was viewed as a disease so deadly that it appeared on thousands of death certificates. And now this poignant emotion stirs political action, bonds us to others, and guides our very understanding of ourselves.Our expert panel of psychologists; Peter Olusoga, senior lecturer in psychology at Sheffield Hallam University, Daryl O'Connor, professor of psychology at the University of Leeds, and Catherine Loveday, professor of cognitive neuroscience at the University of Westminster, join Claudia in the studio to discuss how leaning into nostalgia can help us feel better, reduce pain, and even inject a bit of romance into life.Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Lorna Stewart Assistant Producer: Katie Tomsett

In the second of two special holiday episodes Claudia Hammond and an expert panel of psychologists look to the future. A new year is upon us, a time when we often find ourselves reflecting on the year gone by and thinking about what comes next. Thinking about the future comes so naturally to most people that we don't realise what a complicated - and essential - skill it is. Catherine Loveday, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster, explains how our ability to mentally time travel into the future is useful for everyday tasks as well as fundamental to shaping our identity.Daryl O'Connor, Professor of Psychology at the University of Leeds, discusses how thinking about the future motivates us in the present.And Peter Olusoga, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Sheffield Hallam University, describes how professional sportspeople use visualisation and future thinking to improve sporting success - and what the rest of us can learn from that.Together they discuss how we hold ideas of the future in mind, whether unbounded optimism is the best way ahead – or not, and how to science-proof our favourite future planning at this time of year - new year's resolutions.If you are suffering distress or despair and need support, including urgent support, a list of organisations that can help is available at bbc.co.uk/actionline.Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Lorna Stewart Content Editor: Holly Squire Studio Manager: Emma Harth Production Co-ordinators:  Siobhan Maguire and Andrew Rhys Lewis

In the first of two special holiday episodes, Claudia Hammond and an expert panel of psychologists look back, nostalgically. At this festive time of year, you might be thinking wistfully about Christmas past – perhaps you'll be rewatching old films, arguing over a game of Monopoly, or listening to Christmas music that drives you mad. Maybe you are looking back with rose-tinted spectacles on the Christmases gone by that seem somehow more magical than they are now. Or perhaps it's hard to look back without feeling a tinge of sadness. Whether you fall on the more bitter or more sweet side of bittersweet, this is the bittersweet feeling of nostalgia. And it is particularly rife at this time of year.But nostalgia wasn't always just a feeling. Historian Agnes Arnold Forster tells Claudia and the panel that once it was viewed as a disease so deadly that it appeared on thousands of death certificates. And now this poignant emotion stirs political action, bonds us to others, and guides our very understanding of ourselves.Peter Olusoga, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Sheffield Hallam University, Daryl O'Connor, Professor of Psychology at the University of Leeds, and Catherine Loveday, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster, join Claudia in the studio to discuss how leaning into nostalgia can help us feel better, reduce pain and even inject a bit of romance into life.Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Lorna Stewart Content Editor: Holly Squire Studio Manager: Emma Harth

Did someone amazing support you through mental health problems and would you like to recognise that support? Claudia Hammond launches the All in the Mind Awards where you can nominate individuals, professionals and groups who have helped you in your hardest times. Full details in the programme or by going to bbc.co.uk/radio4/allinthemind where you'll also find full terms. Entries close 8th January 2025 at 1pm.We want to recognise friends, family, colleagues, professionals, groups who have supported those with mental health problems. And to launch the awards Claudia talks to Joe Wicks, one of the judges this year, about how he supports his parents with their mental health difficulties, and about his passion for exercise as a route to improving mental health. Claudia is joined by cognitive neuroscientist Catherine Loveday from the University of Westminster. They discuss the role of cortisol in our bodies and how social media trends like #cortisolface are misleading. And Claudia and Catherine are joined in the studio by musician Sean O'Hagan and his neighbour Chris Newman doesn't understand the joy Sean takes from it. Together they discuss why music makes some of us emotional but leaves others cold. And neuroscientist Catherine attempts to measure Chris' response to music and discusses musical anhedonia, a condition which affects 5-10% of people including, possibly, Chris.Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Lorna Stewart Studio Manager: Emma Harth Production Coordinator: Siobhan Maguire

While helping his son with his maths revision, Andrew was struck by the ease with which he slipped back into the groove of the subject. He wants to know why that might be. James Tytko sought to find out with help from Catherine Loveday, neuropsychologist at the University of Westminster... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

First today, a story of alleged academic fraud. The allegations against Professor Francesca Gino might seem unremarkable at first sight. After all, we've covered allegations of fraud in psychology on All in the Mind before and the field has been doing all sorts to try to fix the problems. But what is unusual about this eminent Harvard researcher is that her research topic is dishonesty. Yes, a dishonesty researcher accused of the doing the very thing she studies. Cathleen O'Grady reports on a tale of data sleuths and multi-million dollar law suits.Of course there's no reason why a dishonesty researcher should be any more honest than anyone else. But somehow we feel as though you should have extra high standards if this is the topic you study, otherwise you could be accused of hypocrisy. Which got us wondering what it is about hypocrisy that interests, and sometimes infuriates, us so much? Professor Catherine Loveday, from the University of Westminster, is in the studio with Claudia to take a look at the evidence.And we hear from Professor Rory O'Connor, at the University of Glasgow, about a generation of men whose suicide risk appears to have followed them through life. We talk about what that generation can tell us, as well as about the latest suicide statistics for England, and about what you can do to help someone in your life who you think might be having suicidal thoughts. And if you are suffering distress or despair, details of help and support are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline.And finally, were you lucky ones enough to see the Northern Lights this weekend? Claudia and Catherine Loveday unpack the psychology of awe.Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Lorna Stewart Content Editor: Holly Squire Production Coordinator: Siobhan Maguire

These days we see a lot of negative stories related to screen time – how we're addicted to our phones and social media is damaging our mental health. But is our panic about screens justified? Pete Etchells, professor of psychology and science communication at Bath Spa University, talks Claudia Hammond through the latest evidence in this field – and it turns out it's all a lot more complicated than we think.Many of us will often get catchy tunes stuck in our head, or have an inner monologue narrating our experiences. But this isn't the case for everyone – some people have what they describe as a silent inner world. This inability to hear sounds in your head has been named anauralia, which PhD student Sang Hyun Kim experiences, and he describes his inner life to Claudia. We also hear from Professor of Psychology Tony Lambert, who has been running studies into anauralia at the University of Auckland. And Claudia is joined in the studio by Catherine Loveday, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster, who has also recently published a study on anauralia – and puts Claudia's auditory imagery skills to the test. And Catherine also talks us through a new study on how live music can amplify emotional responses in the brain.Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Sophie Ormiston Studio Manager: Tim Heffer Production Coordinator: Siobhan Maguire Editor: Holly Squire

Music is a universal language, a connecting force during all of life's highs and lows. But why does music make us emotional? From feelings of elation and melancholy, to unease and motivation - why and how does music play with not only our emotions, but our brains themselves? Catherine Loveday, Professor of Neuropsychology at the University of Westminster, joins Luke Turner to discuss the psychology of music, its impact on our memory and why our teenage music loves stay with us forever. • "Music is in masses of different areas of the brain, and when we look in brain scanners when people are improvising, performing, or listening to music we see huge amounts of activation” - Prof Catherine Loveday • “There is research that shows longer-term musical memories are robust, and are less likely to be impacted by conditions such as dementia than other memories” - Prof Catherine Loveday • "There is a theory that music was our communication tool from before we developed language” - Prof Catherine Loveday • "There is no consistency in what people choose as their favourite genre of music, everyone develops their own taste and love of particular types of music” - Prof Catherine Loveday WHY? is written and presented by Luke Turner. Produced by Jade Bailey. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group editor: Andrew Harrison. Artwork by James Parrett. Music by DJ Food. WHY? is a Podmasters production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How stressed out do you get by TV quiz shows? And would that change if you were a contestant yourself? Cognitive researchers at the University of Arizona have studied back-episodes of Mastermind to find out how people react in high-stress situations - particularly how much they blink. Their findings offer insight into how blinking changes in stressful and mentally challenging situations – but also what it can tell us about cognitive processes. Claudia Hammond hears from BBC presenter and Celebrity Mastermind "Champion of Champions" 2019, Samira Ahmed, and speaks to Bob Wilson, associate professor in cognitive science and psychology at the University of Arizona, about the research. Have you ever walked into a room and completely forgotten what you came in for? Studies show that changing your physical location can "bookend" thoughts and shape how our memories compartmentalise information. Now a new study has been looking at whether shifts in our moods can do the same. Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, used music to elicit specific emotions in subjects, so they could assess how changes in emotional states might affect how memories are formed. Claudia hears from assistant professor of psychology, David Clewett, one of the paper's authors.And this week's studio guest Catherine Loveday, professor of cognitive neuroscience at the University of Westminster, explains why anger can on occasion be a rather useful emotion.Organisations offering information and support relating to some of the issues covered in this series of All In The Mind can be found at bbc.co.uk/actionline. Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Lucy Taylor Studio Manager: Tim Heffer Production Coordinator: Siobhan Maguire Editor: Holly Squire

This Autumn, the UK has seen a shortage of life-altering medication for people living with ADHD. Many have found themselves completely out of pills and are now having to deal with symptoms which made life so tough prior to their diagnosis. Claudia Hammond hears about this challenging situation from Steph, who was only diagnosed with ADHD in August but experienced life-altering benefits after taking medication. Now having run out, she's struggling, and worries that even if she gets her prescription soon, this might happen again. Claudia hears what's caused this shortage from Martin Sawer, executive director of the UK Healthcare Distribution Association, and what people living with ADHD can do in the meantime from psychiatrist, Uthish Sreedaran. Caring for a relative in the final months of their life can be challenging and all consuming. And once they pass away, the carer can be left not only feeling bereaved but without a purpose. Nick contacted allinthemind@bbc.co.uk to explain how he struggled when he lost his wife following years of caring for her, and how - after a period of complete darkness - a new purpose emerged in his life. Catherine Loveday, professor of cognitive neuroscience at the University of Westminster, joins Claudia in the studio to discuss how different people assume distinct roles when caring for a relative with dementia, why keeping positive news a secret might bring us benefits and your experiences of forgetting 2021... Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Julia Ravey Studio Manager: Tim Heffer Editor: Holly Squire Production Co-ordinator: Siobhan Maguire

A good bedside manner is a wanted quality in healthcare professionals. But as is performing procedures that can be painful or uncomfortable. As medical students train to become doctors, they can experience changes in their levels of empathy; the ability to resonate with how others feel. Learning long lists of diagnoses and pathologies, the human body starts to resemble more of a machine. But how detrimental is this? Claudia Hammond asks Jeremy Howick, director of the Stoneygate Centre for empathic healthcare at the University of Leicester, who is training healthcare professionals to express more patient empathy to improve health outcomes and reduce burnout. Lasana Harris, professor of social neuroscience at UCL, describes how too much empathy might be a cause of burnout, and medics should toggle empathy on and off depending on context. Medical students from the University of Bristol express how they feel empathy should come into their future roles. The finalists of the All in the Mind Awards continue to be announced. This week, we hear from Terri, who went through a huge period of loss at the same time as her foster child. During this time, foster care consultant Pam knew just want to say. She could help Terri see how her child was expressing her grief and also gave her permission to acknowledge the good job she was doing. Catherine Loveday, professor of cognitive neuroscience at the University of Westminster, joins Claudia and describes how nostalgia can help with route remembering and how easy it is to implant childhood memories. Produced in partnership with the Open University. Producer: Julia Ravey Content producer: Dan Welsh

Grief is a universal experience, but one which affects every individual differently. A grieving person might feel guilty, listless, frightened, or angry. And at a time when they most need support, the bereaved may find other people turning away from them, not really knowing how to talk to them about their feelings and the person they've lost. So how can we learn to better cope with grief in ourselves and in others? In this episode, Ella Rhodes, journalist for The Psychologist, speaks to two experts who are working to help us understand how people process grief and what can be done to support those who are grieving. Our guests are Dr Mary-Frances O'Connor, Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology and Psychiatry at the University of Arizona and author of The Grieving Brain, and Jane Harris, psychotherapist and co-founder of The Good Grief Project. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ella Rhodes. Script edits by Matthew Warren. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Artwork by Tim Grimshaw. Further resources More information about The Good Grief Project can be found at the project's website Check out Dr Mary-Frances O'Connor's website for more on her book The Grieving Brain, as well as a list of publications including those discussed in this episode. Last year, Jon Sutton interviewed Dr Mary-Frances O'Connor for The Psychologist Also in The Psychologist: Elaine Kasket talks to Bjørn Johnson about his film Memory Box: Echoes of 9/11, and discusses the themes of the film with Jane Harris. PsychCrunch is sponsored by Routledge Psychology.

Pull on an extra layer and stay toasty whilst Science in Action braces for a deep freeze. Whilst we know plenty about the ice on the Earth's poles, Roland is on a chilling journey to see what can be found in deep space. Professor Christoph Salzmann and Professor Andrea Sella at University College London have produced a new phase of ice. Roland heads to the laboratory to see how the usual crystalline ice, found in ice cubes and icebergs, can be broken down and arranged into a new structure. The James Webb Space Telescope has detected the coldest ices to date, deep within a molecular cloud in outer space. Professor Melissa McClure describes how these clouds harbour a variety of different molecules potentially capable of forming the basic building blocks for life. From the edges of the universe to something a little closer to home, Professor Geoff Collins and colleagues have discovered odd tectonic plate activity on icy Europa, one of Jupiter's moons. We generate a huge amount of noise, whether it's our rumbling roads, pumping parties, or talkative tourists. And the topic of noise also generates a lot of questions from our listeners. In this episode we explore three of them, with the help of acoustic scientist Kurt Fristrup and neuropsychologist Catherine Loveday. Listener Dominique finds it hard to experience even one minute of a natural soundscape without some intrusion of human-made noise. He wonders how noise pollution is affecting both the natural world and us humans. We discuss just how noisy our modern world is, and visit a National Park in California to hear how they're encouraging more peace and quiet there. Meanwhile Michelle, having witnessed her husband wince in pain at the sound of squeaking takeaway boxes, asks why certain noises are particularly unpleasant or even painful to some people. And finally, Jennifer has a sonic mystery for us to solve: why does the time of day make such a difference to the distant noises reaching her remote home?

We generate a huge amount of noise, whether it's our rumbling roads, pumping parties, or talkative tourists. And the topic of noise also generates a lot of questions from our listeners. In this episode we explore three of them, with the help of acoustic scientist Kurt Fristrup and neuropsychologist Catherine Loveday. Listener Dominique finds it hard to experience even one minute of a natural soundscape without some intrusion of human-made noise. He wonders how noise pollution is affecting both the natural world and us humans. We discuss just how noisy our modern world is, and visit a National Park in California to hear how they're encouraging more peace and quiet there. Meanwhile Michelle, having witnessed her husband wince in pain at the sound of squeaking takeaway boxes, asks why certain noises are particularly unpleasant or even painful to some people. And finally, Jennifer has a sonic mystery for us to solve: why does the time of day make such a difference to the distant noises reaching her remote home? With contributions from Professor Catherine Loveday, Dr Kurt Fristrup and Mia Monroe. Additional audio courtesy of the U.S. National Park Service/Patrick Myers, Dominique Laloux, and Boise State University/Jesse Barber. Presenter: Anand Jagatia Producer: Cathy Edwards Studio Managers: Bob Nettles and Jackie Margerum

What's the first thing you remember doing? It could be playing with your friends at school, or going to a birthday party and eating amazing cake. Most of us have a treasured early memory of our childhood, but can we really believe those vivid memories? Did those special moments really happen – or did we make them up?你记得做的第一件事是什么？可能是在学校和你的朋友一起玩，或者去参加生日聚会吃美味的蛋糕。我们大多数人都对童年有着珍贵的早期记忆，但我们真的可以相信那些生动的记忆吗？那些特殊的时刻真的发生了吗——还是我们编造的？It's a strange concept to grasp, but according to research, about four out of 10 of us invent our first childhood memory. Rather than having experienced something, we could have fabricated a fake memory from videos or photos we've seen. We could have been influenced by a story recounted to us that spurs our minds on to adopt someone else's memory as our own. What it means is that memories of our younger years, especially before the age of two, may be inaccurate, or entirely false.这是一个奇怪的概念，但根据研究，大约十分之四的人发明了我们的第一个童年记忆。我们可以根据看过的视频或照片编造虚假记忆，而不是经历过某些事情。我们可能会受到向我们讲述的一个故事的影响，这个故事会刺激我们的思想将别人的记忆当作我们自己的记忆。这意味着我们年轻时的记忆，尤其是两岁之前的记忆，可能是不准确的，或者完全是错误的。But why don't we have clear memories from that age? Well, our ability to retain memories from before the age of two isn't great. While at that age we do have short-term memories, according to Catherine Loveday, an expert in autobiographical memory at the University of Westminster, the memories that infants make are not long-lasting. This is possibly due to the rapid creation of brain cells in our early years. Some scientists also believe that as we get older, our childhood memories fade and after the age of seven, we get some kind of ‘childhood amnesia'.但为什么我们对那个时代没有清晰的记忆呢？好吧，我们保留两岁之前记忆的能力并不好。根据威斯敏斯特大学自传体记忆专家凯瑟琳·洛夫戴 (Catherine Loveday) 的说法，虽然在那个年龄我们确实有短期记忆，但婴儿的记忆并不持久。这可能是由于我们早年脑细胞的快速产生。一些科学家还认为，随着年龄的增长，我们的童年记忆会逐渐消失，七岁以后，我们会患上某种“童年失忆症”。So why do we create fake memories? Some experts believe that there is a clear desire for a sense of self and having a cohesive story of our existence. Creating memories can fill in the gaps – giving us a more complete structure for our early lives. As we get older, we want to have a complete picture of our entire lives.↳那么我们为什么要制造虚假记忆呢？一些专家认为，人们对自我意识和对我们的存在有一个连贯的故事有着明确的渴望。创造记忆可以填补空白——为我们的早年生活提供更完整的结构。随着年龄的增长，我们希望对自己的整个生活有一个完整的了解。So, the next time someone says they have a clear memory from when they were one – or even before - just remember that while it could be true, there's a chance they just invented it at some point in their lives.↳因此，下一次有人说他们对自己的童年或什至以前记忆犹新时，请记住，虽然这可能是真的，但也有可能是他们在生活中的某个时刻发明的。↳词汇表treasured 珍视的，珍重的vivid 鲜明的，生动的concept 概念grasp 理解，领会fabricate 编造recount 叙述spur on 促使，激励adopt 采纳，采用inaccurate 不准确的clear 清晰的retain 记住short-term memory 短期记忆autobiographical 自传体的，与个人生活事件紧密相关的long-lasting 持久的brain cell 脑细胞fade 逐渐被遗忘amnesia 失忆cohesive 完整连贯的

Przekleństwa kojarzą się z negatywnymi emocjami, ale skąd się bierze w nas potrzeba przeklinania i jak nabywamy tę umiejętność? Klniemy czasem na porozrzucane w miastach elektryczne hulajnogi, co stało się w mieście, które ograniczyło ich używanie? W dzisiejszym odcinku opowiem także o zwierzętach, które dźwięki wydają, choć uważane były za nieme. Zapraszam serdecznie!A jeśli odcinek Ci się spodoba udostępnij go, proszę, dalej i subskrybuj podkast gdziekolwiek go słuchasz, możesz też prosto i szybko postawić mi dobrą kawę - buycoffee.to/naukowo - z góry dziękuję :)Jeśli uznasz, że warto regularnie wspierać ten projekt to zapraszam do serwisu Patronite.pl/naukowo, każda dobrowolna wpłata od słuchaczy pozwoli mi na utrzymanie, rozwój i doskonalenie tego podkastu, bardzo dziękuję za każde wsparcie!Zapraszam również na Facebooka, Twittera i Instagrama, każdy lajk i udostępnienie bardzo pomaga mi w docieraniu z naukowymi doniesieniami do nowych słuchaczy.Na stronie Naukowo.net znajdziesz więcej interesujących artykułów naukowych, zachęcam również do dyskusji na tematy naukowe, dzieleniu się wiedzą i nowościami z naukowego świata na naszym serwerze Discord.Źródła użyte przy tworzeniu odcinka:Jorgewich-Cohen, G., Townsend, S.W., Padovese, L.R. et al. Common evolutionary origin of acoustic communication in choanate vertebrates. Nat Commun 13, 6089 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-33741-8Asensio, O.I., Apablaza, C.Z., Lawson, M.C. et al. Impacts of micromobility on car displacement with evidence from a natural experiment and geofencing policy. Nat Energy (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-022-01135-1Karyn Stapleton, Kristy Beers Fägersten, Richard Stephens, Catherine Loveday. "The power of swearing: What we know and what we don't". https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lingua.2022.103406

We've lived side-by-side with domestic cats for thousands of years, yet they maintain an aura of mystery and a reputation for aloofness and even outright disdain for humans. But are cats really so enigmatic – or are we only just beginning to understand them? In this episode, Ella Rhodes, journalist for The Psychologist, speaks to two experts who are working to help us to understand cats. They discuss research on cat cognition and intelligence, chat about what we can do how to make our cats' lives happier, and even share some tips on how to train them. Our guests are Dr Kristyn Vitale, assistant professor of animal health and behaviour at Unity College, and Dr Zazie Todd, author of the Companion Animal Psychology blog and recent book Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ella Rhodes. Script edits by Matthew Warren. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Artwork by Tim Grimshaw. Relevant research and writing from our guests includes: Companion Animal Psychology: a blog written by Zazie Todd Several articles by Kristyn Vitale and colleagues: Attachment bonds between domestic cats and humans The quality of being sociable: The influence of human attentional state, population, and human familiarity on domestic cat sociability What's inside your cat's head? A review of cat (Felis silvestris catus) cognition research past, present and future

Have you heard this podcast before? Or are you experiencing Déjà vu? Catherine Loveday, neuroscience professor at the University of Westminster, joins Alex Andreou to explain the strange sensation that you've already experienced something, even when you know you never have, and why for some people it can become a serious problem.  “Déjà vu is the conflict you feel when you don't remember something but feel that you must.” “The feeling of familiarity helps us find our way in the world. When it goes wrong it can be quite disturbing.”  ”Our brains are fantastic prediction machines.” “Déjà vu is a temporary aberration of our memory system.” https://www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Alex Andreou. Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Assistant producer: Elina Ganatra. Lead producer: Jacob Jarvis. Audio production by Jade Bailey. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When breastfeeding goes wrong some women feel guilty that they have failed to do what should come naturally. But Professor Amy Brown from Swansea University says those with the most severe physical and emotional impact could be experiencing trauma, similar to the effects of a traumatic birth. We hear from Linzi Blakey who had problems with breastfeeding when she gave birth to her daughter and son and had to give up before she wanted to. A specialist therapist has helped her to realise that she did the best she could - despite a lack of the right kind of support when she was feeling vulnerable. Awkwardness can result when we do something embarrassing - and science writer Melissa Dahl set out to write a book on how to overcome those feelings of embarrassment. Cringeworthy: How To Make The Most Out of Uncomfortable Situations is the result of her discussions with scientists. She challenges herself to feats such as performing a stand-up routine, going to see a professional cuddler and reading out her teenage diaries to an audience at the Brooklyn show, Mortified. She now feels awkwardness is part of being human- and encourages us all to show more empathy to each other. Claudia's studio guest Catherine Loveday, Professor of Neuroscience at the University of Westminster shares her own cringeworthy stories plus news of a spat in the world of psychedelic drugs research and how hallucinations seem to be a lot more common than we thought. Producer: Paula McGrath Made in Partnership with The Open University

From carefully avoiding cracks in the pavement to saluting every magpie that you meet, superstitious behaviour is really common. But why do we have superstitions? Where do they come from? And are they helpful or harmful?  To find out, our presenter Ginny Smith talks to Stuart Vyse, former professor of psychology at Connecticut College and author of Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition. Ginny also chats to Laramie Taylor, professor of communication at the University of California Davis, who explains how superstition and magical thinking is linked to being a fan of both fiction and sports. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith. Script edits by Matthew Warren. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work by Tim Grimshaw. Relevant research and writing from our guests includes: Magical thinking and fans of fictional texts and Sports Fans and Magical Thinking: How Supernatural Thinking Connects Fans to Teams, both by Laramie Taylor and discussed in the podcast. Do Superstitious Rituals Work?, an article at Skeptical Inquirer in which Stuart Vyse discusses some of the work mentioned in this episode. How Superstition Works, an extract from Vyse's book Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition, published at The Atlantic.

Many of us tend to dismiss dreams as merely the churning of the brain— but for much of human history, dreams were taken very seriously. Claudia Hammond speaks to Brazilian neuroscientist Sidarta Ribeiro who in his new wide ranging book The Oracle of Night wants to recapture that seriousness of dreams and the science of dreaming, drawing upon on his extensive career researching everything from sleep and memory to psychedelic drugs. As brain scans have become more detailed in recent decades, MRI or magnetic resonance imaging - has revealed correlations between brain anatomy or function and illness, that have suggested new ways to diagnose and treat psychiatric, psychological and neurological conditions. But why has the promise been so slow to turn into reality? Claudia Hammond is joined by Sophie Scott, Director of the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and also by neuroscientist Scott Marek of Washington University in St Louis. His new research offers some insights into why. Good listening is truly hearing what the other person has to say without putting your own layer of experience on top of it. But who's best at it – extroverts or introverts? Today's studio guest, Prof.Catherine Loveday of the University of Westminster weighs up the latest evidence. Producer Adrian Washbourne

Do you ever have a task you need to complete but however urgent it may be, you just don't get on and do it?您是否曾经有一项任务需要完成，但无论它多么紧迫，您就是不去做吗？ From doing the housework to writing an assignment, there's always something I can put off until tomorrow.从做家务到写作业，总有一些事情我可以推迟到明天。Being a procrastinator is quite easy. 成为拖延者很容易。There are so many other more interesting distractions such as watching funny cat videos on the internet or catching up with friends on social media! 还有很多其他更有趣的干扰，例如在互联网上观看有趣的猫视频或在社交媒体上与朋友聊天！But Benjamin Franklin, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, once wisely said that: 'You may delay, but time will not', in other words, the time we waste now is gone forever,但美国国父之一本杰明·富兰克林曾睿智地说：“你可以拖延，但时间不会”，换句话说，我们现在浪费的时间已经一去不复返了，so maybe I should pull my socks up and get on with what I should be doing.所以也许我应该拉起袜子，继续我应该做的事情。The reason why many of us delay doing something is that we live for the present not the future. 我们中的许多人延迟做某事的原因是我们为现在而不是未来而活。We are reluctant to engage in tasks that relate to the future – sorting something out now that will benefit us in the future doesn't seem like a priority.我们不愿意从事与未来相关的任务——现在整理出对我们未来有益的事情似乎并不是一个优先事项。 Daphna Oyserman, Professor of Psychology at the University of Southern California, says that "many things that are quite important about the future require that we start doing things now rather than waiting for later to happen ... waiting till later means that we won't have much time."南加州大学心理学教授 Daphna Oyserman 说：“许多对未来非常重要的事情要求我们现在就开始做事，而不是等到以后发生……等到以后就意味着我们赢了。”时间不多。” So get on with it now rather than have a last-minute panic later!But it's hard to muster any enthusiasm when there are tedious chores to be done, so how can I control my lack of focus and knuckle down to what really needs to be done?所以现在就开始吧，而不是等到最后一刻惊慌失措！但是当有繁琐的家务要做时，很难调动任何热情，那么我该如何控制自己的注意力不集中并专注于真正需要做的事情呢？ One idea is temptation bundling – doing two activities together – one that is boring but essential and one that you enjoy but isn't so productive. 一个想法是诱惑捆绑——一起做两项活动——一项无聊但必不可少，另一项你喜欢但效率不高。Planning is essential too and we should never underestimate how long things will take us. 计划也是必不可少的，我们永远不应低估事情需要多长时间。However, Dr Catherine Loveday from Westminster University warns us about a 'planning fallacy' thinking we can get something done quickly. 然而，威斯敏斯特大学的凯瑟琳·洛夫戴博士警告我们注意“计划谬误”，认为我们可以快速完成某事。She says "We never seem to get any better at judging time in the future and how long things will take us."她说：“我们在判断未来的时间和事情需要多长时间方面似乎从来没有变得更好。”Maybe for now, I'll make a cup of tea, and ponder on these thoughts before I crack on with some important tasks – anyway, there's always tomorrow.也许现在，我会泡一杯茶，在我开始做一些重要的任务之前，好好思考一下这些想法——不管怎样，明天总会有的。词汇表task 任务put off 延后，拖延procrastinator 托拉的人distraction 分心的事，分散注意力的东西pull my socks up 努力加油干，加把劲儿live for the present 活在当下reluctant 勉强的，不情愿的engage 参与priority 优先考虑的事情，重要的事情last-minute 最后一刻的muster 激起（某种感情）knuckle down 开始努力工作temptation bundling 诱惑捆绑（把一件需要做但枯燥的事情和一件有趣的事情连在一起做，合二为一）productive 有效率的underestimate 低估fallacy 谬论，谬见ponder 沉思，考虑to crack on 赶快加速继续（工作）

Our brain is probably the most important organ in our body.我们的大脑可能是我们身体中最重要的器官。 It's an incredibly complex thing that helps us think, speak, feel and move. 这是一件非常复杂的事情，可以帮助我们思考、说话、感受和行动。It's no wonder we need to look after it and just like the rest of our body, we need to keep it exercised to keep it healthy.难怪我们需要照顾它，就像我们身体的其他部分一样，我们需要保持锻炼以保持健康。Our brain is made up of 86 billion neurons – or nerve cells – but as we get older some of these slowly die off.我们的大脑由 860 亿个神经元或神经细胞组成，但随着年龄的增长，其中一些会慢慢死亡。 In extreme cases, nerve cells in different areas of the brain become damaged and eventually die causing a condition called dementia where a person is unable to perform certain mental functions.在极端情况下，大脑不同区域的神经细胞会受损并最终死亡，从而导致人们无法执行某些心理功能的痴呆症。It's a good idea to train our brain by learning ways to increase our memory or intelligence.通过学习增加记忆力或智力的方法来训练我们的大脑是个好主意。 I like to stretch my brain by doing a crossword or a Sudoku puzzle.我喜欢通过填字游戏或数独游戏来扩展我的大脑。There's also evidence that learning a second language can boost your brainpower. 还有证据表明，学习第二语言可以提高你的脑力。Dr Catherine Loveday, who's a neuropsychologist, thinks being bilingual is a protective factor for the brain because it "involves a lot of switchings and that seems to exercise the sort of executive parts of our brain. 神经心理学家凯瑟琳·洛夫戴博士认为，双语是大脑的保护因素，因为它“涉及很多转换，而且似乎锻炼了我们大脑的执行部分。Those parts of the brain are kind of stronger and fitter when it comes to resisting some kind of damage from a stroke."在抵抗中风造成的某种伤害时，大脑的这些部分更加强壮和健康。”But if you're not bilingual there are other ways to stretch your brain: If you're right handed, doing tasks like brushing your teeth with your left hand will improve your brain – 但如果你不会双语，还有其他方法可以伸展你的大脑：如果你是右撇子，用左手做刷牙之类的任务会改善你的大脑——or something I find very challenging, memorising a list of words, such as a shopping list.或者我觉得非常具有挑战性的东西，记住一个单词列表，比如购物清单。The main aim of trying these skills is to stimulate the brain.尝试这些技能的主要目的是刺激大脑。This is something Dr. Loveday describes as building up our cognitive reserve – that's building up extra abilities to help protect the brain against declining memory or thinking. 这就是洛夫戴博士所说的建立我们的认知储备的东西——这是建立额外的能力来帮助保护大脑免受记忆力或思维衰退的影响。She says "even if people take up languages or take up other things later in life it will give them a degree of protection." 她说：“即使人们在以后的生活中学习语言或学习其他东西，也会给他们一定程度的保护。”As I get older, that has put my mind at rest!随着年龄的增长，这让我放心了！The best bit of research I have read is that eating chocolate may enhance our ability to acquire and utilise knowledge – that's our cognitive performance. 我读过的最好的研究是吃巧克力可以增强我们获取和利用知识的能力——这就是我们的认知能力。It may not be healthy for the rest of my body but at least it might make me a brain box! What do you think?它可能对我身体的其他部分不健康，但至少它可能让我成为一个大脑盒子！你怎么看？词汇表organ 器官neurons 神经元nerve cells 神经细胞dementia 痴呆症、失智症mental functions 脑功能intelligence 智力crossword 填字游戏brainpower 脑力，智力neuropsychologist 神经心理学家bilingual （能使用）两种语言的，双语的executive 执行指令的resisting 抵抗，抵御stroke 中风stimulate 促进（身体某部位）的功能challenging 有挑战性的cognitive reserve 认知储备abilities 能力put my mind at rest 让我放心了enhance 提高，增强utilise 利用，使用cognitive performance 认知表现，认知能力a brain box 非常聪明的人

Why do people share false information? In this episode, our presenters Ginny Smith and Jon Sutton explore the psychology of misinformation. They hear about the factors that make people more or less likely to share misinformation, discuss strategies to correct false information, and learn how to talk to someone who is promoting conspiracy theories. Our guests, in order of appearance, are Tom Buchanan, Professor of Psychology at the University of Westminster, and Briony Swire-Thompson, senior research scientist at Northeastern University's Network Science Institute. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith, with additional reporting by Jon Sutton. Script edits by Matthew Warren. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work by Tim Grimshaw. Relevant research from our guests includes: Why do people spread false information online? The effects of message and viewer characteristics on self-reported likelihood of sharing social media disinformation. Spreading Disinformation on Facebook: Do Trust in Message Source, Risk Propensity, or Personality Affect the Organic Reach of “Fake News”? Predictors of likelihood of sharing disinformation on social media 2019-2020 Correction format has a limited role when debunking misinformation Backfire effects after correcting misinformation are strongly associated with reliability Public Health and Online Misinformation: Challenges and Recommendations

As Omicron spreads across the US, Claudia Hammond is joined by Professor Matt Fox from Boston University to discuss the latest Covid-19 news, including President Biden's pledge to make high-quality masks available across the country. Wheezing and feeling breathless is a fact of life for the 262 million people around the world who have asthma. Some worry that exercise will worsen their asthma symptoms. But UK researchers say that evidence shows that all people with asthma can exercise safely – even if that's just walking across a room. Lung specialist Andrew Wilson says that the risks are low as long as the symptoms are controlled with medication. Health psychologist Leanne Tyson recommends setting small goals and regular rewards to help keep up the habit. Asthma patient Bill Day, who's in his 50s, says now that his asthma is under control, he can swim two miles a day to keep fit and healthy. Yellow and green boxes on social media feeds mean that your friends have been sucked into the world of Wordle, the increasingly popular free online word game. Guessing a new five-letter word every day sounds simple, but Catherine Loveday, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster, explains just how much work the brain does to help solve the puzzle. Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Paula McGrath and Samara Linton (Picture: A young jogger using an asthma inhaler on the beach. Photo credit: Westend61/Getty Images.)

As Omicron spreads across the US, Claudia Hammond is joined by Professor Matt Fox from Boston University to discuss the latest Covid-19 news, including President Biden’s pledge to make high-quality masks available across the country. Wheezing and feeling breathless is a fact of life for the 262 million people around the world who have asthma. Some worry that exercise will worsen their asthma symptoms. But UK researchers say that evidence shows that all people with asthma can exercise safely – even if that’s just walking across a room. Lung specialist Andrew Wilson says that the risks are low as long as the symptoms are controlled with medication. Health psychologist Leanne Tyson recommends setting small goals and regular rewards to help keep up the habit. Asthma patient Bill Day, who’s in his 50s, says now that his asthma is under control, he can swim two miles a day to keep fit and healthy. Yellow and green boxes on social media feeds mean that your friends have been sucked into the world of Wordle, the increasingly popular free online word game. Guessing a new five-letter word every day sounds simple, but Catherine Loveday, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster, explains just how much work the brain does to help solve the puzzle. Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Paula McGrath and Samara Linton (Picture: A young jogger using an asthma inhaler on the beach. Photo credit: Westend61/Getty Images.)

Fish oil supplements are often touted as good for your heart health, but a new study finds they may also help fight depression. Alessandra Borsini of King's College London has been examining the impact of these omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in the lab and has followed up with a promising trial on severely depressed patients. She discusses how and why this might prove useful for those for whom current antidepressants don't make a difference. Does a good life involve more than just pleasure? Could suffering be essential too? The psychologist and author Paul Bloom argues in a new book called The Sweet Spot that the activities that provide the most satisfaction are often the ones that involve the greatest sacrifice or suffering and how embracing a balance between the two is the key to a life well lived. Claudia's guest is Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience, Catherine Loveday of University of Westminster, who launches a new study on our memory for comedy - investigating whether various types of comedy could be applied in a way that music is increasingly being used in therapy. Producer Adrian Washbourne Produced in association with the Open University

Can you see a brilliant idea on a brain scanner? What brain state do we need to be in to be at our most creative? Can drugs and booze really aid creativity? Do we get more creative as we get older? Can a bump on the head turn you into a genius? Are dreams nonsense or signs of creativity at work? And is the whole left side vs right side of the brain thing just a load of old bollocks?Who better too ask than Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience Dr Catherine Loveday, as she joins Neil and Simon and cuts through some of the usual free range waffle with the ordered precision of her scientific scalpel, and gives us a little bit of insight into the extraordinary abstract connection machine that is the human brain.https://www.westminster.ac.uk/about-us/our-people/directory/loveday-catherinehttps://twitter.com/cathloveday?lang=en-GB

In this episode, I am joined by the Neuropsychologist Dr Catherine Loveday who has an immense knowledge bank on human memory and also happens to specialize in music. Right here, we dive into the astounding impact of music on learning. Particularly looking at the effects music has on academic achievement and motivation to learn for students. - Kindly find below the link to Dr Catherine Loveday's very own published book:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31368315-the-secret-world-of-the-brain

Why do some songs get stuck in our heads? In this episode, our presenter Ginny Smith explores the psychology of earworms. Ginny hears about the possible evolutionary reasons for why we experience the phenomenon, learns what earworms can teach us about memory — and finds out how to get rid of them. Our guests, in order of appearance, are Kelly Jakubowski, assistant professor of music psychology at Durham University; Petr Janata, professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis; and Michael K. Scullin, associate professor of psychology and neuroscience at Baylor University. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work by Tim Grimshaw. Research from our guests includes: Dissecting an Earworm: Melodic Features and Song Popularity Predict Involuntary Musical Imagery Spontaneous mental replay of music improves memory for incidentally associated event knowledge. Bedtime Music, Involuntary Musical Imagery, and Sleep

In our second episode, Louise talks to Catherine Loveday, Professor of Neuropsychology at University of Westminster, about the effect that remote working is having on our brains and ability to concentrate. Catherine discusses the effects of replacing face to face interaction with video calls and specifically how this has impacted our productivity.

This is Episode 27 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society's Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. At Latitude Festival in Suffolk in July, The Psychologist Editor Dr Jon Sutton hosted a conversation in The Listening Post with Greta Defeyter, Professor of Developmental Psychology and founder and Director of the "Healthy Living" Lab at Northumbria University. An expert on food insecurity, social injustice, school feeding programmes and holiday hunger, Professor Defeyter considered why children go hungry, what we can do about it, and how her own experiences of poverty have shaped her.  Episode credits: Presented by Jon Sutton. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work by Tim Grimshaw. Thanks to Latitude Festival's arts and special events curator Kirsty Taylor. We hope to return with more from ‘The Psychologist Presents…' in 2022. Tickets for next year's event are already on sale via http://latitudefestival.com Background reading Professor Defeyter has just published her new book, Holiday Hunger in the UK, co-authored by Michael A. Long and Paul B. Stretesky The Psychologist also met Professor Defeyter as part of their special edition around the British Psychological Society policy theme of ‘From poverty to flourishing' Reports and transcripts from other appearances at Latitude Festival

This is Episode 26 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society's Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology.  What impact has the pandemic had on people's mental health? In this episode, our presenter Ginny Smith talks to researchers who have been conducting work throughout the pandemic to understand the toll that it has taken on our wellbeing. Ginny learns about the different factors that can make us more or less vulnerable to these effects, finds out how pregnant women have fared during this stressful time, and also hears about emerging data that finds links between the virus itself and mental health conditions. Our guests, in order of appearance, are Dr Susanne Schweizer, Sir Henry Wellcome Fellow at the University of Cambridge, and Professor Paul Harrison from the University of Oxford. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith. Script edits by Matthew Warren. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work by Tim Grimshaw. Background reading for this episode More information about the CORAL study is available on their website Paul Harrison's paper describing the link between Covid-19 infection and mental health conditions is available open access here. There is also a university press release about the work, and another related paper by the team

As Tanzania joins Covax, Rhoda Odhiambo discusses the challenges ahead and says 'joining' makes it sound simple but the requirements that need to be put in place are far from simple. Also,results from the first national TB prevalence survey in South Africa shows that the disease is found more in men and young people than previously recognised. Claudia talks to professor Martie van der Walt, director of the TB platform of the South African Medical Research Council while Taurai Maduna reports from a TB screening clinic in Diepsloot, Gauteng Province. Plus, professor Catherine Loveday on new research assessing lockdown memories and what they mean. Claudia's studio guest is Matt Fox from Boston University. Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Erika Wright (Photo: Portrait of a young man wearing a face mask in Nungwi, Tanzania. Credit: Jasmin Merdan/Getty Images)

How well are our memory systems functioning after lockdown? Cognitive neuroscientist Prof. Catherine Loveday discusses her new preliminary research into recalling individual memories of things we did during 2020. What insights can we gain from their richness? There have been more than 1100 entries for the All in the Mind Awards, and in the Professionals category, Zaynab who is recovering from psychosis, nominates her psychiatrist Dr Claire Purcell who went out of her way to help Zaynab reintegrate back into the community after years of institutionalisation. Fewer than 1 in 10 of the general population have regular problems with nightmares, but for people suffering from psychosis they can be frequent (50%) and their impact more intense. Nightmares have been a relatively unresearched area and treatment to alleviate their impact on sufferers is rarely directly addressed. We hear of a unique trial trying to change all that, led by Bryony Sheaves, research clinical psychologist at Oxford University. What is it about modern life that seems to cause such difficulty for so many? It's this question that neuroscientist and stand up comedian Dean Burnett has been exploring in his new book Psycho-Logical. Drawing on his two decades working in the neuroscience, psychology and psychiatry field, Dean is attempting to find a different way of demystifying mental health. Producer: Adrian Washbourne Produced in association with the Open University

This is Episode 25 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Are our personalities set in stone, or can we choose to change them? In this bonus episode, Matthew Warren talks to former Research Digest editor Christian Jarrett about his new book Be Who You Want: Unlocking the Science of Personality Change. Christian discusses the evidence-based methods you can use to alter your personality, whether you’re an introvert who wants to become the life of the party, or you simply wish you were a little more open to new experiences. He also explains how our personalities evolve over the course of our lifespans, even when we’re not consciously trying to change them, and ponders how they might be affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Be Who You Want: Unlocking the Science of Personality Change is out on May 18th in the United States and May 20th in the United Kingdom. Episode credits: Presented by Matthew Warren. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work by Tim Grimshaw. Work discussed in this episode includes: Merely desiring to alter your personality is not enough, and may backfire unless you take concrete action to change Longest ever personality study finds no correlation between measures taken at age 14 and age 77 Here’s How Our Personality Changes As We Age Other background reading A little discussed effect of therapy: it changes your personality Here’s How Personality Changes In Young Adulthood Can Lead To Greater Career Satisfaction When Deciding How To Improve Our Personalities, Moral Character Is Not A Priority New insights into lifetime personality change from “meta-study” featuring 50,000 participants

This is Episode 24 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. What role does play have in child development? In this episode, our presenter Ginny Smith talks to some top play researchers to find out how children learn new skills and concepts through play, and explores what teachers and parents can do to encourage this kind of learning. Ginny also discovers how the Covid-19 pandemic has changed the way kids play and learn. Our guests, in order of appearance, are Professor Marilyn Fleer and Dr Prabhat Rai from Monash University, and Dr Suzanne Egan from the University of Limerick. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith. Script edits by Matthew Warren. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work by Tim Grimshaw. Background reading for this episode The website for Fleer’s Conceptual PlayWorld contains more information about the model discussed by Marilyn Fleer and Prabhat Rai Publications and working papers from the Conceptual PlayLab are available here Here are some of the key findings from the PLEY survey discussed by Suzanne Egan

Prof Catherine Loveday is a principal lecturer and teaching fellow of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster. She is a memory scientist and her research covers autobiographical memory, musical memories and memory ageing. On International Women's Day, Brad talks to Catherine about her work in memory science, how our brains change over time, and her love of music and how it has a profound impact on our memory. She also talks about myth-busting in her book, The Secret World of the Brain. During the conversation, they also talk about: · Prof Loveday's background in memory science · Are male and female brains fundamentally different? · How our environment can change our brain · What does it mean to be conscious? · Why important memories in our lives are linked to music? · The idea that music taps into basic human emotions · How our memory is affected by ageing You can find out more about Catherine's book The Secret World of the Brain: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31368315-the-secret-world-of-the-brain You can follow Catherine Loveday on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/cathloveday​ Learn more about Catherine Loveday https://www.westminster.ac.uk/about-us/our-people/directory/loveday-catherine Make sure to subscribe to find out when the next conversation takes place. You can also follow Different Conversations on Twitter to keep in touch https://twitter.com/different_cast ​ About Different Conversations Podcast: Dr Brad Elliott, a senior lecturer in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Westminster, brings together a cross-section of Westminster colleagues to engage in some interesting, unusual and unexpected discussions for his bi-weekly podcast Different Conversations.

This is Episode 23 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest. In this episode, Emily Reynolds, staff writer at Research Digest, explores modern psychology’s relationship with race and representation. It’s well-known that psychology has a generalisability problem, with studies overwhelmingly using so-called “WEIRD” participants: those who are Western and educated and from industrialised, rich and democratic societies. But how does that shape the assumptions we make about participants of different racial identities or cultures? And how can top-tier psychology journals improve diversity among not only participants but also authors and editors? Our guests, in order of appearance, are Dr Bobby Cheon, Assistant Professor at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, and Dr Steven O. Roberts, Assistant Professor of Psychology at Stanford University. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Emily Reynolds. Script edits by Matthew Warren. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work by Tim Grimshaw. Research mentioned in this episode includes: How USA-Centric Is Psychology? An Archival Study of Implicit Assumptions of Generalizability of Findings to Human Nature Based on Origins of Study Samples Racial Inequality in Psychological Research: Trends of the Past and Recommendations for the Future Toward a psychology of Homo sapiens: Making psychological science more representative of the human population

What is the best way of getting on with people at home and at work? Psychologists Emily and Laurence Alison have spent their careers working with the police as they build rapport with suspects, sometimes terrorism suspects or perpetrators of domestic violence. And their conclusions about how best to do it have lessons for the rest of us too. They discuss their new book, "Rapport: the four ways to read people". Claudia catches up with Helen who nominated a finalist in the group category of the 2018 All in the Mind Awards to find out what she’s been up to in the last two years. What can you do in middle age to protect your brain later on? Everyone’s brain changes as they get older, but some people maintain their cognitive health and others don’t. Rik Henson, Deputy Director of the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit at the University of Cambridge, has brought together studies using brain scans with research where people in their 80s are asked to look back on their lives to try to work out the impact middle age activity can have on preserving your faculties. Do we have everything to look forward to in our teens and then realise later what life can throw at us? Bill Chopik Assistant Professor of Psychology at Michigan State University, carried out the largest study of its kind to discover when optimism peaks, with surprising results. Claudia's studio guest is Catherine Loveday, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster. Producer Adrian Washbourne

This is Episode 22 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology.  In this episode, Ella Rhodes, Journalist for The Psychologist, explores the boundaries between wakefulness and dreaming. What can we can learn about consciousness from the strange transition period between being awake and asleep, known as hypnagogia? And why do some people experience visions and imaginings that take them away for hours at a time? Our guests, in order of appearance, are Dr Valdas Noreika, lecturer in Psychology at Queen Mary University of London, and Dr Nirit Soffer-Dudek, clinical psychologist at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ella Rhodes, with additional content from Matthew Warren. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work by Tim Grimshaw. Background reading for this episode: Dreams: Everyone’s Guide to Inner Space, a paper by Deborah Wesley, is free to access thanks to our sponsors Routledge Psychology. Relevant research from our guests includes: Intrusions of a drowsy mind: neural markers of phenomenological unpredictability Trapped in a Daydream: Daily Elevations in Maladaptive Daydreaming Are Associated With Daily Psychopathological Symptoms The Comorbidity of Daydreaming Disorder (Maladaptive Daydreaming)

This is Episode 21 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology.  What can we do to stay connected in the middle of a pandemic? We’ve all played our part in fighting COVID-19, and for many of us that has meant staying away from our friends and families. In this episode, our presenter Ginny Smith explores how this unprecedented period of separation has reinforced the importance of connection. Ginny looks at how video chats compare to in-person interaction, and how psychology could help improve virtual communication in the future. She also examines the importance of touch for reducing stress — and asks whether interactions with our furry friends could make up for a lack of human contact. Our guests, in order of appearance, are Dr Shane Rogers, lecturer in psychology at Edith Cowan University, Australia, and Professor Patricia Pendry, from Washington State University. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work by Tim Grimshaw. Script edits by Matthew Warren. Background reading for this episode: Characteristics of Student– Dog Interaction during a Meet-and-Greet Activity in a University-Based Animal Visitation Program, a paper by Patricia Pendry and colleagues, is free to access thanks to our sponsors Routledge Psychology. Other research mentioned in this episode includes: Contact Is in the Eye of the Beholder: The Eye Contact Illusion Using dual eye tracking to uncover personal gaze patterns during social interaction Animal Visitation Program (AVP) Reduces Cortisol Levels of University Students: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Blue Health and well-being: During lockdown many people have said how they value getting out in nature more than ever. But is there something extra special about getting out into places where there is water? This doesn’t just have to mean the seaside. Could a river, canal or even a fountain in a park make us feel better? Dr Mathew White, senior lecturer in social and environmental psychology at Exeter University, is part of a large research project across eighteen countries called Blue Health. Dr Jo Garrett is a researcher in coastal environments and human health, and they discuss their latest research into pinning down the benefits of aquatic environments on our well-being. Discussing dying: It’s never going to be an easy conversation, but one that a lot of us will face, whatever illness our relatives or friends might be dying from. What should you say and how can avoiding regrets afterwards about what you didn’t say? We hear from Janie Brown, who spent more than thirty years nursing and counselling people dying from cancer and recounts some of her experiences in her book Radical Acts of Love, and writer Audrey Nieswandt. Diet or exercise to starve off memory decline? Even as we get older we carry on making new brain cells. The bad news is that the process slows down which can lead to problems with memory. But as Dr Sandrine Thuret and Dr Chiara De Lucia from Kings College London have found, our genetic makeup can influence this process. They’ve found that changing diet might make more of a difference to some, whilst exercise might make more of a difference to others. Claudia Hammond's guest is Prof. Catherine Loveday, Principal Lecturer in Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster.

This is Episode 20 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology.  What can psychology teach us about dealing with pain? Our presenter Ginny Smith learns that swearing can have a pain-reducing effect, and puts the theory to the test with an experiment on editor Matthew Warren. Ginny also hears about how virtual reality could provide a welcome distraction to patients suffering from chronic pain. Our guests, in order of appearance, are: Dr Richard Stephens, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Keele University, and Dr Sam Hughes, Research Fellow in pain neuroimaging at King’s College London. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith, with additional content from Matthew Warren and Sana Suri. Mixing and editing Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw. Background reading for this episode: Managing limb pain using virtual reality: a systematic review of clinical and experimental studies, a paper by Priscilla G Wittkopf and colleagues, is free to access thanks to our sponsors Routledge Psychology. Research mentioned in this episode includes: Swearing as a response to pain Swearing as a response to pain-effect of daily swearing frequency Swearing as a response to pain: Assessing hypoalgesic effects of novel “swear” words Attenuation of capsaicin-induced ongoing pain and secondary hyperalgesia during exposure to an immersive virtual reality environment Both Research Digest and The Psychologist have plenty of posts on pain in the archives, including: Encouraging self-compassion may help people with chronic pain lead more active, happier lives Super altruists (who’ve donated a kidney to a stranger) show heightened empathic brain activity when witnessing strangers in pain Women who practice submissive BDSM displayed reduced empathy and an atypical neural response to other people’s pain What’s different about the brains of the minority of us who feel other people’s physical pain? Watching someone suffer extreme pain has a lasting effect on the brain Does it matter whether or not pain medication is branded? Pain at Christmas: Ella Rhodes reports from the British Neuroscience Association’s Christmas symposium 5 minutes with… Dr Harbinder Sandhu: A large trial aims to help people with chronic pain taper their opioid use The pain of youth: Line Caes and Abbie Jordan call for creativity in research design with adolescents living with chronic health conditions Big Picture: Portraits of pain: Measuring pain with drawings Pain – the backdrop of our lives: Ella Rhodes reports from a conference at UCL

This is Episode 19 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology.  Do we worry too much about screen time? The issue of screen use by children and teenagers is rarely out of the headlines, and institutions including the World Health Organization have recommended specific limits on screen time for the youngest age groups. But what does the science actually say about the effects of screen time? To find out, our presenter Ella Rhodes talks to Dr Amy Orben, Research Fellow at the University of Cambridge and winner of the 2019 BPS award for Outstanding Doctoral Research, who has explored the psychological effects of screen time in her research.  Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ella Rhodes, journalist for The Psychologist, with help from the Research Digest and Psychologist teams. Mixing and editing by Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music by Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler; additional music by Ketsa. Artwork by Tim Grimshaw. Background resources for this episode:  Screen Time, Laptop Bans, and the Fears that Shape the Use of Technology for Learning, a paper by Dr Torrey Trust in the Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, is free to access thanks to our sponsors Routledge Psychology. The work by Amy Orben and her colleagues discussed in this episode includes: The association between adolescent well-being and digital technology use Screens, Teens, and Psychological Well-Being: Evidence From Three Time-Use-Diary Studies How Much Is Too Much? Examining the Relationship Between Digital Screen Engagement and Psychosocial Functioning in a Confirmatory Cohort Study Social media’s enduring effect on adolescent life satisfaction Here are the WHO guidelines on screen time mentioned at the beginning of the podcast. Both The Psychologist and Research Digest have a number of articles on screen time and media effects, including: The Psychologist Presents… Screen time debunked A transcript of Professor Andrew Przybylski’s session with editor Jon Sutton at Latitude Festival in summer 2019. Seeing screen time differently Jon Sutton reports from a one-day event on research, policy and communication in a digital era, held out the Wellcome Collection in London in 2018. 'There are wolves in the forest…' Professor Andrew Przybylski picks three myths around screen time – and how science, and some common sense, can help. What is actually behind the screen? Ella Rhodes reports on last year's parliamentary report from the Science and Technology Committee. ‘Games have helped me a lot throughout my life’ Annie Brookman-Byrne interviews Dr Pete Etchells, Reader in Psychology and Science Communication at Bath Spa University, about his book Lost in a Good Game: Why We Play Video Games and What They Can Do For Us. Amy Orben honoured Dr Orben wins the British Psychological Society's Award for Outstanding Doctoral Research. Link Between Teens’ Time On Digital Devices And Lower Wellbeing Is “Too Small To Merit Substantial Scientific Discussion” Abstaining From Social Media Doesn’t Improve Well-Being, Experimental Study Finds These Violent Delights Don’t Have Violent Ends: Study Finds No link Between Violent Video Games And Teen Aggression Hard-core players of violent video games do not have emotionally blunted brains

This is Episode 18 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Can psychology help us become more creative? Our presenter Ginny Smith learns how we can develop our creativity with practice, and discovers that our best “Eureka” moments often come when we step away from the task at hand. She also investigates how members of the public fare with the riddles psychologists use to study creative problem solving — see how you get on at home. Our guests, in order of appearance, are: Professor James C Kaufman, an educational psychologist at the University of Connecticut and author of several books on creativity, and Dr Gillian Hill, a lecturer in psychology at the University of Buckingham and member of the CREATE research team. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith. Mixing and editing Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw. Background reading for this episode: James C Kaufman’s paper Creativity Is More Than Silly, More Than Art, More Than Good: The Diverse Career of Arthur Cropley is free to view thanks to our sponsors, Routledge Psychology. We have dozens of posts on creativity in the Research Digest archives, including: Thinking About Their Multiple Identities Boosts Children’s Creativity And Problem-Solving Skills Here’s What The Evidence Shows About The Links Between Creativity And Depression The Four Ways To Promote Creativity In Children Come More Naturally To Some Mothers Than Others How Keeping A Dream Diary Could Boost Your Creativity Psychologists Have Devised A Test For Measuring One-Year-Olds’ Creativity Teams Are More Creative When Their Leader Is Confident In Her Or His Own Creativity New Study Finds Strength Of Imagination Not Associated With Creative Ability Or Achievement And over at The Psychologist, check out Rocky Horror Pixel Show, in which Arne Dietrich explores the problems in figuring out how creativity is represented in the brain.

This is Episode 17 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Can psychology help make running more enjoyable? Our presenter Christian Jarrett speaks to several experts about various strategies including "cognitive reappraisal" and the benefits of taking part in organised runs. He also hears how some of us are genetically disposed to find running less enjoyable than others, and why that isn't an excuse for giving up. Our guests, in order of appearance, are: Dr Grace Giles (US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Soldier Center, Natick), Dr John Nezlek (SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Faculty in Poznan and College of William & Mary, Williamsburg VA), Dr Marzena Cypryańska (SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Warsaw), and Professor Eco de Geus (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam). Episode credits: Presented and produced by Christian Jarrett. Mixing and editing Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw. Key research mentioned in this episode: A mental technique called “cognitive reappraisal” makes long-distance running feel easier Runners Get A Wellbeing Boost From Participating In Organised Races Hate sport? Maybe it’s because you have the genes that make exercise feel awful

4/6 Part 1: Déjà vu "Do we know what causes déjà vu?" asks Floyd Kitchen from Queenstown in New Zealand. Drs Rutherford and Fry investigate this familiar feeling by speaking to world-leading reseacher Chris Moulin from the University of Grenoble in France and memory expert Catherine Loveday from Westminster University. Plus, they find out why early investigations classed déjà vu as a type of paranormal phenomenon. For most of us, it's a fleetingly strange experience, but for some people it can become a serious problem. Lisa from Hulme in Manchester started experiencing déjà vu when she was 22 with episodes that could last all day. The origin of her déjà vu has been the key to helping psychologists investigate its cause. Part 2: Randomness "Is anything truly random, or is everything predetermined?" asks Darren Spalding from Market Harborough. Hannah and Adam go in search of random events, from dice throws to lava lamps. Can we predict the outcome of any event? "How do computers manage to pick random numbers?" asks Jim Rennie from Mackinaw in Illinois. Random numbers are vital for things like cyber security and banking. But true randomness is surprisingly hard to produce, as the team discover. Joining them for this case we have a random selection of experts: mathematician Colva Roney-Dougal, technology journalist Bill Thompson, Science Museum Curator Tilly Blyth and quantum physicist Jim AlKhalili. Presenters: Hannah Fry, Adam Rutherford Producer: Michelle Martin Main Image: A fan of the New York Yankees holds up a sign which reads "It's Deja Vu" at the Yankee Stadium, New York City 29 Oct 2009. Credit: Jed Jacobsohn / Getty Images

Ella Rhodes, journalist for The Psychologist magazine, delves into the growing body of research exploring aphantasia – a condition she has personal experience of. While most people can see images formed in their minds people with aphantasia draw a blank, what might this mean for autobiographical memory, face perception and imagination?  Our guests, in order of appearance, are: Zoe Pounder at the University of Westminster and Professor Adam Zeman at the University of Exeter.  Background resources for this episode:  This man had no idea his mind is "blind" until last week. Mental rotation performance in aphantasia. Loss of imagery phenomenology with intact visuo-spatial task performance: a case of "blind imagination". Lives without imagery – Congenital aphantasia. The neural correlates of visual imagery vividness – An fMRI study and literature review. The neural correlates of visual imagery: A co-ordinate-based meta-analysis. On Picturing a Candle: The Prehistory of Imagery Science. The Eye’s Mind - Zeman’s apahantasia research project. A scientific measure of our visual imagination suggests it is surprisingly limited Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ella Rhodes. Mixing Jeff Knowler. Music Sincere Love by Monplaisir. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw.

Claudia talks to Catherine Loveday about her new research trying to find out why some people have difficulty navigating and what strategies might help. Madeleine Finlay reports from the 'Extreme Imagination' conference at Exeter University about people with aphantasia who have no mind's eye - who can't visualise friends, family, objects or anything. She meets people with the condition and the researchers trying to understand it. And the musical all about depression, 'A Super happy story about feeling Super sad'. How to make the experience of depression into an uplifting musical. Catherine Loveday tells Claudia about new research looking into why people with depression seek out sad music and explains that, contrary to the idea that it maintains low mood, people with depression find it calming and even empathetic.

If the youngster in your household listens to Reggae or Classical Music it could mean they will grow to be open to more things and be a little more adventurous in general. RNIB Connect Radio's Kris Wallace has been talking to leading neuro-psychological expert, Catherine Loveday of Westminster University, who’s been investigating how the music children hear growing up has a direct impact on their openness to try new activities and experiences as they develop.

This is Episode 15 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology.  Mindfulness is everywhere these days, but is it really as beneficial as it's often made out to be? Our presenter Ginny Smith hears from clinical psychologist Dr Catherine Wikholm(co-author of The Buddha Pill: Can Meditation Change You?); she visits the Cambridge Buddha Centre to meet people who have taken up mindfulness meditation; and she discusses some of the latest mindfulness research trials with Professor Barney Dunn, a clinical psychologist at Exeter University. Some of the evidence is indeed promising, and mindfulness meditation could offer a cost-effective way to help many people with mental health problems. However, Ginny also discovers that many trials are ongoing, mindfulness is not risk free, and it may not suit everyone.   Some of the studies mentioned in this episode: Mechanisms of action in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) and mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) in people with physical and/or psychological conditions: A systematic review. How do mindfulness-based cognitive therapy and mindfulness-based stress reduction improve mental health and wellbeing? A systematic review and meta-analysis of mediation studies Mindfulness Training Increases Momentary Positive Emotions and Reward Experience in Adults Vulnerable to Depression: A Randomized Controlled Trial Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy compared with maintenance antidepressant treatment in the prevention of depressive relapse or recurrence (PREVENT): a randomised controlled trial The Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) in Real-World Healthcare Services The effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a mindfulness training programme in schools compared with normal school provision (MYRIAD): study protocol for a randomised controlled trial Unwanted effects: Is there a negative side of meditation? A multicentre survey The Buddha Pill: Can Meditation Change You? Relevant studies and articles from our own archive: The Psychology of Mindfulness, Digested Brainwave evidence hints at benefits from a school mindfulness programme Brief mindfulness training does not foster empathy, and can even make narcissists worse Experienced meditators have enhanced control over their eye movements This is what eight weeks of mindfulness training does to your brain Mindfulness meditation increases people’s susceptibility to false memories Just fifteen minutes of mindfulness meditation can improve your decision making How meditation alters the brain Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith. Mixing Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw.

A year ago a community organisation in Tyne and Wear called Citizens UK brought together people from schools, mosques, churches, politicians and the NHS to address mental health issues in their area. Claudia Hammond revisits the scheme a year on, to examine how a wide variety of local improvements now appear imminent. It follows months of hearing hundreds of personal testimonies and winning commitment from decision makers and those in power, to pledge to take action. What can those of us who would never dream of doing stand-up learn about human nature from comedians? Comedian Robin Ince who of course co-presents The Infinite Monkey Cage here on Radio 4 has written a book all about this called I'm a Joke and So Are You. He discusses the value his audiences get from him openly discussing anxieties on stage...... If you're a fan of old films you might well have noticed that they were cut together with much longer shots than we tend to see these days - with an average change of image every ten seconds in the 1930s and 40s to just four seconds currently. Celia Andreu Sanchez from the Autonomous University of Barcelona has looked closely at impact this has on the way we pay attention to movies, with surprising results. Psychologist Prof. Catherine Loveday of the University of Westminster is this week’s studio guest.

This is Episode 14 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Can psychology help your cooking taste better? Our presenter Ginny Smith hears about the importance of food presentation, pairing and sequencing, and how our perception of food is a multi-sensory experience. She and her friends conduct a taste test using "sonic seasonings" that you can also try at home. Our guests, in order of appearance, are: Professor Debra Zellner at MontClaire State University and Professor Charles Spence at Oxford University. Background resources for this episode: The multisensory perception of flavour The supertaster who researches supertasting Wine tastes like the music you’re listening to Plating for pleasure: Debra Zellner at TEDxMontclair Do Appetizers Whet or Ruin Your Appetite? Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith. Mixing Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw.

This is Episode 13 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Can psychology help us to learn better? Our presenter Christian Jarrett discovers the best evidence-backed strategies for learning, including the principle of spacing, the benefits of testing yourself and teaching others. He also hears about the perils of overconfidence and the lack of evidence for popular educational ideas like "learning styles" and "brain gym". Our guests, in order of appearance, are: Nate Kornell, associate professor at Williams College; Paul Howard-Jones, author of Evolution of the Learning Brain(find out more), and professor of neuroscience and education at the University of Bristol; and Abby Knoll, doctoral student at Central Michigan University. Background reading for this episode: It feels as though we learn better via our preferred learning style, but we don’t “Another nail in the coffin for learning styles” – students did not benefit from studying according to their supposed learning style The secret to remembering material long-term How to study Learning by teaching others is extremely effective – a new study tested a key reason why Physically active academic school lessons boost pupils’ activity levels and focus Engaging lecturers can breed overconfidence 'The story of learning begins with the story of life' From brain scan to lesson plan Episode credits: Presented and produced by Christian Jarrett. Mixing and editing Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw.

This is Episode 12 of PsychCrunch the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Download here. Can psychology help us to be funnier? Our presenter Ginny Smith hears how a key ingredient of humour is "incongruity" and the surprise of unexpected meanings. Individual words too can be amusing, but actually most of the time we laugh not because we've seen or heard a joke, but as a natural part of friendly interaction. Our guests, in order of appearance, are: Cardiff University neuroscientist Dean Burnett, author of The Happy Brain; psychologist Tomas Engelthalerat the University of Warwick, who co-authored a paper on the funniest words in English; and "stand up scientist" Sophie Scottat UCL, who gave the 2017 Christmas lectures on the neuroscience of voices, speech and laughter. Background reading for this episode: Research on jokes in the Research Digest archive Research on laughter in the Research Digest archive Engelthaler's study of the funniest words in the English language Special issue of The Psychologiston humour Do psychologists have a particular taste in comedy? Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith. Mixing Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw.

"Do we know what causes déjà vu?" asks Floyd Kitchen from Queenstown in New Zealand. Drs Rutherford and Fry investigate this familiar feeling by speaking to world-leading reseacher Chris Moulin from the University of Grenoble in France and memory expert Catherine Loveday from Westminster University. Plus, they find out why early investigations classed déjà vu as a type of paranormal phenomenon. For most of us, it's a fleetingly strange experience, but for some people it can become a serious problem. Lisa from Hulme in Manchester started experiencing déjà vu when she was 22 with episodes that could last all day. The origin of her déjà vu has been the key to helping psychologists investigate its cause. Presenters: Hannah Fry, Adam Rutherford Producer: Michelle Martin.

In the first of a new series Claudia Hammond meets the first of the nine finalists for the All in the Mind Awards 2018. We hear from Helen who nominated Sarah's Runners, a running group in Tunbridge Wells who helped her after her husband took his own life when she was pregnant with their second child. The group meets twice a week and their ethos is far from personal bests on the track but all about people being included and getting the best they can from exercise. Claudia goes running with Helen and finds out why Sarah and the group have been such a huge support to her after her bereavement. Catherine Loveday explains how running helps with improving mood and even cognitive function. Also in the programme, Claudia talks to Professor Coral Dando about research published this week showing that eye witnesses recalled more information more accurately when interviewed by an avatar in a virtual reality environment rather than a real person. So why do the social pressures of an interview with a human impact on our ability to recall events in the past? Have you ever felt 'Gigil'? It's a Tagalog word meaning 'to want to squeeze or pinch someone because you cherish them so much. Claudia talks to Tim Lomas about his lexicon of 'untranslatable words' related to wellbeing from other languages which can't easily be translated into English. Catherine Loveday discusses a new way of understanding how different parts of the brain communicate: brain entropy. What is it and why might caffeine increase it.

This is Episode 11 of PsychCrunch the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Can psychology help us get a better night's sleep? Our presenter Ginny Smith hears how worry about sleep is sometimes more of a problem than lack of sleep itself. She gives us some evidence-backed sleep tips and finds out about "sleep engineering" – deliberately manipulating the sleep process to aid memory and enhance its health benefits. Our guests are Professor Kenneth Lichstein at the University of Alabama and Professor Penny Lewis at the University of Cardiff. Background reading for this episode: “Insomnia identity” – misbelieving you’ve got sleep problems can be more harmful than actual lack of sleep BBC News: Sleep engineering: Cardiff scientists working on designer rest Targeted memory reactivation of newly learned words during sleep triggers REM-mediated integration of new memories and existing knowledge Also, find many more studies on sleep and dreaming in our archive. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Ginny Smith. Mixing and editing Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw.

The Astronomical Balloon "How far up can a helium balloon go? Could it go out to space?" asks Juliet Gok, aged 9. This calls for an experiment! Dr Keri Nicholl helps Adam launch a party balloon and track its ascent. But their test doesn't quite go to plan. Meanwhile, Hannah discovers where space begins by asking Public Astronomer Dr Marek Kukula, from the Royal Observatory Greenwich. Send your Curious Cases to the team: curiouscases@bbc.co.uk The Forgetful Child "Why don't we remember the first few years of our lives?" asks David Foulger from Cheltenham. The team investigate the phenomenon of 'infant amnesia' with Catherine Loveday from the University of Westminster. 40% of us claim to remember being under two years old and 18% recall being babies. But can we really trust these early memories? Martin Conway from City University thinks not. Picture: Baby Foot, Credit H. Armstrong Roberts/Retrofile/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Producer: Michelle Martin.

The Astronomical Balloon "How far up can a helium balloon go? Could it go out to space?" asks Juliet Gok, aged 9. This calls for an experiment! Dr Keri Nicholl helps Adam launch a party balloon and track its ascent. But their test doesn't quite go to plan. Meanwhile, Hannah discovers where space begins by asking Public Astronomer Dr Marek Kukula, from the Royal Observatory Greenwich. Send your Curious Cases to the team: curiouscases@bbc.co.uk The Forgetful Child "Why don't we remember the first few years of our lives?" asks David Foulger from Cheltenham. The team investigate the phenomenon of 'infant amnesia' with Catherine Loveday from the University of Westminster. 40% of us claim to remember being under two years old and 18% recall being babies. But can we really trust these early memories? Martin Conway from City University thinks not. Picture: A baby contemplates the sole of its foot, circa 1950, Credit: H. Armstrong Roberts/Retrofile/Hulton Archive/Getty Images Producer: Michelle Martin.

Claudia Hammond's guest is Catherine Loveday, Principle lecturer in Psychology at the University of Westminster If you have sisters or brothers you probably know all about sibling rivalry. But if you're a parent who despairs over your children squabbling, fear not. Claudia Hammond hears how sibling rivalry can be handled and can have an upside. It's something that should be embraced argues child psychologist Linda Blair, author of a new book Siblings. What insights can diaries and letters from prisoners of war can give us into the imprisoned soldier's minds? We hear from historian Clare Makepeace who has spent years studying the diaries and letters of POWs and Mark McDermott Professor of Health Psychology at the University of East London to discuss the psychological impact the confined experience can have. And new evidence on the link between inflammation in the body and depression. It's the first study ever published showing that inflammation can lead to alterations in how specific new brain cells are formed - a process that leads to depression in a third of patients. As Patricia Zunszain of Kings College London explains, drugs targeting these mechanisms could be the effective antidepressants of the future - drugs which don't tackle mood, but which encourage the creation of new brain cells.

It's been a while coming, but this is Episode 10 of PsychCrunch the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Can psychology help us avoid procrastinating and get on with the important things we know we should be doing? Our presenter Christian Jarrett hears about what causes procrastination, how to stop it, and whether it has any upsides. Also, we put the psychologists on the spot and ask whether they've managed to cure their own procrastination. Our guests are the world experts in the psychology of procrastination Professor Tim Pychyl at Carleton University and Dr Fuschia Sirois at the University of Sheffield. Studies discussed or alluded to in the episode: A critique of the construct validity of active procrastination I forgive myself, now I can study: How self-forgiveness for procrastinating can reduce future procrastination Procrastination and Stress: Exploring the Role of Self-compassion Procrastination and the Priority of Short-Term Mood Regulation: Consequences for Future Self Also, find more studies on procrastination that we've covered at Research Digest, and Prof Pychyl has further relevant resources at www.procrastination.ca.  Episode credits: Presented and produced by Dr Christian Jarrett. Mixing and editing Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Additional music: Lynne Publishing, composer Stefan Wolfgang Bode via Pond5. Art work Tim Grimshaw.

Claire woke up one morning to discover that overnight she had lost her memory as a result of a viral infection. Dr Catherine Loveday, a neuropsycholgist at the University of Westminster, has worked with Claire for many years and shares what life is like when you can only live in the present.Programme image courtesy of Sarah Grice, Wellcome Collection.

Tom Service asks why music has always been an essential part of mourning. With the help of cognitive neuropsychologist Catherine Loveday, he compares the music of two royal funerals separated by three centuries, and by tracing the development of funeral music into abstract art music he uncovers the private grief behind Bach's great D-minor violin Chaconne. And before ending with a Top Ten countdown of today's UK musical funeral favourites, he ponders why some music, never intended to be mournful, becomes indelibly associated with grieving. Producer David Papp.

"Why don't we remember the first few years of our lives?" asks David Foulger from Cheltenham. The team investigate the phenomenon of 'infant amnesia' and how memories are made with Catherine Loveday from the University of Westminster. A whopping 40% of people say they can remember back to before they were two years old, and 18% can recall being babies. But can we really trust these early memories? Martin Conway from City University discusses his latest findings, taken from data gathered during 'The Memory Experience' on BBC Radio 4. Presenters: Hannah Fry, Adam Rutherford Producer: Michelle Martin.

This is Episode 9 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society’s Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Can psychology help us work together better in teams? Our presenter Christian Jarrett hears about the benefits of appointing a "meta-knowledge champion" for the team, making sure everyone has contact with the team's "extra miler", and why you should think carefully about the physical space that you do your teamwork in. Our guests in order of appearance: Dr Julija Mell (Essec Business School), Dr Alex Fradera (Research Digest writer), and Dr Katherine Greenaway (University of Queensland). Studies discussed in the episode: Why your team should appoint a "meta-knowledge" champion – one person who’s aware of everyone else’s area of expertise Team effectiveness is disproportionately influenced by your group’s best performer or "extra-miler" Minimalist, anonymous rooms are probably not a good place to do teamwork In home or at home? How collective decision making in a new care facility enhances social interaction and wellbeing amongst older adults Related resources from The Psychologist: Towards Healthier Meetings and An Interview With Dr Craig Knight: Taking Back Control Of Your Space Episode credits: Presented and produced by Dr Christian Jarrett. Mixing and editing Jeff Knowler. Vox pops Ella Rhodes. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Additional music Zander Sehkri/Zeroday Productions (via Pond5). Art work Tim Grimshaw.

Two challenges for the team today involving singing and navigating. The Melodic Mystery "Why is my mother tone deaf?" asks listener Simon, "and can I do anything to ensure my son can at least carry a tune?" Hannah admits to struggling to hold a tune and has a singing lesson with teacher Michael Bonshor, although it doesn’t go quite to plan. We meet Martin who hates music because he has the clinical form of tone deafness, known as amusia. Just as people with dyslexia see words differently to other people, if you have amusia you don't hear melodies in the same way. Adam talks to music psychologist Dr Vicky Williamson from Sheffield University who studies Martin, and others like him, to try and discover why their brains operate differently. The Lost Producer In our second case, we investigate why some people have a terrible sense of direction. It’s the turn of Producer Michelle to be put to the test to try improve her poor navigational skills. Prof Hugo Spiers from University College London examines Michelle’s sense of direction using his free game 'Sea Hero Quest'. Catherine Loveday from the University of Westminster suggests strategies to stop Michelle from getting lost. And tune in to find out which country houses the world’s best navigators. Photo: Indonesian Army personnel read a map. Credit: Juni Kriswanto/AFP /Getty Images)

This is Episode 8 of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society's Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Can we trust psychological studies? We speak to Brian Earp, of Oxford University and Yale University, about how to respond when we're told repeatedly that the veracity of eye-catching findings, or even cherished theories, has come under scrutiny. Brian also talks about his own experience of publishing a failed replication attempt – a must-listen for any  researchers who are fearful of publishing their own negative findings. Find Brian on Twitter @BrianDavidEarp Episode credits: Presented and produced by Christian Jarrett. Mixing and editing Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Additional music Legrand Jones (via Pond5). Art work Tim Grimshaw. Studies discussed: Assessing the Robustness of Power Posing See also Dana Carney statement on power posing (pdf) and Amy Cuddy's response. A Multi-Lab Pre-Registered Replication of the Ego-Depletion Paradigm A Multilab Direct Replication of Study 1 From Strack, Martin, & Stepper (1988) Out, damned spot: Can the “Macbeth Effect” be replicated? Related articles and resources: Ten Famous Psychology Findings That It’s Been Difficult To Replicate This is what happened when psychologists tried to replicate 100 previously published findings All replication efforts covered by us here at the Research Digest Coverage of the replication crisis by The Psychologist magazine including video of a recent debate on the crisis held by the British Psychological Society. Commentary pieces by Brian Earp: A tragedy of the (academic) commons: interpreting the replication crisis in psychology as a social dilemma for early-career researchers What did the OSC replication initiative reveal about the crisis in psychology? An open review of the draft paper entitled "Replication initiatives will not salvage the trustworthiness of psychology" by James C. Coyne Replication, falsification, and the crisis of confidence in social psychology

Four people are tasered every day in the UK and a man who's been at the receiving end describes how much it hurts. But new evidence suggests it could also affect thinking and memory. Professor Rob Kane from Drexel University in the US tasered students and then measured their ability to recall facts in the hours after being tasered. He found serious deficits: the tasered group mirrored the ability of a 78 year old man with mild cognitive impairment, with some of the taser victims performing so poorly in cognitive tests that they could be diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease. Claudia Hammond asks what implications these new findings have for the timing of police interviews after somebody has been tasered. Claire experienced amnesia after she had viral encephalitis and she has lost memory of most of her life. Her experience, along with the lesion or abnormality she had in her brain, has inspired an exhibition called Lesions in the Landscape, a collaboration with artist Shona Illingworth at The Gallery in Southwark Park, London. Claudia visits the exhibition, meets Claire and Shona and hears from Catherine Loveday, Principal Lecturer in Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster about the way this artistic collaboration has cast light on the nature and meaning of memory and memory loss. There's been a lot of comment about the mental health of the US Presidential hopeful, Donald Trump, with much armchair speculation about the various psychiatric disorders he might be suffering from and why these should rule him out from high office. But Dr Margaret McCartney tells Claudia why the trend to #diagnosetrump is unacceptable and stigmatising for mental health issues. And finally Dr Catherine Loveday tells Claudia about more evidence that walking makes you feel good. The mere act of putting one foot in front of the other for a few minutes seems to improve our mood, wherever we do it.

This is Episode Seven of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society's Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Can psychology give you a competitive edge in sport? Our presenter Christian Jarrett learns about the importance of having the right competitive mindset, and how to use self-talk and positive imagery to boost your sporting performance. Our guests, in order of appearance, are George Hanshaw (International Sport Achievers and HanshawPerformance.com), Marc Jones (Staffordshire University) and Sanda Dolcos (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign). Studies discussed in the episode include: Cardiovascular indices of challenge and threat states predict performance The inner speech of behavioral regulation: Intentions and task performance strengthen when you talk to yourself as a You Effect of self-talk and imagery on the response time of trained martial artists. Episode credits: Presented and produced by Christian Jarrett. Mixing engineer Jeff Knowler. PsychCrunch theme music Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Additional music Vincent Pedulla and Jeffrey Peterson (via Pond5). Art work Tim Grimshaw.

Summer temperatures might be tempting you to eat outside, but maybe you live in a part of the country where your barbecues are blighted by aircraft noise and where you're woken in the morning by the roar of planes overhead? Some people insist that the noise affects their mental health. The evidence for the link between aircraft noise and depression has been patchy, but a major new study suggests there is a link. Claudia Hammond discusses the evidence with project leader and epidemiologist Professor Andreas Seidler from Dresden University. We've another finalist in the All in the Mind Awards - this week from your nominations for the professional who'd made a real difference to your mental health. If you've ever stuck your tongue at a young baby and watched it copy you back, you've observed early imitation - a key concept in developmental psychology. But is a new study about to overturn what psychology textbooks have been telling us for years? Psychologist Janine Oostenbroek of York University discusses her results. With expert comment from Dr Catherine Loveday, Principal Lecturer in Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster.

In the UK there are around a hundred unfilled Consultant Psychiatrist posts. Claudia Hammond discusses with Sir Simon Wessely, President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, why there is such a shortage, and the knock on effect for patients. Why does psychiatry seem to be the poor relation when compared with other branches of medicine and what can be done to persuade more trainee doctors to consider psychiatry as a career? In the next of our series of features on the shortlist for the All in the Mind Awards, Claudia meets a GP who has helped one patient with a range of mental health issues, giving advice to her when she was admitted to hospital - despite not being in the same country at the time - and helping her to manage mental health complications associated with childbirth. Are you bored? Don't worry it could be good for you. Research into boredom suggests an uncluttered schedule might be a good thing, giving us the chance for a bit of creative thinking. Sandi Mann, Senior Lecturer at the School of Psychology, University of Central Lancashire talks to Claudia about the benefits of boredom. With expert comment from Dr Catherine Loveday, Principal Lecturer in Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster.

We hear the second nomination in this year's All in the Mind Awards - where we asked you to nominate the person or group who has made a difference to your mental health. Last week we heard from the first of the finalists in the groups category. This week we have the first of our individuals. Neuroscience may be a young science, but discoveries are coming through fast. Will we see a day where everything is known about the brain and where parts of it that have gone wrong can even be replaced with computer chips? This is the premise of a new play called Elegy at the Donmar Warehouse in London. Cognitive neuroscientist Catherine Loveday reviews the play. Why are theatre and film directors, who have long turned to historians and scientists for help, increasingly embracing psychology? Claudia Hammond talks to University of Berkeley Psychology Professor Dacher Keltner who was invited to advise on the Pixar animation Inside Out and to director Simon McBurney who sought advice about the psychology of time perception in advance of his production Encounter.

This is Episode Four of PsychCrunch, the podcast from the British Psychological Society's Research Digest. In this festive episode we explore whether psychology can help us with gift giving.  Our presenter Christian Jarrett and his guests discuss the benefits of giving "giver-centric" gifts; how recipients like to receive gifts on their wish lists; why ethical or pro-social gifts are sometimes not so warmly received; and the two words that can salvage that awkward situation when a gift doesn't go down too well.  Our guests in order of appearance are Lisa Cavanaugh USC Marshall School of Business, Lara Aknin of Simon Fraser University, and Alex Fradera, contributing writer to the BPS Research Digest blog.  The studies discussed in this episode, in order of appearance, are: Give a piece of you: Gifts that reflect givers promote closeness Give them what they want: The benefits of explicitness in gift exchange When doing good is bad in gift giving: Mis-predicting appreciation of socially responsible gifts Moments of truth in gift exchanges: A critical analysis of communication indicators used to detect gift failure Episode credits: Presenter/editor/producer Dr Christian Jarrett. Vox pops Ella Rhodes. Music and mixing Dr Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Jingle Bells vocals Joe Loveday. Art work Tim Grimshaw.

Claudia Hammond talks to Dr Catherine Loveday to find out why being bilingual can protect against the damage caused by a stroke. She explains why it might all be down to something called cognitive reserve. Kevan Jones MP explains why he chose to talk about his own experience of depression to parliament and explains his role as judge on this year's All in the Mind awards. In 2008 the government introduced 'Improving Access to Psychological Therapies' services for people with depression and anxiety across parts of England. IAPT has expanded in the 7 years since then but new figures just out reveal a huge variation in recovery rates and waiting times across England. Claudia talks to one of the founders of IAPT, Professor David Clark to ask why there is such a variety of success across the country and what can be done to improve it. Claudia visits Tate Liverpool and their 'An Imagined Museum' exhibition to find out how the brain remembers works of art.

This is Episode Three of PsychCrunch, the new podcast from the British Psychological Society's Research Digest. In this episode we explore whether psychology can help you to win an argument. After our presenter Christian Jarrett tries his luck with an argument about Michael Jackson's legacy, we find out why convincing people of your point of view is so difficult, and we hear about a paradoxical technique that's encouraging people to change their own minds about one of the most serious arguments in the world – the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We'll also touch on why neurobabble appears to be so convincing. Our guests are Dr Jon Sutton (Editor, The Psychologist); Dr Tom Stafford (University of Sheffield); Boaz Hameiri (Tel Aviv University); and Sara Hodges (University of Oregon).  Some of the research discussed by our guests has been covered previously on the Research Digest blog, including how superfluous neuroscience can be so persuasive, and other relevant research is in our archive. Boaz Hameiri's research on the paradoxical thinking intervention was published last year in PNAS. Tom Stafford's ebook is available on Amazon: For argument's sake: evidence that reason can change minds. Further reading from The Psychologist magazine: The truth is out there–a look at belief in conspiracy theories; Are conspiracy theories just harmless fun?; Looking back: Every believer is also a disbeliever; Falling on deaf ears–when people believe psychology is not science. Episode credits: Presenter/editor Dr Christian Jarrett. Producer Dr Lorna Stewart. Music and mixing Dr Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw.

This is Episode Two of PsychCrunch, the new podcast from the British Psychological Society's Research Digest. In this episode we speak to psychology researchers in the field of habit change to see if their findings can provide real-life tips for people hoping to break bad habits or form new healthy ones. We can't promise you a life of health and success as some self-help authors do, but we might be able to help you eat less chocolate! Our guests are Dr Benjamin Gardner (Kings College London and University College London; UCL), Dr Katy Tapper (City University, London) and Dr David Neal (Catalyst Behavioral Sciences). Much of the research discussed by our guests has been covered previously on the Research Digest blog, including the Mindbus Technique; the time it takes to form new habits; and switching hands as a way to break the popcorn habit. Other research on habit change is also covered in our archives and there are many relevant articles available from The Psychologist magazine, including Self-control - the Moral Muscle; The Deadly Sins; and Why Is It So Hard To Quit Smoking? Episode credits: Presenter Dr Christian Jarrett. Producer Lorna Stewart. Music and mixing Dr Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw. 

As the ten year anniversary of the 2005 London bombings approaches, Claudia Hammond talks to Rachel Handley, a clinical psychologist whose first job was to treat people for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and travel phobia after the bombings. She talks about the overwhelming guilt felt by many people she counselled and how cognitive behavioural therapy helped stop people experience terrifying flashbacks. She explains why PTSD can also have a delayed onset, even as much as ten years after the original event. Also in the programme, Gary Klein discusses his research into insights and whether it's impossible to improve our own capacity to have them. Claudia is joined by cognitive neuropsychologist, Catherine Loveday to talk about new research into emotions and the brain.

This is Episode One of PsychCrunch, the new podcast from the British Psychological Society's Research Digest. In this episode we speak to researchers in the field of personal attraction to see if their findings can provide real-life tips for people on a romantic date. Our guests, in order of appearance, are Adam Pazda (University of Rochester), Coren Apicella (University of Pennsylvania) and Sally Farley (University of Baltimore). The topics discussed by our guests have been covered previously on the Research Digest blog, including: the psychological effects of the colour red, the effects of voice pitch (the specific study covered by Dr Apicella is here), and the effects of mimicry (see also).  This episode was released to coincide with Valentine's Day 2015. For more Valentine's-themed psychology, check out these posts from the Research Digest archive, and there's also much more from The Psychologist magazine.  Episode credits: Presenter Christian Jarrett. Producer Lorna Stewart. Vox-pops Ella Rhodes. Music and mixing Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. Art work Tim Grimshaw. 

PsychCrunch, the new podcast coming soon from the British Psychological Society's Research Digest. Trailer credits: Presented by Christian Jarrett. Producer Lorna Stewart. Music and mixing Catherine Loveday and Jeff Knowler. 

Claudia Hammond finds out how neuroscientists are understanding musical hallucinations by looking at the brains of those who experience them. Tim Griffiths and Vicky Williamson talk about their research into musical imagery and what it reveals about the workings of the brain and why musical hallucinations are more common in people with hearing loss. Nathan Filer and Matt Haig join Claudia to talk about their novels: The Shock of the Fall and The Humans and why they chose to write about mental health. Dr Catherine Loveday discusses recent research into why some people are hard-wired to be better navigators than others and why drawing could improve learning.

Driving and distraction from mobile phones - a new study from Canada shows that if someone phoning a driver can see the driver's road ahead the driver is far less likely to have an accident. The programme explores why using mobile phones while driving, even if they are hands free is so distracting and dangerous. Claudia talks to Nick Grey about an intensive 7 day course for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He explains why it is just as effective as giving the same course of cognitive behavioural therapy over 3 months. But can this method work for everyone? Claudia finds out about two new potential drugs to treat symptoms of psychosis, one hopes to improve memory and thinking, the other could target the delusions and hallucinations and is based on compounds found in older varieties of cannabis. Also in the programme, guest Catherine Loveday from the University of Westminster discusses recent research on the effect of music on people in a vegetative state and why some professions may keep your memory more robust later in life.