Manchester Institute for Psychotherapy

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The Friendship Bank

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What sort of person are you? Do you put a lot of effort into helping others without much regard to what you gain in return from them? If so you are a person with high ‘communal orientation’  and people like you have been shown in new research to be generally happier than those with low communal orientation.

However people who do give a lot of their time to help their friends do still expect to count on them; but they run the  risk  that they will not  be there when they do need a hand.

Take some time to read this  interesting article as it will really get you thinking about your relationships.

The Friendship Bank: How and Why Even the Most Giving Friend Expects Payback – WSJ.com.

Authenticity and Identity

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This article really got me thinking today.  Bob Edelstein writing for psychology today says

‘Discovering who you are in the moment modifies your already established identity.’

We have all established our identities as we grow up and we tend to think of them as static  and stable. Edelstein argues that this is not really the case at all but that our identities are subjective, fluid and chosen by us in the moment. This is because our identity changes in response to everything that happens in our lives;  good and bad.

Take a read as he includes a case study of  Bill who identified himself as a ‘nice generous person with a positive attitude.’  See what he discovered about himself and his identity with the help of therapy.

Authenticity and Identity | Psychology Today.

‘Everyday Sadists’ Among Us

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Jan Hoffman states in this article that ”Those who enjoy inflicting at least moderate pain on others, directly or vicariously, mingle with us daily”.  These are not  extremes such as Hannibal Lecter  or Marquis to Sade but  ‘everyday sadists’  such as mean girls at school or college who taunt their peers, or a teacher who constantly bullies a student in lessons. You may. i am sure,  be able to come up with your own examples of people from your own life experience.

There is apparently very little research on sadism. Dr Paulhus who has made some headway with studies  in this area, describe sadists as those people who look for opportunities to hurt people and prolong it for their own pleasure. Studies also indicate that sadists will choose to hurt people without provocation, even if the act takes time and effort — the only reward being the pleasure of inflicting cruelty.

So why are some people so chronically mean?  Take a look at this most recent study and see what you think.

‘Everyday Sadists’ Among Us – NYTimes.com.

Which US President Was The Biggest Psychopath?

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Any ideas?  Could it be Roosevelt, Kennedy, Reagan, Clinton or Bush?

Jeremy Dean writing for PsyBlog previously looked at which professions displayed  the most  psychopathic tendencies such as a limited fear response and endless confidence. These included CEOs, lawyers and salespeople to name but a few.

So how about presidents then? Theodore Roosevelt and JFK are at the  top the list of US presidents with highest ‘positive’ psychopathic tendencies. These ratings were based on one aspect of psychopathy called ‘fearless dominance’ which  relates to having no fear, to being charming, bold and taking charge.

The  authors of the study  investigated  whether this aspect of psychopathy called ‘fearless dominance’ was associated with better presidential performance. An  intriguing  study with interesting conclusions.

Which US President Was The Biggest Psychopath? — PsyBlog.