In this clinical psychology episode of the podcast, we’re going to be looking at my reflection of Comments on Psychology of Religion and Psychology TV Programmes.
This episode of podcast has been sponsored by Developmental Psychology: Third Edition.
Comments on Psychology of Religion Reflection
Friday 23rd October 2020
This week I finished reading a new book on the psychology of religion.
Now, originally I wasn’t going to do a reflection because I tend to religion and politics are best to avoid unless you the person.
Although, I will do a brief reflection.
Therefore, the book mentioned a lot of interesting things. Like, children aren’t inheritably more likely to believe in God. This is supported by Paiget’s theory as the god concept is rather abstract, and children don’t tend to form abstract thought until age 11.
Also, it mentioned that religion doesn’t naturally make you moral. There are other factors as well as it expanded upon topics of religious socialisation and the restrictive morals of religion.
Anyway, linking this book to clinical practice, I want to stress that when we’re in clinical settings and in therapy sessions. We must respect [people belief’s and we must not be prejudice or discriminate against them.
It is their right to believe.
Therefore, in clinical settings, we must culturally adapt our sessions and be mindful of our reflectivity. To try and ensure the client benefits as much as possible from the therapy.
Consequently, if we need to change how the therapy is done slightly to make it more approachable or how the setting to make the client more comfortable then we should, or at least, consider it.
At the end of the day, it is our job as clinical psychologists to help the client live a better happier life and their religion will impact this in one way or another.
Reference
The Psychology of Religion by Vassilis Sargoglou.
Psychology TV Programme Reflection
Friday 30th October 2020
Usually, I’m not much of a ‘psychology’ TV programmes because 99% of them tend to get psychology completely wrong.
However, I’ve recently discovered a new ‘drama’ I guess you could call it that, and it was very good. It was called Evil.
In short, it’s a clinical psychologist who is hired by the catholic church to assess ‘miracles’ and other supposed holy things. Like, demonic possession.
Also, I like it because it has pretty dark scenes.
Nevertheless, the reason why I’m talking about it in a reflective journal is because this fictional programme clearly shows how mental conditions can manifest, as well as lead people to believe they’re demonically possessed. Where they could be psychotic or suffer from schizophrenia.
Overall, this highlights the need with clinical psychology to be respectful of people's beliefs and we need to acknowledge that mental conditions can manifest in different ways.
Finally, I like that this program shows briefly the pressure that some legal professionals put
on clinical psychologists as expert witnesses to sat the ‘right’ thing. I know this is rare but it reminds us that we never ‘bow down’ to that pressure. Or we risk the integrity of the profession, let alone ourselves.
I really hope you enjoyed this clinical psychology reflection and I would love to show your own reflection in the comments!
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Have a great day!
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