All in the Mind
266 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 1 month ago - ★★★★★ - 55 ratingsThe show on how we think, feel and behave. Claudia Hammond delves into the evidence on mental health, psychology and neuroscience.
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Episodes
Adolescent brain, Awards update, Phonagnosia
November 22, 2016 21:30 - 27 minutes - 25.3 MBClaudia Hammond's studio guest is Catherine Loveday Principal Lecturer in Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Westminster. Adolescence is a time when life-long mental health difficulties sometimes emerge for the first time. By combining genetic data with the information from brain scans of many hundreds of people, a team at Cambridge might have worked out why this can happen. Claudia Hammond hears from neuroimaging researcher Dr Kirstie Whittaker and bioinformatics researcher Dr Pet...
Time travelling in the human mind
November 15, 2016 21:30 - 27 minutes - 25.4 MBClaudia Hammond is in Sydney, Australia, with a live studio audience at the BBC's World Changing Ideas Summit finding out what is so special about the human mind. Are we the only creatures who can mentally time travel - deciding at will to look back nostalgically at a past event or to look forward, imagining something we've never done before? But the brilliance of the human mind brings its own problems too, a dread of the future or rumination about the past so strong, that a person develops ...
How Are Memories Formed?
November 08, 2016 21:30 - 27 minutes - 25.5 MBThe brain has billions of neurons interconnected by trillions of synapses. It is at these synapses where memories are made. Ground-breaking research by Timothy Bliss, Graham Collingridge and Richard Morris has transformed our understanding of memory, and offered new insights into devastating effects of failing memory. This year they won the Brain Prize, the world's most valuable award in brain research. Claudia Hammond meets them in front of an audience at London's Royal Institution to disc...
Taking pride, Correct vocabulary in describing mental health, Green exercise
November 01, 2016 21:30 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBPride is one of the seven deadly sins, and we all know it comes before a fall. But in her new book Take Pride, Jess Tracy, Professor of Psychology at the University of British Columbia, argues that pride is the glue that holds societies together and that it can explain much of human success. How often do you use words like mad, crazy and schizophrenic in every day conversation? What impact does this have on people with mental health problems? To discuss this we brought together Niall Boyce,...
Tasers, Amnesia Museum, The dangers of diagnosing Donald Trump
October 25, 2016 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBFour people are tasered every day in the UK and a man who's been at the receiving end describes how much it hurts. But new evidence suggests it could also affect thinking and memory. Professor Rob Kane from Drexel University in the US tasered students and then measured their ability to recall facts in the hours after being tasered. He found serious deficits: the tasered group mirrored the ability of a 78 year old man with mild cognitive impairment, with some of the taser victims performing s...
All in the Mind Awards Ceremony from Wellcome Collection in London
June 28, 2016 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.9 MBClaudia Hammond hosts the All in the Mind Awards Ceremony from Wellcome Collection in London and meets all the All in the Mind Award Finalists. Back in November we asked you to nominate the person, professional or group who had made a difference to your mental health. Throughout the current series we've been hearing the individual stories of the nine finalists, and this edition offers the chance to recap the people and organisations who've made a huge difference to other people's lives - a...
Care farming; All in the Mind Awards; Turn-taking in conversation
June 23, 2016 12:41 - 28 minutes - 26 MBMany people say they feel better when they're out in nature. And some projects deliberately get people involved in conservation, horticulture or farming in order to take advantage of the benefits to health and well-being in the great outdoors. It's known as green care and a new report from Nature England suggests it could play a bigger part in our mental health services. Claudia Hammond visits a Care Farm - Church Farm near Stevenage in Hertfordshire to examine the therapeutic benefits. In ...
Supertaskers, Technology to Replace Exams and the All in the Mind Awards
June 14, 2016 20:30 - 28 minutes - 26 MBCould you be one on the 2.5% of the population psychologists have dubbed "supertaskers". These are people who are able to deal with a multitude of different tasks all at the same time? Now a team in Australia has put together an online test so that you can find out for yourself. We've had a lot of response to our discussion on education and exam stress. Claudia Hammond looks at a radical system designed to end exam stress forever - by doing away with exams and using artificial intelligence...
Aircraft noise and mental health, All in the Mind Awards, Imitation in newborn babies
June 07, 2016 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBSummer temperatures might be tempting you to eat outside, but maybe you live in a part of the country where your barbecues are blighted by aircraft noise and where you're woken in the morning by the roar of planes overhead? Some people insist that the noise affects their mental health. The evidence for the link between aircraft noise and depression has been patchy, but a major new study suggests there is a link. Claudia Hammond discusses the evidence with project leader and epidemiologist Pr...
The Depressed Cake Shop, Gut bacteria and the mind, The perils of perception
May 31, 2016 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.9 MBThe impact of gut bacteria on our cardiovascular system and metabolism has been well-researched. But how about the effect on our minds? Scientists are examining the possibility that these bacteria might influence our moods. John Cryan, who's Professor of Anatomy and Neuroscience at University College Cork, has just published a review of the current state of the field in the journal Genome Medicine. So could we see a day when certain gut bacteria are used in the treatment of depression and an...
Exams and the mental health of children, A community approach to suicide prevention
May 24, 2016 20:32 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBAs every summer, exams are in the news. We look at whether the pressure to do well in exams is having an effect on children's mental health. We speak to experts from Education, Psychology and Economics who are now working together to address the wider issue of the effect of Britain's current education system on our children's wellbeing. Looking beyond anecdotal evidence, we ask why, when considering education, is it so difficult to find firm data from which to draw conclusions and make rec...
Suicide in the veterinary profession, Psychology of autonomous cars, Awards nomination
May 17, 2016 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBFor many, working with animals is a dream job and every year thousands of students compete to get into vet school. But whilst life as a vet isn't always easy, surprisingly the suicide rate amongst vets is four times greater than among medical doctors. This fact came to prominence in research back in 2004 and steps have been taken to address it. Yet the exact reasons are still unclear. Claudia hears from vet Richard Hillman and meets Rosie Allister, who's based at Edinburgh University researc...
Psychiatrist shortage, GP helps with mental health, Why boredom could be a good thing
May 10, 2016 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.9 MBIn the UK there are around a hundred unfilled Consultant Psychiatrist posts. Claudia Hammond discusses with Sir Simon Wessely, President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, why there is such a shortage, and the knock on effect for patients. Why does psychiatry seem to be the poor relation when compared with other branches of medicine and what can be done to persuade more trainee doctors to consider psychiatry as a career? In the next of our series of features on the shortlist for the All...
All in the Mind Awards, Elegy, Directors in theatre and film turn to psychologists
May 03, 2016 20:30 - 28 minutes - 26 MBWe hear the second nomination in this year's All in the Mind Awards - where we asked you to nominate the person or group who has made a difference to your mental health. Last week we heard from the first of the finalists in the groups category. This week we have the first of our individuals. Neuroscience may be a young science, but discoveries are coming through fast. Will we see a day where everything is known about the brain and where parts of it that have gone wrong can even be replaced ...
All in the Mind Awards Finalists - Common Wheel, Psychology Replication Crisis, Gender Stereotyping in Babies.
April 26, 2016 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBIn the first of a new series Claudia Hammond meets the finalists for the All in the Mind Awards. Claudia meets group finalists The Common Wheel in Glasgow and discovers why bicycle maintenance helps mental health. Plus, the so-called replication crisis that's plaguing psychology at the moment - why is it proving so difficult to repeat some long-established experiments and to get the same results? First the crisis happened with something called priming, and now 23 labs around the world led b...
Psychology of a Mars mission, Superforecasters, MPs guide to mental health, Recovery College
December 15, 2015 21:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBAs Tim Peake is launched on his trip to spend 6 months on the International Space Station Claudia Hammond talks to Alexander Kumar, the doctor who has been to Antarctica to investigate the psychology of a human mission to Mars. How will the confined spaces, the dark and distance from planet Earth affect Mars astronauts of the future? Professor Philip Tetlock explains why his newly discovered elite group of so-called Superforecasters are so good at predicting global events. Claudia talks to M...
Brain bank dismantling, Climate change psychology, Trigger warnings for books
December 08, 2015 21:30 - 29 minutes - 26.7 MBEurope's largest brain bank is to be dismantled. The Corsellis Collection in west London contains tissue from 4000-6000 brains and includes a wide and unusual range of pathologies, some dating back as far as the 1950s. But now funding pressures mean that new homes must be found for as many as possible. Claudia asks which brains will be kept and hears about the value of brains without pathology. As the United Nations Climate Change Conference, or COP 21, continues in Paris, Claudia talks to ...
Bilingualism, Kevan Jones MP, Talking therapies and memorising art
December 01, 2015 21:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBClaudia Hammond talks to Dr Catherine Loveday to find out why being bilingual can protect against the damage caused by a stroke. She explains why it might all be down to something called cognitive reserve. Kevan Jones MP explains why he chose to talk about his own experience of depression to parliament and explains his role as judge on this year's All in the Mind awards. In 2008 the government introduced 'Improving Access to Psychological Therapies' services for people with depression and an...
Mindfulness, Rest and slothfulness, All in the Mind Awards, Compulsive sexual behaviour and the internet
November 24, 2015 21:30 - 28 minutes - 25.9 MBOver the last decade mindfulness has grown in popularity and is recommended in many settings such as the NHS, schools, the work place and prisons. But how strong is the scientific data? Mental Elf blogger Andre Tomlin and Professor Willem Kuyken review the evidence. All in the Mind Awards Judge Marion Janner talks to Claudia Hammond on the mindfulness of gardening and how to take part in the awards. Plus the search for rest: is being slothful still a sin? New research from Valerie Voon, a...
Astronauts, All in the Mind Awards, Crying and Lying
November 17, 2015 21:30 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBClaudia Hammond finds out why astronauts' experiences of seeing Earth from space can have profound effects on their feelings towards planet Earth. She talks to astronaut, Michael Lopez-Alegria, and trainee counselling psychologist, Annahita Nezami, about the Overview Effect and how the power of planet Earth may have therapeutic value for everyone back on terra firma. Clinical psychologist, Linda Blair, is one of the judges on the All in the Mind awards. She talks about how to have a conversa...
Launch of 2016 All in the Mind Awards, Latest results from Big Brain Projects
November 10, 2015 21:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBThe launch of the 2016 All in the Mind awards. Judge and novelist Matt Haig tells us what he will be looking for and 2014 finalists Pat Rose and Maya Pillay give their top tips for winning entries. Plus can we recreate the human brain? The latest results from two major neuroscience projects with very different approaches are giving fascinating insights into how the brain works.
The Rest Test, Treatment for arsonists, From psychologist to MP
November 03, 2015 21:30 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBThe Rest Test. What exactly is rest, are you getting enough and what's the best way to do it? A global investigation of rest needs your help to find out. Claudia Hammond talks to Dr Felicity Callard about why she wants to find out about the nation's resting habits. Arson costs the UK economy around £45 million every week. So why do people start fires and what can be done to change their behaviour? Professor Theresa Gannon discusses her research into the unique psychology of people who set fi...
Teenage Mental Health
October 27, 2015 21:30 - 27 minutes - 25.5 MBAs evidence accumulates that mental health problems are on the rise amongst adolescents, are services keeping up? Claudia Hammond is joined by a panel of experts to discuss teenage mental health. Professor Shirley Reynolds, Dr Dickon Bevington, Kimberley Robinson and Sarah Hulyer discuss the pressures teenagers face and how the mental health of our adolescents is changing. They also offer thoughts on how services could be reshaped to cope with this changing demand and what parents can do to...
Conspiracy theories, New MPs on mental health, Raw Sounds music project
May 26, 2015 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.9 MBClaudia Hammond talks to Chris French, Professor of Psychology at Goldsmiths University of London about conspiracy theories. Are they really harmless, and why is it that some people believe in them but not others? She meets two newly elected MPs, Naz Shah from Bradford West and Johnny Mercer from Plymouth, to discuss their plans for mental health and how to get things done as a new back bench MP. Also in the programme, Claudia visits Raw Sounds' studio in Brixton, South London - an innovativ...
19/05/2015
May 19, 2015 20:32 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBClaudia Hammond with the latest in psychology, neuroscience and mental health. What happens in the brain when someone goes on a drinking binge? Twins Drs Chris and Xand Van Tulleken took up the challenge to drink 21 units a week for a month for Horizon on BBC 2. Chris drank 3 drinks a day and Xand 21 units in one day. For the experiment their livers and immune systems were monitored, but All in the Mind wondered how alcohol impacted on the neurotransmitters in the brain. Addiction expert Sa...
Body Dysmorphic Disorder, Social Media and PTSD, Preventing Procrastination
May 12, 2015 20:30 - 27 minutes - 25.3 MBClaudia Hammond investigates Body dysmorphic disorder and asks if social media can really cause Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. She also talks to the psychologist who explains why describing events in terms of the number of days away they are, rather than years could help prevent people procrastinating.
05/05/2015
May 05, 2015 20:30 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBClaudia Hammond with the latest in psychology, neuroscience and mental health. This week her studio guest is neuroscientist Phil Beaman from Reading University. His latest research suggests a novel way to prevent those irritating earworms that plague most of us at one time or another. Plus that dress: earlier in the year pictures of a dress went viral and it divided families. But does it matter if you think it's blue and black or white and gold? Researcher Brad Pearce asks an audience at the...
28/04/2015
April 28, 2015 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBAs the general election approaches, Claudia Hammond finds out who is saying what about mental health. She talks to BBC health care and social affairs analyst, Emily Craig, who has been through the parties' manifestos. Claudia meets Matt Haig to discuss his new book, a surprise bestseller about his recovery from depression; and psychopharmacologist, Val Curran talks about her drug trial to tackle cannabis addiction using an ingredient found in the older versions of the drug, cannabidiol. And ...
21/04/2015
April 21, 2015 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBClaudia Hammond examines the evidence asking whether screen time is bad for young people.
London Bombings, Insight and Analysis
April 14, 2015 15:40 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBAs the ten year anniversary of the 2005 London bombings approaches, Claudia Hammond talks to Rachel Handley, a clinical psychologist whose first job was to treat people for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and travel phobia after the bombings. She talks about the overwhelming guilt felt by many people she counselled and how cognitive behavioural therapy helped stop people experience terrifying flashbacks. She explains why PTSD can also have a delayed onset, even as much as ten years after the ...
Psychology of voting, media portrayals of mental health, designer asylum
April 07, 2015 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBAre you an undecided voter? Claudia Hammond finds out what psychology can tell us about some of the influences on our decision making in the run up to the election. Cognitive psychologist, Professor Colin Davis talks about his research on TV election debates and the influence of the on screen 'worm' used to show what a group of undecided voters think about what's being said throughout the debate. How is mental health portrayed in the media? Paul Whitehouse's recent comedy, Nurse, showed him ...
Musical hallucinations and mental health in the novel
December 30, 2014 21:30 - 27 minutes - 25.5 MBClaudia Hammond finds out how neuroscientists are understanding musical hallucinations by looking at the brains of those who experience them. Tim Griffiths and Vicky Williamson talk about their research into musical imagery and what it reveals about the workings of the brain and why musical hallucinations are more common in people with hearing loss. Nathan Filer and Matt Haig join Claudia to talk about their novels: The Shock of the Fall and The Humans and why they chose to write about menta...
Hypnotism; Automatic Writing; Magic and Memory
December 23, 2014 21:30 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBA show with a touch of magic, as Claudia discovers how magicians and conjurers use the power of our own beliefs as well as the power of suggestion, to perform their tricks. Professor Chris French, Head of the Anomalistic Psychology Unit at Goldsmiths, University of London, describes his latest study where a fake psychic bends keys using "psychokinetic" energy. Belief in the paranormal and the influence of others who claim to have seen the key bend, both affect what we see and remember. And t...
Perinatal obsessive compulsive disorder, Mirror neurons, Baby anxiety
December 16, 2014 21:30 - 27 minutes - 25.5 MBClaudia Hammond investigates an often hidden condition: perinatal obsessive compulsive disorder which can affect pregnant women or new mothers. Women with perinatal OCD can have obsessive thoughts about contamination and cleanliness or a less well known aspect of the condition which is compulsive thoughts and intense fear of seriously harming their children. They go to extreme measures to prevent themselves doing any harm, although they never would. Women can be treated successfully with cog...
Hoarding Disorder; Unfitness to Plead; Mood Phone Apps
December 09, 2014 21:30 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBStockpiling possessions and collecting obsessively can tip into Hoarding Disorder, a condition recently recognised as a diagnosable mental health condition. Martin tells Claudia Hammond how his growing collection of cars, trucks and bikes awaiting "renovation" was growing out of control, and how a self help group for hoarders helped him to come to face up to his problem. NHS Clinical Psychologist Sophie Holmes describes the need for services to provide help and support for this often hidden ...
02/12/2014
December 02, 2014 21:30 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBDriving and distraction from mobile phones - a new study from Canada shows that if someone phoning a driver can see the driver's road ahead the driver is far less likely to have an accident. The programme explores why using mobile phones while driving, even if they are hands free is so distracting and dangerous. Claudia talks to Nick Grey about an intensive 7 day course for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He explains why it is just as effective as giving the same course of cognitive behaviou...
Airport Security; Attitudes to Psychosis; Walking Happy
November 25, 2014 21:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBHome Secretary Theresa May says the UK is facing a terror threat "perhaps greater than it has ever been", and this week's anti-terrorism bill includes tighter airport security. But two psychology professors say current screening methods used at airports, where security agents check the behaviour of passengers for "suspicious signs", need an urgent upgrade. Professor Tom Ormerod from Sussex University and Coral Dando from the University of Wolverhampton, designed a new conversation-based scre...
Problem Gambling; Owls and Larks; Milgram Revisited; Depression and Gut Instinct
November 18, 2014 21:32 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBClaudia Hammond talks to Henrietta Bowden-Jones who runs the only NHS clinic for problem gamblers. Based in Central London it offers help to problem gamblers across the country. Treatment is mainly group based cognitive behavioural therapy. As many as 8 out of 10 patients, who are mostly men, have stopped gambling after 8 weeks of treatment at the clinic. But should more similar treatment centres be set up across the country for an addiction which often remains hidden? Also in the programme,...
1:4 and Stigma; Emotional Brain Training; Clio Barnard
November 11, 2014 21:32 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MB"One in Four" has been a prominent slogan in campaigns to reduce stigma and discrimination against people with mental health problems. But Clinical Psychologist Martin Seager tells Claudia Hammond why he believes saying 'one in four' people will experience mental illness in any one year actually increases prejudice, artificially separating our mental health from our physical health. The Director of Time to Change, Sue Baker, disagrees, and argues that this statistical campaign tool has helpe...
Radicalisation; Bystander Effect; Recovery Letters
November 04, 2014 21:30 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBClaudia explores pioneering new research into radicalisation. She talks to Professor Kamaldeep Bhui who is doing research to try and prevent radicalisation in the early stages. His idea is, if we can understand what makes someone sympathetic to violence and terrorist actions then radicalisation can be stopped before it starts. He explains why vulnerability to radicalisation is linked to depression. Also in the programme, 50 years after a murder which spawned a whole new area of psychology. D...
24/06/2014
June 24, 2014 20:30 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBClaudia Hammond hosts the All in the Mind Awards Ceremony from the Wellcome Collection in London, and meets all the finalists.
17/06/2014
June 17, 2014 20:30 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBClaudia Hammond asks is autism underdiagnosed in girls? And this week's finalist in the All in the Mind awards is Dr Alan Barrett from Military Veterans.
10/06/2014
June 10, 2014 20:30 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBClaudia Hammond meets two more finalists in the All in the Mind 25th anniversary awards. She talks to a mother who's been nominated by her daughter with anorexia. For years she has tried to help her, staying up at night to check her pulse and as her daughter put it "even when I was a bag of bones, all pointy-edged and cold she'd sit and cuddle me". We hear why she feels she went way beyond her parental duties. Claudia also hears from the man who nominated Maytree, a sanctuary for the suicida...
03/06/2014
June 03, 2014 20:30 - 27 minutes - 25.5 MBAll in the Mind Awards One in Four is a support group for people who have been sexually abused as children. The group offers counselling and advocacy and is a finalist in the All in the Mind Awards. Sporting Memories Claudia discovers how remembering sporting events are an important way to trigger memories and we have a report from the Sporting Memories group in Haddington East Lothian. Therapists Dreaming Professor of Psychology Clara Hill's research on therapists who dream about their ...
27/05/2014
May 27, 2014 20:30 - 27 minutes - 25.6 MBMagician Chris Cox tricks Claudia Hammond's attention system and Professor Nilli Lavie explains what is happening in our brains when our visual system is overloaded; Claudia hears from Mike who nominated Pat in the professional category of the All in the Mind Mental Health Awards after she guided him through addiction and mental health problems lasting 15 years; and psychologist Guy Holmes discusses the difficulties of navigating professional boundaries.
20/05/2014
May 20, 2014 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBClaudia Hammond hears from finalists, Andrew and his ex boss Steve in the All in the Mind awards and how Steve went the extra mile to help keep Andrew in a job. Also tips on how to help a friend or family member who has or you suspect has a mental health problem. Also why senior City executives are calling for urgent changes to mental health provision for workers in the Square Mile and beyond.
13/05/2014
May 13, 2014 20:30 - 27 minutes - 25.5 MBWhy does one child become rebellious and another not? Claudia Hammond talks to Mark McDermott from the University of East London about new research into parenting and rebelliousness. She also hears from another shortlisted entry to the All in the Mind mental health awards. Plus, a scheme to fast track mental health social workers. Will this improve the image of the profession? Claudia Hammond reports on the new Think Ahead proposals.
06/05/2014
May 06, 2014 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBAre mental health services in crisis? Claudia Hammond talks to Sue Bailey, president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, about her fears that mental health is at a tipping point and could be heading towards its own Stafford Hospital style scandal. Martin McShane from NHS England and Minister for Care and Support, Norman Lamb, respond. Claudia talks to historian, Jay Winter about why he believes shell shock in World War One was hugely underdiagnosed. And she hears from Mindout, a support g...
29/04/2014
April 29, 2014 20:30 - 28 minutes - 25.8 MBClaudia Hammond is joined by mental health campaigner, Marion Janner to discuss some of the entries to the All in the Mind mental health awards. She hears from one pair of finalists, Helen and Lin. Helen nominated her mental health nurse, Lin in the professional category. Helen explains the difference Lin's help made and how she believes she saved her life. Also in the programme in World War I the Craiglockhart hospital near Edinburgh was a military psychiatric hospital treating shell shocke...
14/01/2014
January 14, 2014 21:30 - 28 minutes - 25.7 MBClaudia Hammond reports on a mental health triage scheme being run by Leicestershire police force, which has led to a decrease in the number of people with mental illness being detained under Section 136 of the Mental Health Act. Praising children with low self-esteem may seem like a good way to boost their confidence, but a new study by psychologist Eddie Brummelman of Utrecht University suggests that this can backfire and make them less likely to take on new challenges. Scott Stossel des...