LYNX LIFE LIBRARY

I was once told that, thanks to the internet, the amount of information we consume in one week is equivalent to the amount of information the average person in the 17th and 18th century would have consumed in their lifetime. (And by the way, consume does not necessarily mean digest). That was several years ago. With the rise of online influencers and people generally sharing their experiences on various social media platforms, topics that were once taboo or very little was known about, have become a part of everyday conversations. The field of mental health has increasingly become a part of these everyday conversations as a result of media and online exposure. As a result, there appears to be some decline in the stigma associated with mental health and counseling. This level of exposure also carries with it a negative impact: misinformation, and misuse and overuse of some therapeutic concepts.  Popular psychology or pop psychology is where complex concepts are reduced to digestible sizes of information in order to make them easier to comprehend by the general public. The results have been mixed. While making this information easier to understand makes it more accessible to those who would benefit from knowing, there are concerns about the impact of missing context, people incorrectly diagnosing themselves, and overuse and misuse of diagnostic terms, and the impact that may have on people who would benefit from seeking professional support.  

What is Pop Psych? 

According to Arlin Cuncic (November, 2023), popular "pop" psychology is "a term that covers any psychological ideology, therapy, or other technique that gained popularity through a book, TV show, or blog post." Popular psychology subjects tend to focus on "personal feelings, the latest trends in popular culture, and self-help techniques" (Cuncic, 2023).  While rooted in psychology, what is being discussed may not be backed by research. The topics tend to be appealing to those who wish to focus on self-improvement. Pop psychology is not new, it has been around since the 60s and appeared to really gain traction in the 70s. Examples of people associated with pop psychology would be Brene Brown, Oprah Winfrey and Dr. Phil. 

Positives of Popular Psychology

One of the positives of popular psychology is that it does make some complex concepts easier to understand by the general public, which in turn increases the likelihood that more people will be encouraged to learn about them. The more a subject is discussed on social media or the mass media, for example, the less taboo it may appear. This may serve to decrease the stigma surrounding the subject and getting help for it. Additionally, the more one hears about people experiencing issues similar to themselves, or discovering there is a name for what they are experiencing, the less alone a person may feel, and that, by itself, can have a significant effect on a person's overall mental wellbeing. 

Pop psychology offers easily accessible resources and tools to assist with personal improvement and wellbeing. So rather than wait for a therapist to become available, a person has the resources to try to help themselves. 

Problems with Popular Psychology

While simplifying complex concepts and issues are helpful aspects of pop psychology, the flip side is oversimplifying complex concepts and issues. Oversimplification can lead to a misunderstanding of concepts, which can lead to misidentification of symptoms; incorrectly labeling behaviors one believes themselves to have.  Instead of this information leading someone to research further or obtain counseling, it may have the opposite effect. They may feel fear or shame and withdraw. When trying to make a diagnosis, therapists consider context, such as personal history and situational circumstances, in order to gain a full understanding of what a person is experiencing and why (Finch, 2023). 

Pop psychology has been responsible for the overuse and misuse of concepts. A few examples of concepts that have made the mainstream are narcissist, "gaslighting", (PCI Centers, 2024) and attachment theory (Vrticka, 2022). Assertively pushing one’s point of view or being self-centered alone does not make someone a narcissist. Personal history and context need to be explored to determine whether behaviors exhibited warrant such a diagnosis. Gaslighting is not a clinical term, and someone lying to you does not necessarily mean they are engaging in this behavior. Again, personal or relational history and context would be explored to determine if a person is exhibiting this behavior. Pascal Vrticka (2022) suggests the meaning behind attachment theory has become "diluted" over time because of its pop psychology status. He believes people have become focused on whether they have the "right" or "wrong" attachment style, when that was not the purpose of this theory.  He writes that its purpose "is to help people understand what coping strategies they use when the people they are closest to are, or are perceived to be, [emotionally] unavailable or inconsistently responsive" (Vrticka, 2022). 

Other negatives of pop psychology include pathologizing everyday behavior (Finch, 2022). For example, someone gets nervous about public speaking and it becomes social anxiety.   Wanting a clean house becomes OCD or Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior. Instead of elevating the conversation on various mental health issues, it can serve to reinforce negative stereotypes that may also result in driving away people who could benefit from counseling or some other type of professional level support. 

Conclusion

Pop psychology has been recognized as having served to elevate topics associated with mental health and personal wellbeing. Dissemination of information in this way, has been instrumental in educating the public about various mental health issues, and decreasing some of the stigma associated with counseling as well as some diagnoses. At the same time, people are complex and require context and nuance to be utilized when assessing them. Popular psychology is recognized as having some challenges that could result in misinformation, stereotyping, mislabeling symptoms, and minimizing the seriousness of some behaviors. One way to avoid this happening is to check what you know and understand with a mental health professional and or do your own research. 

References: 

1. Finch, J. (2023). The Problem with Pop Psychology. Centre for Clinical Psychology.
2. Vrticka, P. (2022). Attachment Theory: What People Get Wrong About Pop Psychology’s Latest Trend for Explaining Relationships. The Conversation.
3. PCI Centers (2024). Pop Psychology: The Problem with Oversimplifying Mental Health. 
4. Cunic, A. (2023). What is Pop Psychology? Very Well Mind. 
5. Haupt. A (2023). Gaslighting, Narcissist, and More Psychology Terms You Are Misusing. TIME magazine.