Psyche | Know Your Self

An older man with a beard and glasses and a baby smiling outdoors with trees in the background.

PARENTING AND FAMILIES

The full-service grandad

I thought I was a present father; my sons said otherwise. When my granddaughter arrived I made an offer

by Liam Heneghan

A cluttered archive with stacks of files in cabinets, a poster on the cabinet door, and dark ambient lighting.

HISTORY OF EMOTIONS

When you feel moral disgust, what’s the emotion telling you?

Some actions and words provoke instant revulsion. To know if we can trust that gut feeling, we should probe why we have it

by Brandon Yip

A man in a suit speaks into a microphone in front of a vibrant, abstract digital background; photo.

LEARNING AND EDUCATION

Can he teach the teachers?

The neuroscientist Stanislas Dehaene wants to bring four decades of findings on how the brain learns into the classroom. But evidence alone can’t overcome the politics in education

by Nancy Averett

Ideas

A man in a car talking on a phone and gesturing with his hand, appearing animated or upset.

TECHNOLOGY AND MEDIA

The way we talk to bots matters even if they aren’t conscious

by HennyGe Wichers

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RITUALS AND CELEBRATIONS

The evil eye is irrational. Abandon it at your peril

by Timna Abramov

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COUPLES AND FAMILY THERAPY

What does it mean to have relationship ambivalence?

by Francesca Righetti

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GOALS AND MOTIVATION

Maxxing treats life as a problem when it’s a mystery

by Håkon Evjemo

Guides

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SEX AND SEXUALITY

How to cope with the stress of anti-LGBTQ+ prejudice

A queer psychologist shares skills from dialectical behaviour therapy to help you cope and find joy in a stigmatising world

by Kiki Fehling

Two people sitting on a log by a lake, facing distant mountains under a cloudy sky.

How to uncover your blind spots

We all have parts of ourselves others know but we don’t. Gain greater self-awareness by seeing yourself from the outside in

by Jennifer Farrell

Life stories

An older man in a hat and glasses with a colourful tie-dye shirt at an outdoor event, headphones around his neck.

The human frequency

With Radio Paradise, William Goldsmith built an internet radio station that’s become a living argument for taste, trust and the art of choosing what comes next

by Greg Easley

Editor’s picks

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DIFFICULT EMOTIONS

How to handle rejection

Whether personal or professional, the sting of rejection awaits us all. These strategies can help you heal and move on

by Thomas Smithyman

Photo of a person kneeling on a barren landscape under a cloudy sky, capturing a sense of isolation and vastness.

SPIRITUALITY AND RELIGION

Religion gives life meaning. Can anything else take its place?

Religious faith promotes a sense of meaning in life – and it might take more than ‘social glue’ to duplicate the effect

by Michael M Prinzing

Latest videos

Photo of a person in a small canoe surrounded by large cruise ships under a cloudy sky.

PROGRESS AND THE FUTURE

When tech titans tell us to adapt or die, we needn’t listen

A film by Andreas Dürr and Jan-Marc Furer

Photo of a crowded nightclub with people dancing under red and orange lights, creating a lively atmosphere.

How to know if you’re highly sensitive, and what to do about it

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PARENTING AND FAMILIES

An intimate account of illegal abortion in 1969, from mother to daughter

Illustration of a decorative pedestal topped with a blue starry shape on a white background.

SEXUAL PROBLEMS

Viagra has its upsides, sure. But has it changed sex for the better?

Photo of a person smiling with arms outstretched in a turquoise tie-dye shirt in a bright room.

Step into the joyful world of Annabel, a performer with Down syndrome

Photo of a man reading in an armchair by a lamp and bookshelf, with a side table and framed text nearby.

SPIRITUALITY AND RELIGION

For a gay Catholic priest, coming out was its own leap of faith

Photo of an elderly woman and a teenager walking hand in hand inside a building with retro decor, a vintage car beside them.

BRAIN INJURY AND DEMENTIA

Inside the Alzheimer’s care centre where it’s always the 1950s

Notes to self

Excited football fans in team jerseys celebrating, some holding cups, others taking selfies at night.

SPORTS AND GAMES

Go ahead, jump on the bandwagon

by Hannah Seo

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DIFFICULT EMOTIONS

Impatience is an emotion, not a trait

by Amy Arthur

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MINDFULNESS AND MEDITATION

Absence of presence and presence of absence

by Nigel Warburton

Popular

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FREEDOM AND CHOICE

Why you should try living without free will for two weeks

Set aside the philosophical debates and act as if there is no free will. It leads to less blaming and better questions

by Tara-Lyn Camilleri

A person walking past outdoor café tables and chairs in shadowed sunlight.

MINDFULNESS AND MEDITATION

Absence of presence and presence of absence

Mindfulness experts teach us to be present in the moment. I suggest an antidote – a meditation that’s focused on absence

by Nigel Warburton

Medieval painting of a scribe in a hooded robe writing on a large manuscript at a tilted desk with a gold background.

COMMUNICATION AND LANGUAGE

How to be a word detective

Etymology unravels the mysteries of language and the hidden webs that link people across the world. Here’s how to dive in

by Danny Bate

Two people sitting on a log by a lake, facing distant mountains under a cloudy sky.

How to uncover your blind spots

We all have parts of ourselves others know but we don’t. Gain greater self-awareness by seeing yourself from the outside in

by Jennifer Farrell

Painting of a late-19th century pub scene with two men and a woman, drinks on the table, the woman looking into a mirror.

Is it morally wrong to not take care of yourself?

The philosophical debate goes on. But our research on self-obligations suggests there’s a common, consequential view

by Laura K Soter & Fan Yang

Three elderly women seated on a bench. One laughs, one covers her face with a book, the other sits with hands folded.

LAUGHTER AND COMEDY

Why women’s laughter has long been treated as a threat

Traditional patriarchy has always told women not to laugh. Today, female laughter still disturbs a male-dominated world

by Abílio Almeida

An elderly person walking with a cane in a dimly lit hallway, light from a room accentuates their silhouette.

BRAIN INJURY AND DEMENTIA

Terminal lucidity: when dying dementia patients regain awareness

The reports span centuries and cultures. If they’re real, memory and identity might be far more recoverable than we thought

by Ariel Zeleznikow-Johnston

Black and white photo of a man looking in a mirror, touching his chin with his index finger.

GOALS AND MOTIVATION

Maxxing treats life as a problem when it’s a mystery

The philosopher Gabriel Marcel offers the antidote to a grotesque new ideology: don’t fix existence, be open to it

by Håkon Evjemo

Explore: Emerging therapies

THERAPEUTIC RELATIONSHIPS

Why chatbot therapists can’t offer what we need

by Wasseem El Sarraj

Photo of an elderly woman and a teenager walking hand in hand inside a building with retro decor, a vintage car beside them.

BRAIN INJURY AND DEMENTIA

Inside the Alzheimer’s care centre where it’s always the 1950s

Directed by Josh Izenberg

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TRAUMA AND PTSD

Aftershock

by Madison Lamb

Photo of a smartphone displaying an augmented reality app showing a textured object over a hand on the screen.

FEAR AND PHOBIA

Why augmenting reality to make it ickier could help germaphobes

Video by University of the Netherlands

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EMERGING THERAPIES

How to look after your emotional health

by Denise Winn

A woman and a man converse while seated on chairs in a room with plants. A decorative table with glasses is between them.

EMERGING THERAPIES

The critic inside your head has something important to tell you. Here’s how to listen

Video by Esther Perel

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EMERGING THERAPIES

Could dreams during anaesthesia help to heal life’s trauma?

by Shayla Love

A man wearing an eye mask lies on a bed while another person observes; a monitor and lamp are on the nearby table.

EMERGING THERAPIES

What does ketamine-assisted therapy look like? Inside one firefighter’s journey

Directed by Brandon Kapelow