Is psychology a science?

Is psychology a science? This question is less straightforward than it might first seem. It has been discussed by numerous theorists. This month, the question was the focus of a seminar for CuSP, the Culture and Social Psychology research group. As part of his contribution to the seminar, Prof. Paul Stenner writes about some of…

The psychology of possibilities and potentials?

A new encyclopedia presents writing from psychologists and social scientists on ‘the Possible’. Prof. Paul Stenner from the School has written an entry with Prof. Tania Zittoun (University of Neuchatel, Switzerland), about the British psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott. The entry discusses Winnicott’s notion of a ‘potential space’. Here, Prof. Stenner introduces the entry. The idea of…

Affective transformations: changing the world by changing feelings?

Professor Paul Stenner’s work features as the lead chapter in a newly published international volume called ‘Affective transformations: politics, algorithms, media’. Edited by Bernd Bösel and Serjoscha Wiemer, the book is published by meson press and is freely available online.  The volume addresses two recent developments which at first appear contradictory but have deeper shared…

Time for change?

Paul Stenner considers recent events in Bristol and calls for more psychological research into time, and its political significance. Time – as a psychological experience - has always been political, but in recent weeks it has become political in a way that almost nobody can ignore. Bristol is well known to have been built to…

The Psychology of Global Crises: A virtual conference

At the end of May, a new kind of academic event took place. The Psychology of Global Crises: State Surveillance, Solidarity and Everyday Life was a conference about events like the Covid-19 pandemic, organised to fit with the circumstances that the virus has imposed. Academics could not travel or meet in person, so they gathered online,…