New Books in Psychology

Επεισόδια

• Nyck Walsh, "Neurodivergent Somatics in Therapy: An Anti-Oppressive Model for Whole Person Care" (Norton, 2026) 05.07.2026 1ώ

  A new paradigm that honors the wisdom and wholeness of neurodivergent clients. Focusing on autism and what is medically known as ADHD, neurodivergent author Nyck Walsh takes readers on an anti-oppressive, intersectional journey into a new standard of care for neurodivergent clients and their therapists. Whether new to or well-versed in the neurodiversity paradigm, readers will learn how to best support their neurodivergent clients in a way that prioritizes their well-being, honors their self-expertise, encourages their anti-ableist embodiment, and celebrates their joy. Bridging the theoretical with the practical, Walsh’s model offers a tangible framework that can be applied on its own or in tandem with other modalities. Neurodivergent Somatics in Therapy (Norton, 2026) is an intimate and engaging guide to providing accessible, liberatory, whole-person care that will benefit clients and therapists of all neurotypes. Nyck Walsh, MA, LPC, (he/they) brings a whole person, anti-oppressive, intersectional, somatic lens to working with Autistic and KCS/VAST (what is commonly known as ADHD) folx. An Autistic and VAST counselor, Nyck is the director of Nyck Walsh Counseling & Training Center and creator of the Neurodivergent Somatics model. He curates reparative experiences for late identified Autistic and VAST folx to connect with their innate wisdom, dismantle ableism, be supported in their challenges, and unpack their lives through their unidentified and misunderstood Neurodivergent (ND) experience. His counselor education programs have created an international following, and both ND and neurotypical counselors alike report feeling deeply validated by his approach. Registration for Public Programs event with Nyck at CIIS on July 16. waHelena Vissing, PsyD, SEP, PMH-C is a Licensed Psychologist practicing in California and Associate Professor at California Institute of Integral Studies in the Somatic Psychology program. She can be reached at contact@helenavissing.com. She is the author of Somatic Maternal Healing: Psychodynamic and Somatic Treatment of Trauma in the Perinatal Period (Routledge, 2023). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Elizabeth Cotton, "UberTherapy: The New Business of Mental Health" (Policy Press, 2025) 27.06.2026 50λ

  UberTherapy: The New Business of Mental Health (Policy Press, 2025) is the essential guide to the rise of digital therapy for anyone working in, researching or using mental health services. This timely book explores the emerging uberization of therapy through algorithmic control, datafication of despair and attrition by design. Analysing the deployment of e-commerce business models, this book makes a compelling case that the rise of 'therapeutic Tinder' allows would-be clients to sidestep the deep, uncomfortable work of therapy. UberTherapy offers a defence for the irreplaceable value of human therapists and a roadmap for preserving the legacies of real therapy in the digital world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Aliza Einhorn, "Tarot of the Unconscious: Uncovering the Hidden Link Between Psychoanalysis and the Cards" (Weiser Books, 2026) 27.06.2026 44λ

  I spoke with author Aliza Einhorn about her new book Tarot of the Unconscious: Uncovering the Hidden Link Between Psychoanalysis and the Cards (Weiser Books, 2026) United States: Red Wheel Weiser. Aliza Einhorn is a Psychoanalyst in training at the Center for Modern Psychoanalytic Studies in New York City. She's a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop and a longtime tarot reader, tarot teacher, and astrologer. “My book is a method” Einhorn tells me. The method is free association. This is the link to psychoanalysis. Einhorn wants us to free associate to the cards as one free associates to dream imagery. “Let’s break it down. In any given Tarot card, as in a dream, there are images, visual details (what Freud might call the manifest meaning), and then there are the hidden meanings beneath those images (what Freud might call the latent meaning), which we only discover after we analyze it.” (p.44) She is enthusiastic about the “infinite” meanings of the cards. In Einhorn’s world Card 7, The Chariot, is on Freud’s royal road to the unconscious. While Tarot books have historically engaged with Jungian though, Einhorn’s book is a “love letter to Freud.” One of the book's most striking ideas is that people develop a transference to their deck — that how you treat your cards mirrors relational patterns from your past. In this interview we discussed an approach to transference adopted by Modern Psychoanalysis and referenced a foundational paper on countertransference. Listeners interested in the specifics of this approach to transference can find it here Clevans, E. L. (1983) On Countertransference. Modern Psychoanalysis 8:129-130. Einhorn concludes “if there’s one thing I want to teach you in this book, one thing I hope you will remember, it’s that your unconscious is your friend. It’s good to get to know it.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Marcia Bonato Warren, "Movement and IdentityMulticulturalism, Somatic Awareness and Embodied Code-Switching" (Singing Dragon, 2025) 24.06.2026 1ώ 4λ

  Movement and Identity: Multiculturalism, Somatic Awareness and Embodied Code-Switching (Singing Dragon, 2025) is a trauma-informed approach to counselling and bodywork explores the ways in which varying facets of identity and culture manifest in the body, allowing a much more nuanced, person-centred approach to client care. Marcia Bonato Warren, MA, MA, LPC describes how our bodies interpret our identities, often informed by cultural norms, communication styles, trauma, and systems of power and oppression. Therapists and bodyworkers reading this book will have the opportunity to engage personally and professionally, learning to build on their own somatic awareness in order to engage with compassionate curiosity rather than resistance when confronted with identity-based differences. Each section uses the SIA Loop, a mechanism representing three entry-points we use to process information: Sensation, Interpretation, Action, which supports the deeper work offered by the Identity Expression Infinity Loop, where identities are invited to move with strength and skill. These pioneering tools allow readers to examine their own somatic experiences, beliefs, behaviours, and choices, all of which is supplemented with journal prompts and questions. In guiding readers in how to interpret the body's expression of identity, this unique guide maximises the potential of therapists to foster change, increase empathy, and nurture connection through trauma-informed, somatically aware bodywork. Marcia Bonato Warren, MA, MA, LPC is a Somatic Counselor/Body Psychotherapist and Interculturalist with over 10 years of experience in the fields of somatic counseling and education, as well as 15 years of experience in international educational exchange and Native American policy and advocacy. She works with individuals and groups in the areas of cultural awareness, social justice, and intercultural communication through a trauma-informed lens, and is passionate about developing the potential in human beings to embrace diversity through cultural embodiment and the sharing of stories and creativity. Marcia is an enrolled member of the Santa Clara Pueblo (Tewa) in the state of New Mexico, U.S. and is of Brazilian-Italian heritage. Helena Vissing, PsyD, SEP, PMH-C is a Licensed Psychologist practicing in California and Associate Professor at California Institute of Integral Studies. She can be reached at contact@helenavissing.com. She is the author of Somatic Maternal Healing: Psychodynamic and Somatic Treatment of Trauma in the Perinatal Period (Routledge, 2023). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Steven Segal, "Mandela’s Leadership Legacy: Emotional and Existential Wisdom" (Routledge, 2026) 19.06.2026 58λ

  In Mandela’s Leadership Legacy: Emotional and Existential Wisdom (Routledge, 2026) Steven Segal explores Nelson Mandela’s extraordinary ability to lead through moments of existential crisis and uncertainty. Central to Mandela's leadership was his attunement to mood—the emotional and existential atmosphere through which people experience disruption. Long overlooked in leadership studies, mood shaped the way Mandela created trust, defused fear, and opened possibilities when conventional strategies failed. Mandela’s wisdom was forged not only in prison but in the existential challenges he faced upon leaving the familiarity of his ancestral homeland and confronting the disorientation of city life. From this early rupture through to his imprisonment, the collapse of apartheid, and the assassination of Chris Hani, he demonstrated a rare capacity to transform existential threats into opportunities for renewal and unity. This book examines how Mandela combined strategic foresight with therapeutic sensitivity, allowing him to guide individuals and nations through disruption with ethical resolve and visionary clarity. Drawing on frameworks from Heidegger and Ubuntu it highlights Mandela’s "existential practical wisdom"—the ability to embrace uncertainty, work with paradox, and foster collective transformation through attuned presence. By investigating Mandela’s profound relational sensitivity, including his ability to turn estrangement and enmity into trust and collaboration, the book offers timeless lessons for navigating today’s global crises. It is ideal for professionals seeking inspiration for leading in turbulent times and for students interested in leadership, philosophy, or history. Steven Segal was formerly an Associate Professor of Management at Macquarie University, Australia and is currently in private practice as a psychologist and leadership coach. He also runs professional development workshops for coaches and psychotherapists. Elena Sobrino is an anthropologist studying environmental emotions and politics. Her current writing projects focus on the Flint water crisis, and she regularly teaches undergraduate courses on environment, race and racism, crisis, and science and technology. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Robert Jason Grant, "Understanding Sensory Differences: A Neurodiversity Affirming Guidebook for Children and Teens" (2022) 07.06.2026 49λ

  Children and teens who experience sensory differences often find it difficult to understand their sensory system and sensory/regulation needs they may be experiencing. Understanding Sensory Differences: A Guidebook for Children and Teens is designed for professionals and parents to work with children to help them understand their sensory system and address any sensory needs. The guidebook offers an overview of sensory differences from a neurodiversity affirming perspective. Neurodiversity affirming constructs are provided and instructions for developing a regulation play time to help address sensory and regulation needs is provided. The guidebook also contains several worksheets and resources specifically designed to help the child or teen explore their questions, feelings, and thoughts about sensory differences. Each worksheet covers a different topic related to gaining awareness about sensory differences (needs and strengths) and helping children and teens better understand what it means to be neurodivergent and sensory different. The guidebook also provides a guide for professionals and parents offering instructions, information, and suggestions for implementing and processing through each worksheet page. Additionally, several sensory different professionals share their lived experience being a neurodivergent child and suggestions for being neurodiversity affirming Dr. Grant is a Licensed Professional Counselor, National Certified Counselor, Registered Play Therapist Supervisor, and Certified Autism Specialist. Dr. Grant completed his education from Missouri State University receiving a B.A. in Psychology and M.A. in Counseling. Dr. Grant further received his doctorate degree in Education from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Dr. Grant specializes in Play Therapy techniques with children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families. Dr. Grant also specializes in working with Autism Spectrum Disorders (Autism, Aspergers Disorder and Pervasive Development Disorder) and is the creator of AutPlay Therapy, an autism treatment using Play Therapy, cognitive and behavioral therapy and relationship development approaches. Dr. Grant serves as mentor and is a professional board member for The Southwest Autism Network of Missouri and is a contributing writer for the Missouri Autism Report. Dr. Grant is the author of AutPlay Therapy: A Play Therapy Based Approach for Treating Autism Disorders, The Handbook for Parent-Led Social Skills Groups for Children and Adolescents with Autism Disorders, and Play Therapy Techniques for Autism Disorders. Helena Vissing, PsyD, SEP, PMH-C is a Licensed Psychologist practicing in California and Associate Professor at California Institute of Integral Studies, in the Somatic Psychology program. She can be reached at contact@helenavissing.com. She is the author of Somatic Maternal Healing: Psychodynamic and Somatic Treatment of Trauma in the Perinatal Period (Routledge, 2023). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Gloria Sibson Ayob, "The Concept of Emotional Disorder" (Oxford UP, 2025) 02.06.2026 59λ

  The Concept of Emotional Disorder (Oxford University Press, 2025) is a philosophical and academic exploration of how society determines whether emotions are considered normal human experiences or emotional disorders. The book examines the concern that some ordinary emotions may be “over pathologized,” meaning they are increasingly treated as medical or psychiatric problems rather than understandable human responses to life circumstances. Drawing from philosophy, psychology, and mental health theory, Dr. Ayob explores how people evaluate emotions and how those evaluations shape our understanding of emotional disorder. In the author’s framing, the concept of “emotional disorder” is not simple or straightforward. It is built upon many smaller judgments we make about emotions, including whether emotions are reasonable, excessive, disruptive, socially acceptable, or connected to a person’s lived experience. Key Ideas: The book examines how emotional disorders are conceptually defined. Explores whether modern society sometimes medicalizes ordinary emotional experiences too quickly. Lived experience, personal meaning, and context all influence how emotions are understood. Encourages deeper reflection about the assumptions society makes when labeling emotions as healthy or pathological. Emotional awareness and reasoning are connected. Understanding our emotions can help us better understand ourselves and the world around us. One of the strongest ideas from the discussion was that human beings process emotions through their own lived reality and personal experiences. What may feel distressing or emotionally overwhelming does not automatically mean it is a disorder. Sometimes emotional pain is part of being human, especially during difficult life experiences, loss, uncertainty, stress, or change. The conversation also emphasized the importance of emotional self-awareness and reasoning. Being informed about our emotions may help us better understand our reactions rather than immediately viewing every difficult emotional experience through a strictly medical lens. Angela Marie Hutchinson is the author of “Create Your Yes! When You Keep Hearing No,” named a Forbes No. 4 book to advance your career. She is a podcast host for New Books Network, where she leads conversations for the neuroscience and Christianity channels. Hutchinson is also a talent and intellectual property executive, former social media professor and BBC commentator. She resides in Los Angeles with her husband and three children. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Barnaby B. Barratt, "Free Association: A Contemporary Introduction" (Routledge, 2026) 28.05.2026 55λ

  In Free Association: A Contemporary Introduction (Routledge, 2026), Barnaby Barratt presents a compelling and much-needed exploration of the method of free association within psychoanalytic treatment. This concise yet comprehensive book examines the historical roots, philosophical implications and transformative impact on the human psyche of free association, making it an essential resource for understanding the deep unconscious forces that shape our lives. Barratt demonstrates how free association uniquely reveals dimensions of the human condition that remain hidden in ordinary therapeutic approaches. Readers will gain insight into the distinctions between psychoanalysis and psychotherapy, the significance of repression and psychic energy, and the profound shifts in being that free association facilitates. Barratt's critical analysis of prevailing theories and alternative methods, such as somatic and shamanic practices, highlights the unparalleled ability of free association to reinvigorate psychic energies and existential freedom. This book is a vital resource for psychoanalysts in training and practice, and anyone deeply curious about the human psyche. It is also a valuable tool for instructors and researchers in psychoanalysis, psychotherapy and related fields. Barnaby B. Barratt is a research and training psychoanalyst in Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa. Philip Lance, PhD, is a psychoanalyst in private practice in Los Angeles. He can be reached at PhilipJLance@gmail.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Jeffrey Whyte, "The Birth of Psychological War: Propaganda, Espionage, and Military Violence from WWII to the Vietnam War" (Oxford UP, 2023) 25.05.2026 3λ

  Jeffrey Whyte's book The Birth of Psychological War: Propaganda, Espionage, and Military Violence from WWII to the Vietnam War (Oxford UP, 2023) explores the history, politics, and geography of United States psychological warfare in the 20th century against the backdrop of the contemporary 'post-truth era'. From its origins in the Second World War, to the United States' counterinsurgency campaigns in Vietnam, Whyte traces how the theory and practice of psychological warfare transformed the relationship between the home front and theatres of war. Whyte interrogates the broader political mythologies that animate popular conceptions of psychological war, such as its claim to make war more humane and less violent.  On the contrary, The Birth of Psychological War demonstrates the role of psychological warfare in expanding the scope and scale of military violence amidst ostensible efforts to 'win hearts and minds'. While casting a critical eye on psychological warfare, Whyte establishes its continued significance for the contemporary student of international relations. Dr. Whyte earned his Ph.D. with the Department of Geography, University of British Columbia and before that a MA with School of Communication, Simon Fraser University, also in beautiful British Columbia. He is currently Lecturer in International Relations at the Department of Politics, Philosophy, and Religion, Lancaster University. Michael G. Vann is a professor of world history at California State University, Sacramento. A specialist in imperialism and the Cold War in Southeast Asia, he is the author of The Great Hanoi Rat Hunt: Empires, Disease, and Modernity in French Colonial Vietnam (Oxford University Press, 2018). When he’s not reading or talking about new books with smart people, Mike can be found surfing in Santa Cruz, California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Samuel Markind, "Music Between Your Ears: How Musical Engagement Powers the Human Brain" (JHU Press, 2025) 24.05.2026 58λ

  Explores the profound power of music to influence brain function and well-being. IPA 2026 Distinguished Favorite in the Music Category Why does music influence how we feel so deeply--and what are the scientific mechanisms behind this phenomenon? In Music Between Your Ears: How Musical Engagement Powers the Human Brain (JHU Press, 2025) Dr. Samuel Markind explores the intriguing relationship between music and brain function. Using evolutionary theory, he illuminates the pivotal role that music plays in human survival and procreation. From communication and caregiving to social bonding and partner selection, music has molded the human species and continues to shape our lives in remarkable ways. This book combines insights from neuroscience and psychology with helpful drawings and vivid examples to present compelling evidence for music's life-enhancing potential. Dr. Markind highlights the brain's instinctive capacity for music: from newborns' natural affinity for rhythm and melody to the effect that music has on brain development throughout the lifespan. Music also helps people learn at any age and in any condition, so it can improve speech, movement, and memory in both healthy individuals and those suffering from illness or injury. Dr. Markind encourages readers to engage actively with music. Whether through singing, dancing, or instrument playing, the benefits of active participation are profound and accessible to everyone, regardless of musical background. This book, filled with straightforward and practical suggestions, is an inspiring guide for anyone seeking to enrich their life through music. Music Between Your Ears shows how the act of engaging with music can profoundly impact your mental, physical, and emotional well-being. And the benefits of music go far beyond entertainment--they're essential to the very fabric of what makes us human. Samuel Markind's website here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Stuart Katz, "Still Here: A Story of Living with Suicidal Ideation" (Independent, 2026) 16.05.2026 42λ

  Still Here is a powerful and unflinching novel about chronic suicidal ideation—not as a moment of crisis, but as a daily presence. Daniel is a husband, a father, and a respected professional. He shows up. He functions. He is, by every external measure, fine. But every morning begins the same way. A thought.A negotiation.A choice. Told with striking emotional precision, Still Here takes readers inside an experience that is often hidden, misunderstood, or reduced to moments of emergency. This is not that story. This is the story of what it means to live with it over years, across a lifetime, while continuing to build a life, a family, and a sense of purpose. Interwoven throughout the novel are clinical sidebars that offer insight into the psychology of suicidal thinking, making this book not only deeply human but also deeply informative for: those who struggle silently those who love someone who does clinicians, educators, and helpers This is not a rescue manual.It is something rarer. A book that stays. If you are in immediate distress, please seek support. Crisis resources are included at the end of the book. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Lara Sheehi, "From the Clinic to the Streets: Psychoanalysis for Revolutionary Futures" (Pluto Press, 2026) 16.05.2026 1ώ 10λ

  Psychoanalysis is rising in popularity, but it’s not helping patients navigate the pressures and harms of modern capitalism. Instead, it continues to enforce oppressive structures, state power, and reactionary politics. In From the Clinic to the Streets: Psychoanalysis for Revolutionary Futures (Pluto Press, 2026) Dr. Lara Sheehi reimagines what psychoanalysis could be. She shows how it can help us understand the ways our emotions, relationships, and sense of self are shaped by capitalism, state power, and ongoing injustice, even genocide. Arguing for a new, liberatory psychoanalysis, she calls for us to harness its revolutionary power, from the clinic to the streets. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Sally Maslansky, "A Brilliant Adaptation: How Dissociative Identity Disorder and the Power of the Therapeutic Bond Saved Me" (New Harbinger Publications, 2026) 13.05.2026 1ώ 13λ

  A Brilliant Adaptation: How Dissociative Identity Disorder and the Power of the Therapeutic Bond Saved Me (New Harbinger Publications, 2026) is a searing and profound memoir of one woman's journey through dissociative identity disorder and childhood sexual abuse--and how she found hope, healing, and recovery.  Sally Maslansky is living the perfect life: a beautiful home in Malibu, California, a successful Hollywood producer husband who adores her, and a recently adopted son she treasures. But when Sally begins to remember the trauma she endured as a child, her world begins to unravel. In this gripping and provocative memoir, psychotherapist Maslansky shares how childhood sexual abuse led her to develop dissociative identity disorder (DID), and how, with the help of renowned therapist Daniel J. Siegel, she ultimately recovers. The book reveals the power of therapeutic bond to heal deep attachment wounds, the science of neuroplasticity in healing the traumatized mind, and our capacity as human beings to reconcile unspeakable experiences in order to grow, change, and live vibrant, loving, and joyful lives against all odds. Together with Siegel, Maslansky slowly recovers her childhood memories and reconnects with the forgotten parts of herself--parts that she grows to admire, respect, honor, and love, because they literally saved her young mind from unimaginable horrors. In the book, Siegel describes Maslansky's DID as a brilliant adaptation of the mind--a protective force that kept her mentally safe when the people she should have trusted most were the ones responsible for her abuse. Whether you have struggled with DID yourself, love someone who has DID, or are simply looking to be inspired by the tenacity of the human spirit, this memoir offers a provocative glimpse into an often pathologized and misunderstood condition, and shows the profound and healing possibilities of therapy, human understanding, and the will to survive. Sally Maslansky, LMFT has been in private practice for twenty years in Chapel Hill, NC. She treats families, adoption, trauma, parenting, and adult individuals. Her training is in interpersonal neurobiology (IPNB), mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), adult attachment interview (AAI), attachment theory, polyvagal theory practices, mindfulness, and the wheel of awareness practice. For more information on Sally and her work, please visit her website sallymaslansky.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, "The Mattering Instinct: How Our Deepest Longing Drives Us and Divides Us" (Liveright Publishing, 2026) 12.05.2026 43λ

  MacArthur Fellow and National Humanities Medalist Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, author of Plato at the Googleplex and The Mind-Body Problem, returns with a revelatory book about the primal drive that in our species alone has been transformed into one of our most persistent and universal motivations: the longing to matter. Drawing on biology, psychology, and philosophy, in The Mattering Instinct: How Our Deepest Longing Drives Us and Divides Us (Liveright Publishing, 2026) Goldstein argues that this need to matter―and the various “mattering projects” it inspires―is the source of our greatest progress and our deepest conflicts: the very crux of the human experience.Goldstein brings this profound idea to life through unforgettable stories of famous and not-so-famous people pursuing their unique mattering projects: the ragtime genius Scott Joplin, whose dedication to his ignored masterpiece, Treemonisha, ended in tragedy; the pioneering psychologist William James, who rose above the depression of his young adulthood to become perhaps the first great theorist of mattering; an impoverished Chinese woman who rescued abandoned newborns from the trash; and a neo-Nazi skinhead who as a young man dealt racial violence to feel he mattered but ultimately renounced that hateful past after realizing that mattering isn’t a zero-sum game. These portraits illuminate how our instinct for significance shapes identity, relationships, culture, and conflict―and they point the way to a future where we all might see that there is, fundamentally, enough mattering to go around.Deeply revealing and insightful, and decades in the making, The Mattering Instinct is a must read for those curious about why we seek to matter to ourselves and others―and how this insatiable longing that drives us apart may be the key to finally understanding each other. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Andrea Gutiérrez-Glik, "Healing the Oppressed Body: A Therapeutic Guide for Radical Self-Liberation" (Penguin, 2026) 12.05.2026 52λ

  An essential guide to healing from oppression-based trauma, for everyone left outside of mainstream conversations There are many books on trauma healing that can change people’s lives. Yet when queer and trans people, people of color, and all of us living at the margins look for books that reflect our own experiences and that specifically name the oppression we experience as trauma, we’re left empty-handed. There’s little that speaks to the specific traumas we experience: homophobia, transphobia, institutional injustices, isolation, medical trauma, and discrimination at every turn. We deserve to have ourselves reflected and considered in the world of trauma recovery. In Healing the Oppressed Body: A Therapeutic Guide for Radical Self-Liberation (Penguin, 2026), somatic therapist Andrea Gutiérrez-Glik provides the best tools and approaches to healing trauma and filters them through an anti-oppression lens, making sure they’re uniquely impactful for all of us at the margins. In these pages, you’ll learn how trauma is stored and processed by our minds and bodies and how we can work with our amazingly flexible brains and nervous systems to create pathways to healing. You’ll understand just how and why trauma that occurs in our earliest days can affect us throughout our lives. You’ll learn to embrace your Internal Family, making yourself whole. In Healing the Oppressed Body, Andrea Gutiérrez-Glik lovingly offers us the best, most radical solutions to tap into our sources of healing. Along the way, you’ll discover tools and techniques for emotional regulation and therapeutic modalities to heal from oppression-based trauma. Whether inside the therapy room or on your own, in the pages of Healing the Oppressed Body, you’ll learn how to heal through growing compassion for all parts of yourself and others, finding community support and love, and celebrating the freedom to be your true self.Andrea Gutiérrez-Glik, LCSW, is a psychotherapist specializing in treating OCD, cPTSD, and PTSD, prioritizing women, survivors, and queer and trans folks. She utilizes EMDR, IFS, I-CBT, and ERP to help clients feel safe in the present and come home to themselves. Gutiérrez-Glik is also an EMDRIA-approved consultant for therapists getting certified in EMDR and a regular teacher at Alma, the Trauma of Money(tm), and other mental health organizations. She lives in St. Louis, Missouri, on occupied Osage and Kaskaskia land, with her wife and their child. Helena Vissing, PsyD, SEP, PMH-C is a Licensed Psychologist practicing in California and Associate Professor at California Institute of Integral Studies. She can be reached at contact@helenavissing.com. She is the author of Somatic Maternal Healing: Psychodynamic and Somatic Treatment of Trauma in the Perinatal Period (Routledge, 2023). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Extraordinary, Mysterious, and Impossible Experiences, with Jeffrey Kriple 08.05.2026 1ώ 6λ

  Today Pierce Salguero sit down with Prof. Jeff Kripal, noted scholar of religion at Rice University, to talk about extraordinary, mysterious, and “impossible” experiences. This is a conversation I’ve been waiting a few years to have. Together we explore what you can or can’t talk about in the humanities — and what we risk when we break the rules. Along the way, we touch on paranormal phenomena, epistemological pluralism, conspiracy theories, Plato’s cave, and why no one dresses up as a humanities professor for Halloween. If you want to hear scholars and practitioners engaging in deep conversations about the dark side of Asian religions and medicines, then subscribe to Black Beryl wherever you get your podcasts. Enjoy the show! Resources related to this conversation: Jeff Kripal's website Archives of the Impossible & Conferences Pierce Salguero, "Secret Lives of Buddhist Studies Scholars" (2024) Pierce Salguero, "The Fractal of Humanities" (2021) Peter Sjöstedt-Hughes, "On the need for metaphysics in psychedelic therapy and research" (2023) Jeff Kripal, The Flip (2020) Jeff Kripal, Secret Body (2019) Commonweal Podcast Subscribe here to unlock our members-only benefits, including: PDF of the introduction of Jeff's book, How to Think Impossibly: About Souls, UFOs, Time, Belief, and Everything Else (2024) Pierce Salguero is a transdisciplinary scholar of health humanities who is fascinated by historical and contemporary intersections between Buddhism, medicine, and crosscultural exchange. He has a Ph.D. in History of Medicine from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and teaches Asian history, medicine, and religion at Penn State University’s Abington College, located near Philadelphia. See here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Empathy Takes Action: An Autistic Therapist on the Radical Work of Connection 30.04.2026 48λ

  Mainstream psychology has long accepted that some people (like those with autism) are naturally more logical and unemotional, while others (like so-called empaths) intuitively experience the feelings of those around them as deeply as their own. But this is wrong. Aimee Cliff, an autistic psychotherapist who empathizes for a living, knows this firsthand. We are all are capable of empathy, because empathy is something you do, not something you are—meaning you can get better at it if you choose to practice. Drawing on scientific research, clinical experience, and interviews with neurodivergent people, Aimee Cliff examines how empathy works in the brain and body and lays out the five pillars of true empathy: Empathy is humble, empathy is embodied, empathy is amoral, empathy is radical, and empathy is work. At the heart of this expansive new definition is the promise that every one of us can learn to improve our relationships with our fellow humans. We just have to be willing to do the work to close the space between us. Empathy Takes Action shows us the way to build more loving, kind, and supportive communities and to make room for every kind of mind. Our guest is: Aimee Cliff, who is a writer and therapist based in London. As a freelance writer, she has bylines in The Guardian, Pitchfork, The Independent, Vice, and more. She currently works for a disability charity. She is the author of Empathy Takes Action. Our host is: Dr. Christina Gessler, who is an academic writing coach and editor. She is the producer and show host of the Academic Life podcast. Playlist for listeners: Community-Building and How We Show Up How To Organize Inclusive Events And Conferences Doing the Work of Equity Leadership The Burnout Workbook Being Well in Academia What Might Be A Pedagogy Of Kindness Belonging How To Make Your Brain Your Best Friend Designing and Facilitating Workshops With Intentionality Welcome to Academic Life, the podcast for your academic journey—and beyond! You help support the show by downloading and sharing episodes. Join us again to learn from more experts inside and outside the academy, and around the world. Missed any of the 300+ Academic Life episodes? Find them here. And thank you for listening! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Heather Shay, "Identity Building Among Role-Playing Gamers: Slaying Goblins in the Real World" (Bloomsbury, 2025) 27.04.2026 47λ

  In Identity Building Among Role-Playing Gamers: Slaying Goblins in the Real World (Bloomsbury 2025), Heather Shay draws from 19 months of participant-observation and 20 in-depth interviews with players. She found that gamers derive significant social and psychological benefits from table-top role-playing games-not least in that players often feel the hobby makes them better people. Playing these games allow players to depict themselves as good, moral actors through their in-game actions as well as by making the game enjoyable for their fellow players in real life. Table-top role-playing games also serve a psychological function by allowing participants to take imaginary risks with their characters, which in turn make them feel more alive than their everyday experiences allow them to. As they pretend to be fictional characters in fictional worlds, players use these games to create identities that make their lives more meaningful. Michael O. Johnston, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Sociology at William Penn University, where he focuses on the cultural and interpretive analysis of space, behavior, and identity. His work examines how built and designed environments shape social interaction, networks, and morality in everyday life across a range of settings. He is the author of The Social Construction of a Cultural Spectacle: Floatzilla (Lexington Books, 2023), Community Media Representations of Place and Identity at Tug Fest: Reconstructing the Mississippi River (Lexington Books, 2022), and his most recent book Smalltown Urban: Performing the City in Rural America (Bloomsbury, under contract). His current research advances several interconnected projects, including the study of escape rooms as emotion-structured environments, the production of temporary urbanism in rural historic towns, and the ways students experience “hanging out” and feeling at home in higher education. He is also developing new work on the social organization and cultural meaning of rodeo. More broadly, his scholarship is united by an interest in how people actively produce meaning, attachment, and identity within specific spatial and temporal contexts. To learn more about his work, visit his personal website or Google Scholar, connect with him on Bluesky (@professorjohnst.bsky.social) or X (@ProfessorJohnst), or reach out directly via email (johnstonmo@wmpenn.edu). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Sunita Sah, "Defy: The Power of No in a World That Demands Yes" (Random House, 2025) 24.04.2026 1ώ 7λ

  How many times have you wanted to object, disagree, or opt out of something but ended up swallowing your words, shaking your head, and just going along? Featuring groundbreaking research, gripping stories, and easy everyday strategies, Defy reveals how to show up for yourself and others personally, professionally, and beyond. Sah’s data-driven approach shows why everyone needs the power of defiance and how to build this essential skill. In a moment when we are anxious and unsure what to do—whether we’re confronting injustice on a social scale or facing something closer to home—here are strategies to activate your values. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
• Masud Husain, "Our Brains, Our Selves: What a Neurologist’s Patients Taught Him About the Brain" (Canongate, 2025) 22.04.2026 58λ

  What makes us who we are?Through the stories of seven of his patients, acclaimed Oxford University neurologist Masud Husain shows us how our brains create, change and can even restore our identity. Husain introduces us to a man who ran out of words, a woman who lost all inhibitions and another who believed she was having an affair with the man who was really her husband.These compelling human dramas reveal how our identities are created by different functions within the brain. It will ignite new ideas about who we really are – and why we act in the ways we do. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology