I Think My Snorlax Is Depressed

  An examination of Pokémon and Psychology  

[ithinkmysnorlaxisdepressed]

The “Education” of Pokémon Trainers: A Primer on School Refusal

Now is a time frequently associated with the return to formal education for most school age children. However, in the Pokémon world education seems to be approached somewhat differently. While it may be somewhat normal for children to not attend school across the various regions in the Pokémon world, children in the real world who do not consistently attend school may be struggling with specific mental health needs. The term for the behavior when a school age child does not consistently attend school is referred to as “school refusal.”

School refusal is defined as a school-age child who does not attend school in its entirety, as scheduled, and has no reasonable circumstances for this behavior. Motivation can vary, but this definition captures the very basics of the term (Kearney, 2008).

While there are clear examples of school being present in Pokémon, neither attendance nor educational topics appear to be even close to equivalent to the demands of a real world education. Even Scarlet and Violet, which include “academy” education as a central part of the game, do not seem to follow what we might relate to as a typical educational trajectory. For example, age seems to be irrelevant to educational placement, with children learning next to adults. Also, the vast majority of school subjects described in Pokémon are related to exactly that: Pokémon. Also, when we have seen the protagonist attend school, it has been a rarity. It has only been in the most recent seasons of the animated series that Ash Ketchum has demonstrated any consistency in his educational attendance. However, this is the exception: the majority of the time he has traveled near and far without school being more than a passing thought and with no clear pattern of formal enrollment.

Severity of school refusal has been categorized as belonging to three different levels. First is self-corrective school refusal, which involves children whose school refusal stops on its own within a two week period. Acute school refusal refers to school refusal behavior that lasts from 2 weeks to 1 year. Finally is chronic school refusal, which lasts longer than one calendar year and overlaps two school years. (Silverman & Kurtines, 1996). With regard to the Pokémon anime franchise’s hero, Ash Ketchum, he has displayed at least acute school refusal, if not chronic.

As to the reasons for possible school refusal, there are four underlying factors that have emerged that seem to motivate school refusal behavior. First is school refusal that is motivated by a desire to avoid negative or uncomfortable feelings generated by attending school or specific situations within the school setting. Second is school refusal that is motivated by escaping from problematic social situations or the evaluative aspects of education. Third is school refusal that is a result of attention-seeking behaviors, often involving attention from parents and caregivers. Fourth is school refusal motivated by attempts to pursue positive experiences outside of the school setting. However, not all school refusers fit neatly into one category and there may be circumstances where school refusal serves multiple functions. Additionally, the specific interventions mobilized to treat school refusal vary with the function of the behavior (Kearney, 2007).

Revisiting Ash Ketchum, there seems to be enough evidence to suggest the function of his potential school refusal. There has never been any clear sign of Ash being avoidant of school because he is either uncomfortable with his emotional experience at school or because he struggles with social aspects of education. Attention-seeking also seems unlikely as his typical response to parental attention has been annoyance or embarrassment. However, instead of going to school he has had the opportunity to travel the countryside, make friends, have a myriad of adventures, and catch and train Pokémon. That would suggest attempts at obtaining positive experiences as Ash’s primary motivation.

Intervention for school refusal can be complicated and often requires assistance from parents, school staff, and mental health professionals. The exact interventions used also vary with the function being served by school refusal. However, the general treatment of choice is to provide intervention that encourages as early a return to school as possible (Kearney & Silverman, 1999). However, the world of Pokémon does not seem to require school attendance, nor see lack thereof as any particular concern for possible treatment.

Works Cited

Kearney, C.A. (2007). Forms and functions of school refusal behavior in youth: An empirical analysis of absenteeism severity. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 48, 53-61.

Kearney, C.A. (2008). School absenteeism and school refusal behavior: A review of contemporary literature. Clinical Psychology Review, 28, 451-471.

Silverman, W.K. & Kurtines, W.M. (1996). Anxiety and phobic disorders: A pragmatic approach. New York: Plenum Press.

Kearney, C.A. & Silverman, W.K. (1999). Functionally based prescriptive and nonprescriptive treatment for children and adolescents with school refusal behavior. Behavior Therapy, 30, 673-695.

[twloha]

All that we are is story. From the moment we are born to the time we continue on our spirit journey, we are involved in the creation of the story of our time here. It is what we arrive with. It is all we leave behind. We are not the things we accumulate. We are not the things we deem important. We are story. All of us. What comes to matter then is the creation of the best possible story we can while we’re here; you, me, us, together. When we can do that and we take the time to share those stories with each other, we get bigger inside, we see each other, we recognize our kinship—we change the world, one story at a time…

Richard Wagamese (via twloha)

[clavainov]

[fyp-psychology]

Being entirely honest with oneself is a good exercise.

Sigmund Freud (via fyp-psychology)

[fyp-psychology]

Don’t be pushed by your problems. Be led by your dreams.

Albert Ellis (via fyp-psychology)

[ithinkmysnorlaxisdepressed]

Eeveelutionary Psychology

Evolution, the process by which one Pokémon transforms into a new species, is a hallmark of the franchise.  The majority of all Pokémon have the potential to evolve, though none are perhaps more associated with evolution than Eevee, the Evolution Pokémon.  Eevee has the potential to evolve into eight different species of Pokémon, depending upon a number of circumstances such as use of items, leveling up around objects, time of day, or type of move learned.  These species are, according to various Pokédex entries, adaptations to suit Eevee's environment. But, what does evolution in Pokémon have to do with evolution in psychology?

Evolutionary psychology attempts to understand the human mind in light of evolutionary principles.  Like Eevee's adaptation to its surroundings, evolutionary psychology views the mind as a set of information-processing systems designed through evolution to adapt to problems that face it.  These systems are often automatic and may appear to be instinctual, despite being honed by many generations of evolutionary process.  However, these systems are not content-specific, in tat they operate on a process level.  As an example, while humans are born with an innate capacity for the learning of language, they are not born with a specific language. One of these evolutionary processes is that of natural selection, which dictates that traits and behaviors that increase the likelihood of an individual passing their genes on to the next generation will increase in frequency within the population and those that do not will decrease in frequency.  Just as certain physical traits may be helpful, such as a healthy immune system, psychological traits may also increase the odds of genes being passed into the next generation, such as the fight or flight response when presented with threats to personal integrity (Cosmides & Tooby, 1997).

This is one area where Pokémon gets evolution wrong and right.  In Pokémon, evolution occurs within a single generation, when a Pokémon transforms into a new evolution and this process has nothing to do with natural selection.  However, when Pokémon are bred, traits are heritable between generations and successive breeding chains may result in a particular Pokémon being hatched from an egg with more desirable/adaptive traits.

As pertaining to the human mind, evolved psychological mechanisms are psychological processes that at one point solved a problem relating to survival or reproduction, responds as a result of input that is either internal to the organism or external from the environment specific to the adaptive problem in question, and produces behavior or provides information to other processes that solve the adaptive problem.  The adaptive problem must also have persisted long enough in time for evolution to have taken place, requiring many generations for successful adaptation (Buss, 1995).

One of the challenges to evolutionary psychology is the emergence and continued existence of individual differences.  If, as above-mentioned, evolutionary principles are working over successive generations to increase chances of survival and reproduction, there is the possibility that human beings will eventually reach a peak, identical, state of optimal survivability and reproduction.  However, this is clearly not the case as human beings (and their minds) are not identical and can show great variability on some factors.  There are a number of possible explanations for this individual variability in processes, such as personality.  Life history can be a significant factor, with different life events leading to different approaches to adaptation. This may lead to more than one possible approach to optimizing odds for survival and reproduction.  The cost of particular adaptations should also be factored in.  For example, the psychological process of altruism requires expenditure of some sort of resource in order to be displayed.  The specific environment may also favor particular traits that increase in heritability over generations of exposure to the specific environment.  Additionally, genetic mutations that occur may not be immediately purged from a population by natural selection, particularly if they are not highly disruptive to survival or reproduction (Buss, 2009).  

Though Pokémon's demonstration of the principles of evolution may not be accurate, it is not entirely incorrect.  Eevee, like the human mind, is full of possibility of what could be, if provided the right circumstances.  Though this happens in a single generation for Eevee, evolutionary theory remains consistent with that potential as we continue to adapt across multiple generations.

Works Cited:

Buss, D. M. (1995).  Evolutionary psychology: A new paradigm for psychological science. Psychological Inquiry, 6, 1-30.

Buss, D. M. (2009).  How can evolutionary psychology successfully explain personality and individual differences? Perspectives on Psychological Science, 4, 359-366.

Cosmides, L., & Tooby, J. (1997). Evolutionary psychology: A primer.  Retrieved from http://www.psych.ucsb.edu/research/cep/primer.html

[ithinkmysnorlaxisdepressed]

Opposites Attract:  Sparks or Short Circuits?

The Pokémon Plusle and Minun, while representing opposites by way of electrical current are also very close Pokémon, often appearing together.  But, do opposites really attract?

While as a phrase, “opposites attract” is often used, the general consensus of psychological research is that this is not the case.  While there are a variety of ways in which romance can flourish, one of the most common is based on similarity.  That similarity can be based on multiple factors, the most common of which is age, with individuals in romantic relationships strongly tending to be of similar age to their romantic partners.  Other common factors include race, religion, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status.  While not as common, similarity based on physical factors such as height and weight, as well as attractiveness also appear to be similar in romantic partners.  More specific to psychology, there are also areas in which individuals appear to select romantic partners based upon similarity.  Individuals tend to select romantic partners with similar views regarding attitudes, opinions, and world views.  Also, verbal intellectual ability seems to be similar between romantic partners, suggesting that this is also a selection choice for similarity (Buss, 1985).

Though typically opposites appear not to attract, there are some situations in which opposites do attract. These attractions appear related to interpersonal interactions that are considered complementary with regard to an individual's personal goals.  For example, Plusle's cheering behavior may invite Minun to also cheer.  In this case, friendliness invites friendliness. However, some interpersonal behaviors do not invite the same type of behavior in response.  If a person's goal in a romantic relationship is to exert a more dominant role in the relationship, seeking an individual with the goal of exerting less control in a relationship leads to greater satisfaction in the relationship for both partners. In this example, the person is seeking a complementary behavior from their romantic partner, though they may see this as both being interested in similar goals for the relationship (Kristof‐Brown, Barrick, & Kay Stevens, 2005).  While this may lead to some problematic relationship dynamics at more extreme displays, in more moderate ones romantic attraction may be furthered by some difference and not solely similarity.

As such, a general rule of seeking similarity in romantic relationships appears to hold true.  Though there is room for exception, we tend toward greater relationship satisfaction when there is a firm basis in similarity with only limited areas of opposition.

Works Cited:

Buss, D. M. (1985).  Human mate selection: Opposites are sometimes said to attract, but in fact we are likely to marry someone who is similar to us in almost every variable.  American Scientist, 73, 47-51.

Kristof‐Brown, A., Barrick, M. R., & Kay Stevens, C. (2005).  When opposites attract: a multi‐sample demonstration of complementary person‐team fit on extraversion. Journal of Personality, 73, 935-958.

[positivelypresent]

What would you put in your Tough Day Toolkit? 🤔🛠💗 https://ift.tt/2Nfl6r7

[thetrevorproject]

If you had a tough day today, try these self-care tips 💗 

Remember that we’re here to support you 24/7 at 866.488.7386 or text/chat at: http://thetrevorproject.org/help 📲

[ithinkmysnorlaxisdepressed]

Good advice, but maybe put some Pokemon games in there. :) 

[pokemon]

It’s Monday again, and Pikachu is rooting for you! Go get ’em, Trainers!

[onlinecounsellingcollege]

It all begins with you. If you do not care for yourself, you will not be strong enough to take care of anything in life.

Leon Brown (via onlinecounsellingcollege)

[ithinkmysnorlaxisdepressed]

Traveling Across the Land: the Psychology of Travel

Whether considering the Pokémon anime, manga, or video games almost every story told revolves around the journey of the Pokémon trainer.  While the focus itself is on the Pokémon the trainer catches, trains and battles with; as well as the people the trainer encounters; inherent to the process is the act of traveling, from town to town, island to island, and sometimes region to region.

Travel is common to both Pokémon and the real world.  Though the reasons and benefits are clear in the Pokémon world, there are clear reasons and benefits in the real world too.  Travel is an opportunity to encounter new information and explore self-identity.  Seeing new cultures allows us to explore our own experiences through the lens of others' ways of being in the world, potentially leading to self-transformation and new meaning for the traveler.  On a more basic level, seeing new places provides us with new information and new skills to integrate into our lives upon our return.  And while travel can be stressful, it can lead an individual to greater adaptability with other life changes (Couper, 2001).  In  Pokémon, the trainer learns new information through their travels and, while the anime tends to not display this, the games and manga often have personal growth reflected in the trainer's travels through becoming a more skilled trainer, finding a place in the region that they're exploring, and sometimes even experiencing personal growth; the latter most visible in the story arcs in the Pokémon manga.

With these established benefits of travel, it would seem likely that everyone would travel.  However, motivation for traveling is not so simple.  The majority of individuals do not travel simply for the enjoyment of travel, but instead tend to travel for access to activities not available at their current location.  Motivation for travel is further influenced by distance, available time, physical requirements on the traveler, social availabilities at the traveled-to-location, and specific availability of locations relating to hours of accessibility (e.g., whether the desired activity is available at the time of travel) (Van Acker, Van Wee, & Witlox, 2010).  Traveling through the Pokémon games often reflects these factors in a very structured fashion:  distance and time is often limited by available playtime for the person playing the game.  Certain locations vary in activity depending on time of day and/or season.  Specific locations are not immediately available until specific milestones within the game have been accomplished.  All of these factors regulate the flow of travel through the Pokémon games.

Another aspect of the travel is the location itself.  Ash's (and the player in the games') arrival in the Alola region occurs at a specific moment in time, with specific events occurring at that moment.  Travel destinations appear to have their own life cycles, with periods of growth and decline.  As a particular destination becomes available, few people begin to discover it.  Then, as popularity rises through communication from early visitors, a location begins to experience an increase in available services for travelers, which further expands visitation. As development continues, this begins to include “touristy” amenities including chain businesses and leads to a homogenization of the location, thus losing some of its distinctive character.  At this point, those interested in new experiences tend to seek the location out less-often and those visiting tend to be individuals interested in a dependable and predictable travel experience (Plog, 1974).  This can be observed somewhat in the seventh generation Pokémon games, in which the main character starts out experiencing the unique structure of the Alolan islands and the island challenge, but gradually sees the introduction of the more familiar gym system with the Elite Four.

Whether in Pokémon or in the real world, travel can be a central part of human experience.  Doing so offers new opportunities for change and growth, though admittedly the change experienced in the real world may have more to offer than the virtual travel offered by Pokémon.

Works Cited:

Couper, G. E. (2001).  The psychology of travel: A theoretical analysis of how study abroad and positive regression affect personal growth.  Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Northcentral University, Prescott Valley, AZ.

Plog, S. C. (1974). Why destination areas rise and fall in popularity.  Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, 14, 55-58. Van Acker, V., Van Wee, B., & Witlox, F. (2010).  When transport geography meets social psychology: toward a conceptual model of travel behaviour.  Transport Reviews, 30, 219-240.

[thetrevorproject]

6 Things You Can Say to Help Someone Living With Depression

Being afraid of saying the wrong thing shouldn’t hold you back from being there for them.

“If you’re reading this, though, you’re already doing something right. Looking for answers and learning about depression is an act of care and love in itself.” 💗

If you need support, remember that we’re here for you 24/7: 866.488.7386 or text/chat thetrevorproject.org/help 📲

[ithinkmysnorlaxisdepressed]

In-Game Clocks and Out-of-Game Activities

In the various Pokémon core series games there have been a number of time-based factors, including day and night cycles, days of the week, and seasons.  These rhythms are predictable states within the game, changing visuals, what Pokémon are available, and a number of in-game events depending on the specific game.  These seasonal and daily rhythms also have an effect on our internal states.  There is evidence to support that aspects of our mood fluctuate throughout our sleep-wake cycle.  In particular, our positive emotional experiences seem to occur at predictable times during the day, with some hypothesizing that these positive experiences are motivated by our brain actively selecting times in which we are likely to obtain these positive emotional experiences from our environment.  To use a concrete example, our brain increases our motivation to do something that will make us feel happiness at a time when our routine and environment has peak likelihood of providing the responses to our actions that will then cause us to feel the emotion of happiness.  These routines appear to be directly related to our sleep-wake cycle as far as their time of occurrence and occur with a certain regularity (Hasler, Mehl, Bootzin, & Vazire, 2008).

These daily rhythms include a variety of factors, with our mental and physical energy levels having the highest performance during the daylight hours, which happens to be most individual's peak demands for mental or physical activity. Correspondingly, these energy levels tend to decline during the nighttime, when most are asleep and not in need of these abilities. Individuals who operate out of synch with day-night cycles tend to experience difficulties as a result, including worsened mood, poor functioning generally, and greater risk of certain physical health conditions.  These daily rhythms, often referred to as circadian rhythms are regulated by a part of the hypothalamus, which technically operates on a just longer than 24 hour cycle, necessitating daylight as a means of resynchronizing the body with the 24 hour clock (Boyce & Barriball, 2010).

Disruption in daily rhythms is believed to play a significant factor in bipolar disorder, a diagnosis characterized by fluctuations in mood between depression and mania. Bipolar disorder often includes disturbances to sleep/wake, motivational levels, and involvement in pleasurable activities; all of which serve to exacerbate the mood impairment of the diagnosis. Treatment of bipolar disorder, alongside medication management, also often includes treatment of this dysregulation of routine (Frank, Swartz, & Kupfer, 2000).

So whether you're seeing to your own mental wellness or timing specific catches of Pokémon, sticking to regular and predictable sleep-wake cycles and regular daily activities appears to be of strong benefit to people.  Not only are our brains designed around this predictability, we tend to flourish with adherence to daily rhythms.

Works Cited:

Boyce, P., & Barriball, E. (2010). Circadian rhythms and depression.  Australian Family Physician, 39, 307-310.

Frank, E., Swartz, H. A., & Kupfer, D. J. (2000).  Interpersonal and social rhythm therapy: managing the chaos of bipolar disorder.  Biological Psychiatry, 48, 593-604.

Hasler, B. P., Mehl, M. R., Bootzin, R. R., & Vazire, S. (2008).  Preliminary evidence of diurnal rhythms in everyday behaviors associated with positive affect.  Journal of Research in Personality, 42, 1537-1546.

[ithinkmysnorlaxisdepressed]

Struggle

Life lessons from pokemon: In life, if you don't struggle, then you are coasting. It's in the times when we have trouble that we find places to improve. The picture is a reference to the useless po...

From the work of Ommin202.  Check out their Deviant Art page for more Pokémon Life Lessons.

[studyinstyle]

Study and evolve, 

so that you can become the you of your dreams.

(by x)

[ithinkmysnorlaxisdepressed]

Sing like Jigglypuff

While Jigglypuff might be known as the Balloon Pokémon, what it is really known for is singing.  This doesn't work out all that well for Jigglypuff (or those listening) as it only seems to get angry when its audience falls unconscious from the singing.  However, this negative effect doesn't apply to humans and their singing.  This post examines the psychological benefits of singing, particularly when conducted in a group setting (e.g., a choir).

For individuals with a chronic mental illness, participation in singing activities as a group has been found to improve overall levels of positive emotions while reducing frequency and intensity of more stress-related emotions.  This is particularly important in psychological conditions such as major depressive disorder, in which the ability to experience positive emotions is dampened.  Confidence and self-esteem also appear to be elevated by participation in a choir.  Social connectedness can increase through the formation of a group identity as a member of a choir.  This is particularly important due to the increased social isolation and discrimination resulting from the stigma of mental illness often suffered by individuals with chronic mental health needs (Dingle, Brander, Ballantyne, & Baker, 2013).

However, singing is not only beneficial for those with mental health needs and much of the above-referenced benefits apply to all individuals.  Regardless of whether or not singing takes place in a group or solo environment, it may be associated with increased immune system functioning.  Taking part in group singing activities appears to be associated with a general improvement in overall sense of well-being.  Singing may act as a means of reducing everyday worries due to the amount of concentration required by the task of singing itself.  Also, the deep, controlled breathing necessary for effective singing is also very similar to the deep breathing used in relaxation exercises to reduce anxiety (Clift, Hancox, Morrison, Hess, Kreutz, & Stewart, 2010).

So, feel free to sing like Jigglypuff, but don't worry about getting mad at the results.  Current research says you'll wind up feeling more positive and relaxed and, if in a group setting, making better friends and developing greater self-confidence.  However, it's probably best to leave the markers at home.  Just in case.

Works Cited

Clift, S., Hancox, G., Morrison, I., Hess, B., Kreutz, G., & Stewart, D. (2010).  Choral singing and psychological wellbeing: Quantitative and qualitative findings from English choirs in a cross-national survey. Journal of Applied Arts & Health, 1, 19-34.

Dingle, G. A., Brander, C., Ballantyne, J., & Baker, F. A. (2013).  ‘To be heard’: The social and mental health benefits of choir singing for disadvantaged adults. Psychology of Music, 41, 405-421.

[highlightcrs]

hey everyone! it’s been a while since i made a masterpost, and i recently found some good health-related apps on the play store that i thought to consolidate into a post.

all these apps are available for both ios and android users! i’ve also grouped similar apps together.

fyi: these apps are not intended to replace your therapist/counselor – they only act as an aid. the apps listed here are those that seemed credible enough and had good ratings on the play store. some may help you and some might not. since i don’t have depression or panic attacks, i can’t speak for the efficacy of some of the apps here.

For stress, depression, anxiety, or panic attacks:

Rootd: exercises to help with anxiety and panic attacks, as well as lessons understand anxiety. it also includes emergency contact if you need help and a personal stats page.

Self-help Anxiety Management (SAM): exercises to help you manage your anxiety. you can also build your ‘anxiety tookit’ and chat with other SAM users.

PanicShield: for those who have panic attacks. it has a breathing tool to calm you down, information about panic attacks, and two techniques to train your mind to have fewer panic attacks (based on two types of therapy). 

MoodSpace: short, interactive mood workouts that may help treat depression.

InnerHour: a self-help app for stress, anxiety or depression. it has small daily tasks, helps you deal with distressing situations, helps control your stressful thinking patterns, and has a relief box.

Moodpath: an interactive two-week depression and anxiety screening program that tracks your emotional and physical wellbeing and generates a personalized mental health assessment that you can discuss with therapists.

Calm Harm: tasks to help you resist or manage the urge to self-harm.

To generally improve your life:

Youper: conversations with a bot to improve your mood and emotional health. it also has mindfulness and meditation exercises, a mood tracker, journal and symptoms tracker.

Wysa: similar to Youper, Wysa is a chatbot who reacts to the emotions you express to help with anxiety, stress, low mood, anger or sleep issues.

Primed Mind: a life coach to help you reach your personal goals and improve yourself. it can help you build habits, calm down, fall asleep quickly, and study effectively.

Headspace: meditation and mindfulness exercises

Just Rain: a soothing audiovisual rain simulator where you can control the degree of rain sounds.