History of psychology and psychiatry
![Daniel Kahneman standing on a balcony, arms crossed, with New York City skyline and buildings in the background under a clear blue sky.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/2a89b365-e5d4-4f91-b913-36959c83859b/rt-final-gettyimages-529705704.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Thinkers and theories
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Why I’ll never forget the day I met Daniel Kahneman for lunch
He was an octogenarian Nobel-winning psychologist, I was a nervous 20-something film producer. Here’s what struck me most
by Namir Khaliq
![A painting depicts three children dressed in old-fashioned clothing walking through a field of wildflowers at dusk. Two older children, one wearing a large brimmed hat, lead a younger child by the hand. The background shows a line of trees against a cloudy sky with a hint of sunset.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/204d319e-f914-4673-8d65-514ff7da6a22/rt-wichita-art-musuem-homer-in-the-mowing-m127_54.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
History of psychology and psychiatry
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In psychoanalysis, nostalgia was a sickness. It needn’t be
Nostalgia was, in Freud’s day, an illness steeped in the past. Today, it can be a joyful emotion that reframes the future
by Agnes Arnold-Forster
![A vintage photo of six women wearing wide-brimmed hats, smiling and laughing together. One woman is holding a steering wheel, suggesting they might be on a fun outdoor adventure. The background shows a natural, slightly blurry setting.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/bf54d286-b986-4455-8705-b01af1d560f2/rt-walk-you-walk.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Film
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Why was a laughing woman seen as lethal, not least to herself?
When early cinema weaponised the sight of women’s laughter, it borrowed from flawed psychiatric ideas about female hysteria
by Maggie Hennefeld
![Close-up of a closed metal door-chain on a wooden door](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/772f17ce-f622-4912-b95f-7ce1ee10b134/rt-nn11526084.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Worry and rumination
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Should you confront your worries or try to banish them?
Psychotherapists have long believed it’s a bad idea to suppress worrisome thoughts, but new research is prompting a rethink
by Shayla Love
![A small black puppy lying on a couch with a man in a red checkered shirt sitting in the background.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/892407e7-95db-4368-b5d7-256382821702/original.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Personality disorders
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There’s a growing case for renaming ‘personality disorders’
The concept of personality disorders has been around for centuries but it’s flawed and needs both a rethink and a new name
by Matt Huston
![A black-and-white photo of a man, a woman and a child sitting around a cluttered dining table with food, bowls and plates. The man looks thoughtful.](https://images.aeonmedia.co/images/e5d1d4dd-e665-4aa4-bd7a-d16a1164d35d/original.jpg?width=3840&quality=75&format=auto)
Socioeconomics of mental health
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Mental health is not an individual matter, but a political one
Decades ago, pioneering research linked mental illness and economic deprivation. It’s time to take the implications seriously
by Matthew Smith