Media

I've always liked Michael Giacchino, composer of Pixar movies and Lost; now, I love him. In a brief speech, he articulated nearly everything I know about how to encourage creativity: When I was nine and I asked my dad, "Can I have your movie camera? That old, wind-up 8 millimeter camera that was in your drawer?" And he goes, "Sure, take it." And I took it and I started making movies with it and I started being as creative as I could, and never once in my life did my parents ever say, "What you're doing is a waste of time." Never. And I grew up, I had teachers, I had colleagues, I had people that I worked with all through my life who always told me what you're doing is not a waste of time. So that was normal to me that it was OK to do that. I know there are kids out there that don't have that support system so if you're out there and you're listening, listen to me: If you want to be creative, get out there and do it. It's not a waste of time. Do it. OK? Thank you. Read More

Relationships between older men and younger women, men’s proclivities toward seduction, infidelity, and the occasional betrayal of trust in romantic relationships.  These are the facets of human nature that evolutionary psychologists have explored too deeply for some tastes, but that traditional social scientists largely misunderstood for most of the 20th century. An Education provides a refreshing, and educating, perspective on these topics, and includes a few surprises.  Coauthored by David Lundberg Kenrick Read More

The contenders for Best Picture Oscar reflect 4 key evolutionary themes common in Hollywood: Getting Along, Getting Ahead, Getting the Bad Guys, and Getting the Girl (or the Guy).  The contenders also tap into a broad range of critical psychological concepts. Read More

Sunday night, when Jeff Bridges (hopefully) takes home an Oscar for the first time, in theory it'll be to recognize his performance in Crazy Heart. In actuality, it'll be to recognize his performances in all the other movies he's done but you've probably never seen or even heard of. Read More

Early in Tim Burton's new film Alice in Wonderland, six-year-old Alice's father tells her in no uncertain terms: "You're mad, bonkers ... but I'll tell you a secret: All the best people are." That early line lingers. Its presence at the start of a trendy new film by a cult-favorite filmmaker could be the motto of a new mental-illness pride movement. Read More

Are we fooling ourselves to say depression has an upside? Read More

When a book called The Case for Marriage was first published a decade ago, there was much controversy because Harvard University Press rejected it. Conservatives said this was just another example of liberal media bias. I think the focus on liberal vs. conservative media bias and ideology obscured the more fundamental point: The book misrepresented the science.

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Psychological research suggests that depictions of violence in the media have numerous adverse effects, such as desensitizing viewers to real violence. What in the world could make a liberal psychologist, who has reviewed all this research, enjoy a film in which the central characters go after their victims with bombs, baseball bats, and scalping knives? Coauthored by Douglas T. Kenrick Read More

Dexter is a Showtime series about a serial killer with a code. He only kills the bad guys who deserve it. We love Dexter precisely because he finds bad guys and kills them before they can hurt us. In a world plagued by uncertainty, it's nice to have a guy around with strict code of honor who doesn't mind getting his hands a little dirty to restore order. Read More