![All in the Mind](https://static.mytuner.mobi/media/podcasts/675/all-in-the-mind.jpg)
All in the Mind
BBC Radio 4
Categories: Health
Listen to the last episode:
Smartphones are bad for the mental health of children and adolescents. At least, that’s the popular perception that has led to calls for smartphones to be banned for children under a certain age, with numerous media reports drumming home the narrative that smartphones are damaging a generation. But the evidence for a link between smartphones and poor mental health is surprisingly weak, and smartphones also have uses that can be beneficial to children and adults alike. Claudia Hammond talks to Dr Amy Orben, who leads the digital mental health group at the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit at the University of Cambridge. As well as her own research, she’s reviewed huge numbers of studies on the topic and says that the panic around smartphones mirrors previous panics about other technologies such as the radio. So how do we allow children to become part of the digital world while also keeping them safe?
Claudia is joined in the studio by clinical psychologist Linda Blair, who brings along a new research paper on what it means to get a diagnosis for a mild mental health problem. Diagnostic labels can legitimise help-seeking and boost empathy, but they can also encourage the view that mental health problems are persistent and discourage the idea that you can overcome them.
Climate anxiety is a fairly new label, and we hear from a group of people in Fife about how climate change is affecting them emotionally. Claudia then speaks to Caroline Hickman, a psychotherapist who works with climate activists and researches the psychological effects of climate change on young people. Human beings have an amazing capacity for resilience, but most of the problems we have faced in history have had a solution. How do we cope with a crisis that does not have a solution and contains multiple uncertainties?
Previous episodes
-
273 - Smartphones and children, mental health labels and climate anxiety Tue, 03 Sep 2024
-
272 - Toxic positivity Tue, 18 Jun 2024
-
271 - Tetris as therapy; internet addiction and teens; the psychology of secrets Tue, 11 Jun 2024
-
270 - Languishing and the search for meaning in the modern world Tue, 04 Jun 2024
-
269 - Grief, summer seasonal affective disorder, and anxiety in older people Tue, 28 May 2024
-
268 - Why is exercise good for your mental health? Tue, 21 May 2024
-
267 - Dishonesty researcher accused of fraud; hypocrisy; suicide prevention; awe Tue, 14 May 2024
-
266 - The psychology of hope Wed, 27 Mar 2024
-
265 - Seasonality, learning to hope, and the gender citation gap Wed, 20 Mar 2024
-
264 - How nightmares link to real-life fears, and new research tackling post-cardiac arrest PTSD Tue, 12 Mar 2024
-
263 - The science behind screentime, the effect of live music, and can you imagine sounds in your head? Tue, 05 Mar 2024
-
262 - What's going on with girls' mental health? Tue, 27 Feb 2024
-
261 - Eating to improve memory, and a new play about mental health services Tue, 20 Feb 2024
-
260 - What Mastermind can tell us about blinking, how music shapes memory and why anger can be a useful emotion Tue, 19 Dec 2023
-
259 - The impact of bad news, compassion fatigue, and the psychology of whistleblowing Tue, 12 Dec 2023
-
258 - Rowing the Atlantic in the name of science, psychologists tackling poverty, and the scent of fear makes us more observant. Tue, 05 Dec 2023
-
257 - ADHD medication shortage, life after being a carer and the benefits of keeping positive secrets Wed, 29 Nov 2023
-
256 - Belief in conspiracy theories, exercising before work, and living with OCD Tue, 21 Nov 2023
-
255 - New psychosis drug, why its hard to recall 2021, and counselling in later life Wed, 15 Nov 2023
-
254 - Grieving when estranged, musical hallucinations and the benefits of snoozing your alarm Wed, 08 Nov 2023
-
253 - Increasing humility, suppressing negative thoughts and talking about mental health at work Tue, 31 Oct 2023
-
252 - All in the Mind Awards Ceremony Tue, 27 Jun 2023
-
251 - Male friendship Tue, 20 Jun 2023
-
250 - The perfection trap: do you feel 'good enough'? Tue, 13 Jun 2023
-
249 - Can we fix mental health care? Tue, 06 Jun 2023
-
248 - Stories of Loss and Hope Tue, 30 May 2023
-
247 - Supporting a son with schizophrenia Thu, 25 May 2023
-
246 - How much empathy should doctors have? Fri, 19 May 2023
-
245 - Do lonely brains see the world differently? Tue, 09 May 2023
-
244 - Aphasia Tue, 02 May 2023
-
243 - Feeling an unseen presence Tue, 25 Apr 2023
-
242 - Can you knit away your worries? Tue, 27 Dec 2022
-
241 - Fergal Keane and PTSD Tue, 20 Dec 2022
-
240 - The sudden rise in teenagers developing tics during the pandemic Tue, 13 Dec 2022
-
239 - Can Mental Health Awareness have unintended consequences? Tue, 06 Dec 2022
-
238 - Devices to aid our memories and safe music for driving Tue, 29 Nov 2022
-
237 - Diagnosing bipolar disorder and the launch of the 2023 All in the Mind Awards Tue, 22 Nov 2022
-
236 - Negotiating a crisis Tue, 15 Nov 2022
-
235 - Steven Pinker Tue, 08 Nov 2022
-
234 - Urban rewilding for wellbeing, oxytocin and kindness, false alarm crowd panic Tue, 28 Jun 2022
-
233 - One mother's story of the psychological impact on her children of her ex husband's sexual offences Tue, 21 Jun 2022
-
232 - The Psychology of Regret Tue, 14 Jun 2022
-
231 - Breastfeeding Trauma and the Psychology of Awkwardness Tue, 07 Jun 2022
-
230 - Post-pandemic mental health; navigation ability; conversations with strangers Tue, 31 May 2022
-
229 - Gardening and mental health Tue, 24 May 2022
-
228 - Manifestation; Overconfidence; Radio drama changing attitudes Tue, 17 May 2022
-
227 - Treating refugee mental health; Improving personal growth; Dreamachine Tue, 10 May 2022
-
226 - Dreams and dreaming; brain scans for personality traits; extrovert listening Tue, 03 May 2022
-
225 - How to cope when your child can't Tue, 26 Apr 2022
-
224 - The Anatomy of Kindness Wed, 30 Mar 2022