Psychology research and child development blog, and newsletters
This blog is to critically introduce, and contextualise, new research findings from developmental research, neuroscience, attachment theory and other areas of psychology that are topical or are likely to whet the appetite of anyone interested. The aim is to discuss research which will feel relevant and which might even, if lucky, make a difference to how we approach our work or other areas of our lives.
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Having just left my role as a clinician in the Tavistock after some 30-plus years, I have been reflecting on some ...
We have had a momentous few weeks. The Russia/Ukraine war continues and threatens to escalate scarily, we have seen the death of the Queen in the UK, and the almost simultaneous ascension to power of a Reaganite/Thatcherite economic set of principles, including tax cuts for the better off, and the reintroduction of fracking and other worrying measures. Many of us feeling helpless in the face of this.
I remember a few years back hearing Paolo Nutini sing the poignant song ‘ In love I was created and its in love I would hope to die’ When I first heard him sing that song I nearly cried. In part I wondered, as one perhaps shouldn’t, about my own conception, but mainly I was thinking about the children from abused backgrounds I work with who all too often were most definitely not conceived in love. Some were conceived via sexual assault, even rape, or in drug and alcohol induced stupors or in atmospheres far from love.
If we had to create perfect conditions for emotional shut-down, for fear, anxiety, and distrust – and, indeed, for addictive traits to flourish – we could hardly do better than Covid-19, its lockdowns, and the nervousness and apprehension it has generated. Threat leads to a turning inwards, away from connection, from trust and hope
Watching coverage of the war in Ukraine, and the almost unthinkable courage shown by Ukrainian soldiers, inspired ...
These are frightening moments for many in and on the edge of Europe. I write this as tanks and missiles are letting rip in the Ukraine and some think the UK has a government led by a party bankrolled by Russian money, and that Russian control of social media swayed the Brexit referendum. These are issues beyond my capacity to comment on as a psychotherapist, but I just offer a few thoughts about our human predisposition for group loyalty, banding together against the ‘other’ and how being a group species is the best and worst of human nature.