Summary: How To Fight The Criticize – Defend Cycle In A Marriage

  • Name: Jeremy Brown Fatherly
  • Category: General
  • Email: query-fikd@helpareporter.net
  • Media Outlet: Fatherly
  • Deadline: 9:00 AM EST – 18 July

Query: I am looking to hear from therapists about this cycle of confrontation in a marriage and how it can recur, how it’s common, and how it is something to be aware of and fight back against. I am looking to get specific tips and advice for breaking the cycle.

  1. What steps should one take?
  2. What are some things to keep in mind as an individual, as a partner, and as a couple?

Summary: Mental Health Experts to Comment on Social Darwinism

  • Name: Rachael Green Verywell Mind
  • Category: Biotech and Healthcare
  • Email: query-fiqf@helpareporter.net
  • Media Outlet: Verywell Mind
  • Deadline: 5:00 PM EST – 18 July

Query: Although there isn’t really a unified definition, Social Darwinism generally refers to a belief that the rich and powerful in society are inherently or biologically superior to those who aren’t as wealthy or powerful–and that their political, economic, or social success is proof of that innate superiority. I’m working on an article that unpacks the fallacies inherent in this belief and trying to disentangle it from some of the more evidence-based evolutionary perspectives on human psychology. To do that, I’d love some insights from both researchers and mental healthcare providers on the topic. Here are a few questions I’d especially like to discuss, but feel free to add other thoughts or perspectives that I might have missed with my questions.

  1. Can you give some examples (preferably from psychology) that highlight the flaws and misunderstandings inherent in Social Darwinist beliefs?
  2. Do you think Charles Darwin would have agreed with Social Darwinism? Why or why not?
  3. While Social Darwinism has largely been discredited, Darwin’s theory of evolution did influence later work on the evolution and function of emotions and emotional expression. Can you talk a bit about some of those functions or adaptive uses of emotions, including negative emotions like sadness or anger?
  4. Can you talk about why psychiatric disorders might persist in humans if evolutionary processes like natural selection are supposed to “weed out” non-adaptive traits?
  5. One argument for their persistence is that they must be (or were at some point) adaptive in some way. What are your thoughts on this perspective of mental illness?
  6. If psychiatric disorders have an evolutionary explanation, what are the implications for how those disorders are treated?
About the Author: Belongly
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