Buzz
Psychology is a highly popular subject in mainstream culture, but it has led to numerous challenges for professionals in the field. This is because the media often misrepresents the discipline, which is so pervasive that many students entering psychology programs have a limited or distorted understanding of the subject, holding onto several inaccurate beliefs.
To address this, many educators tackle some of the most frequent misconceptions right at the start of their courses. Below are ten of the most well-known myths about psychology and the reasons why they don’t hold up.
10. Criminal Profiling
It's difficult to watch television these days without encountering a crime drama. In many of these shows, psychological profiling of criminals is portrayed as a crucial tool for catching serial killers and other violent offenders. However, contrary to popular belief, criminal profiling is not as effective as many think.
Some people suggest that criminal profiling is more of an art than a science, and many experts argue that there isn't enough evidence to support its effectiveness. More testing and research are needed. To make matters worse, many criminal profiles are based on anecdotal evidence rather than solid scientific data, and little objective testing has been done to verify their accuracy. However, crime dramas do get one thing right: despite the lack of proof, the FBI continues to expand its use of profiling.
9. Reinforcement
It’s a common belief that reinforcing a behavior is most effective when it’s done each time the behavior occurs. For example, rewarding a child with a cookie every time they go to bed on time. However, this approach is not the most efficient for teaching behaviors; intermittent reinforcement tends to be much more effective.
Intermittent reinforcement has been shown to be far more effective in preventing the extinction of a behavior, especially when it hasn't been reinforced in a while. This means that if you reward someone only occasionally when teaching them a behavior, and then stop the reinforcement altogether, they are more likely to maintain the behavior compared to if they were rewarded every time.
8. Pleading Insanity
The plea of insanity has become a common trope in movies: the defendant acts erratically or eccentric to convince the jury that they are mentally unfit, hoping to avoid prison and instead be sent to a psychiatric institution. However, aside from the fact that a psychiatric hospital isn't significantly more enjoyable than prison, this defense is extremely rare and almost never successful. In fact, three U.S. states have completely banned the insanity defense.
To further debunk the popular portrayal of this defense in movies, the burden of proof for insanity is much stricter than people typically imagine. Acting crazy in court isn't enough; the defendant must demonstrate that they were insane at the time they committed the crime. While someone can be declared not competent to stand trial, that's an entirely different issue, with much lower standards—basically, the person just needs to understand what is happening around them to be considered sane.
7. Lie Detectors
The lie detector, or polygraph, is often seen in movies as a reliable tool to determine who is telling the truth and who is not. In reality, however, the polygraph is highly inaccurate and its results are not allowed as evidence in court unless both parties agree to its use.
The polygraph measures factors like heart rate and breathing patterns. However, even when used properly, it remains only somewhat effective. The examiner typically asks control questions and uses stress to gauge truthfulness, but it is not a foolproof method if certainty is required. Though some scientists have developed a new fMRI-based lie detection machine, it still has not been accepted as admissible evidence in court.
It's also important to remember that these machines assume that a person lying will experience stress. However, it remains unclear whether a compulsive liar would show any stress when speaking falsehoods they know to be untrue.
6. Tourette's Syndrome
Tourette's is a condition that's often misunderstood, frequently portrayed in shows like South Park, where the character Eric Cartman uses it as an excuse to swear and make offensive comments, particularly about Jewish people, due to his vile fictional personality. In reality, Tourette's is a neurological disorder with a genetic basis, though doctors are still uncertain about the exact reasons behind its manifestation.
A common misconception surrounding Tourette's is the belief that it primarily leads to uncontrollable outbursts of offensive language. However, this is inaccurate. While involuntary speech—sometimes involving profanity—can occur, the disorder more often results in involuntary physical tics, such as uncontrollable twitches or random shaking.
5. Mid-Life Crisis
The idea of a midlife crisis is widely believed, so much so that it has become almost universally accepted as an inevitable stage for men as they approach middle age. However, many psychologists argue that this view is not entirely accurate.
Not only do researchers claim that there is no specific moment in life when a crisis is most likely to occur, but some even suggest that middle age could actually be the happiest period for many people. According to experts, the reality is that by mid-life, individuals often have a clear sense of who they are and how to make the most of life, while the real crisis tends to unfold in youth, when confusion and insecurity are more prevalent.
4. Blind Visualization
A widely held belief is that blind individuals can form a mental picture of someone’s face by feeling it, in order to understand its general shape. While this is partially true for those who lost their sight later in life, those who were born blind are unable to do this at all.
However, blind individuals have remarkable ways of adapting. Research has demonstrated that they can utilize the visual regions of their brains to enhance their auditory and tactile abilities. Other studies have explored whether those born blind experience visual images in their dreams. Critics of these studies argue that, although blind people do dream, they can only process elements in their dreams that they can perceive while awake. Therefore, they emphasize that visual imagery should not be used to describe how blind people dream.
3. Sigmund Freud’s Theories
Sigmund Freud is globally renowned for his theories, but sadly, he is mostly remembered for his controversial views on sexuality and his obsession with analyzing dreams. Freud's ideas have been widely misunderstood; he proposed many unorthodox theories, particularly about unconscious sexual urges in very young children, who were barely even capable of reasoning.
These theories are largely considered outdated by psychologists today, and hypnotherapy is not commonly used or widely accepted as a treatment. Nevertheless, Freud's approach of conversing with patients to address their mental struggles, along with his pioneering work on the subconscious, the Id, and the Ego, was revolutionary—and it helped lay the groundwork for much of what is now known in psychology.
2. Opposites Attract
The myth of 'opposites attract' is one that persists, despite being largely debunked. While it holds some truth in certain situations, it continues to be perpetuated in songs, films, and TV shows. However, the evidence points in the opposite direction. Studies have shown that while people claim they want someone different—perhaps influenced by movies—they are typically more drawn to people who are similar to themselves.
Further studies reveal that relationships between opposites rarely last, most likely due to a lack of genuine chemistry. So, it seems that opposites don't attract for long-term connections. Experts argue that successful relationships are not about finding someone who's opposite or even identical to you. According to one psychologist, it's more about finding a person who complements your personality, much like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle fitting together, rather than two magnets with opposing forces.
1. Full Moon Syndrome
There are days when strange things just seem to happen, and someone inevitably says, 'It must be a full moon today.' Everyone then nods as though it's some ancient truth. Nurses have said that full moons bring more patients and create more chaos; police claim that the full moon makes people more aggressive.
The reality is that all of these beliefs and superstitions are completely unfounded. Research has shown that there is no increase in psychiatric visits, hospital admissions, or surgical complications on full moon nights compared to any other night.
Aside from a couple of studies with flawed controls, only one study has ever shown a potential link between the full moon and anything else. A study in Colorado involving over ten thousand cases found that pets were more likely to get injured during a full moon. However, other explanations have been proposed, such as the idea that pet owners are simply more likely to take their pets out on a brightly lit night.
