Media Use

The television screens in America’s living rooms are getting bigger, and the picture is getting clearer than ever with high-definition. Are we letting a giant monster move into our houses and take over? Are we becoming lethargic and overweight by sitting around watching our favorite series week after week? Are…

Nintendo’s Switch is the latest craze in the gaming world, and it just surpassed the Wii in popularity. It made its appearance in March, quickly disappearing from store shelves. People who wanted the Switch waited in anticipation, only to find out they sold out a couple of days after they…

One night I was sitting in my family room watching my third episode of The Office that night. I noticed the catchy theme song of the same show coming from the bedroom. My husband, son, and I had started “bingeing” this show together but my husband had gotten ahead of…

For many, watching holiday movies is a treasured tradition. Christmas Day just cannot come without getting most of these favorites checked off the list. When watching a movie, you have the chance to snuggle with loved ones, sit by the fire, and drink hot chocolate. What could be better? With…

Some of us can remember life before smart phones, back when we didn’t have all sorts of media at our fingertips at any time, or others urgently demanding our attention throughout the day through texts and email. Now it is commonplace to watch a movie while writing a report and…

Q&A Q: Is the media’s coverage of hoarding normalizing the behavior in a way that would prevent one from getting help?. A: Interesting question. Culture can play a role in many disorders. Regarding hoarding specifically, many people who hoard don’t have great insight into their own hoarding behaviors. Hence, a…

Texting is changing communication as we know it, either for good or ill. But the effect it is having on our minds and compulsive behavior has implications that most of us probably don’t want to hear.

Do you struggle with Internet Addiction? Would you believe me if I told you the average American spends more hours a day on the internet than they do sleeping? Well, believe it. Newsweek recently pointed out that “Americans have merged with their machines.” Now before you judge too quickly, think about…

Let’s face it- video games are here to stay. With the next generation of consoles about to come out, it’s a great time to review a few ways to make gaming a positive addition to your family, rather than a negative one.  1. No gaming before bed. This includes the…

Watching TV Can Boast Intelligence Did you know that particular TV shows actually foster and boost our intelligence? You wouldn’t guess that judging by some of the simple, easy-to-digest options we have on television that I won’t bother to get into (you know what they are). But for years, researchers…

Music Makes Things Better Most of us are aware that music can have a bit of an effect on our emotions. Typically, we use our tunes to foster emotions we already have. If we’re feeling energetic, we like to listen to energetic songs. When we’re upset, we like to listen…

Is your Trackpad haywire? Going all over the place? Mine was too. And I didn’t feel like replacing it–I just wanted to plug in an external mouse and turn the trackpad OFF. There was just one problem–There was no setting in “System Preferences” –> “Trackpad” to do this! BUT THE…