Geoffrey W. Sutton PhD, Psychology and Culture

Are You Happy Yet?  UP and DOWN metaphors It’s common knowledge that news sources thrive on negative news. Afterall, we are hardwired to respond to threats as a matter of survival. Unfortunately, a torrent of bad news can produce sadness or even depression. Depression as a word fits the up-down metaphor as if our brains had a vertical structure for moods where up is good and down is bad. In banter with my cousin Stan (RIP) his response to “how are ya” was “still above ground.” On leaving, I’d say “I’m going underground” as he delivered me to my London tube station. Religious folks use up and down metaphors for heaven and hell, which I always thought was funny for those DOWN under (Aussies). When things are DOWN, we often characterize them as LOWER, CUT, NOT WORKING, BROKEN, AT THE BOTTOM, and ON THE GROUND. When people in important positions leave, they STEPDOWN. And naysayers warn the arrogant that they should watch out for a FALL. If you consume news, check out the DOWNPOUR in re...

Top 10 Prayers for Healing Have you ever asked God to heal you of a condition?  What happened? Scientists have studied prayer in different ways and do not find a great deal of support for its effectiveness. There are testimonies of healing. And sometimes you will find medical evidence that a condition has suddenly improved without medical intervention or despite medical opinion that a condition was not expected to improve. What do people pray for? A Lifeway Survey reported 1 October 2014 identified the following Top 5 things people pray about. 1. Family or friends 82% 2. personal problems or difficulties 74% 3. Good things that recently occurred 54% 4. Personal sin 42% 5. People in natural disasters 38% See their survey for their language and more details. It's pretty impressive that people care about others. Pew Report on Prayer               Published on the U.S. National Day of Prayer, May 1,...

Perfectionism: Maladaptive and Adaptive    and Spirituality As a clinician, specializing in the treatment of persons with spiritual issues in addition to general mental health conditions, it was not uncommon to see persons struggling with imperfection and feeling like a failure. This was especially true among clients associated with fundamentalist beliefs and those faiths with strict behavioral expectations. And from time to time I saw people with religious obsessions and compulsions. A recent study in Psychology ofReligion and Spirituality examines adaptive and maladaptive perfectionism in a sample of Latter Day Saints. What Can We Learn About the Spirituality of Latter Day Saints (LDS, Mormons)? The Latter Day Saints (LDS) is an example of an American religion, which began in the 1800s. Religions specify beliefs and values as well as expected behavior patterns. In short, many religions define morality for their adherents. Failure to comply with the beha...