Addiction in Society

Addiction--the thematic malady for our society--entails every type of psychological and societal problem.

Stanton Peele, Ph.D., J.D., has been researching and treating addiction since he wrote Love and Addiction (1975). He also wrote 7 Tools to Beat Addiction. See full bio

November 7, 2009

Two Different Worlds We Live In - The Hasan Murders

Divided responses to the Fort Hood Killings illurate how reality follows perception, and how the United States is hopelessly split. Read More

November 6, 2009

Lonely Men Commit Mass Murders

When we examine the lives of men who kill many people, they present a portrait of isolation and often of yearning for intimacy with women. This loneliness is a high-risk situation. Read More

November 2, 2009

How Your Child Will Die

The tendency is for parents to go all out to protect their young children from potential accidents. But fatal accidents are rare for yong people before the age of 15. Is there a cost to protecting against an unlikely event if that protectiveness contributes to other, much more common sources of death when the child gets older? Read More

October 28, 2009

How Did Alec Become the Sanest Baldwin?

Alec Baldwin, once reckoned to be the movie idol for our generation, encountered some pitfalls on the road to superstardom, but has remained an important media and cultural figures despite his setbacks, certainly more so than the other members of his family. He may even be the most mentally healthy member of that talented, but troubled, clan. Read More

October 25, 2009

It's all happening at the playground (apologies to Simon and Garfunkel)

Taking my grandson to the playground has taught us both a lot - him about the world and how to function within it, me about where our society is headed. Read More

October 24, 2009

Does infant video dependence cause autism?

We can't get a handle on autism - it continues to grow without bounds. Various genetic and environmental hypotheses about the sources for this disorder in our modern world have not been borne out. Here's one to consider - that children who become used to video as a main form of entertainment and learning are more susceptible. In that case, watch out America. Read More

October 21, 2009

Does Good Sex Make Sports Heroes? (Or is it love?)

Kate Hudson seems to have elevated Alex Rodriguez's game, raising once again the questions of sex, love, and athletic performance. Read More

October 20, 2009

Is managing psychoactive substances an essential life skill?

Although one PT blogger - and mainstream American drug education - emphasizes abstinence uber alles, this approach is becoming increasingly detached from reality. Read More

October 19, 2009

Ballooning Depression Among Women

Maria Shriver's new report, "A Woman's Nation," paints a rosey picture of women's situation in the 21st Century. But several other prominent women's memoirs describe growing depression and bipolar disorder among women, and epidemiological data support this picture. We never seem to plumb the depths of growing unhappiness and emotional disorder, particularly for women. Read More

October 17, 2009

Mindfulness in Addiction and Film

Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are - captured in Spike Jonze's ingenious film version - is a brilliant example of the psychological-Buddhist therapeutic technique of mindfulness.

Millions suffer from debilitating addictions, leaving friends and family to watch them succumb to seemingly uncontrollable urges. Scientists are rethinking the biology and psychology of addiction, providing new clues to treatment.

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