Psychology and cinema: what do they have in common?

Psychology and cinema have many points in common. These enclaves of connection between both disciplines have been little exploited. But what exactly do psychology and cinema share? You may have thought that you can answer this question based, for example, on some of the many films, which are based on psychological disorders, for example.

The relationships between psychology and cinema will gradually become closer, just as happened, for example, with hypnosis. This will make way for us as united disciplines. Like hypnosis, There will be an important expansion and interest in your knowledge.

Psychology and cinema in the 19th century

Both psychology and cinema were born practically at the same time, at the end of the 19th century.. It is obvious that the study of the human being is as old as the history of thought itself. However, there is a key date in the birth of scientific psychology: 1879.

It was in 1879 when Wilhem Wundt created the first experimental psychology laboratory. There is great proximity to another date: December 28, 1895, the Lumiére brothers created a series of projected images. This milestone is considered the origin of cinema.

Thus, the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th were times of great relevance, both for psychology and for the seventh art. In fact, in many films we can appreciate different psychological theories, not to mention the emotions they can generate in us.

In addition, cinema has also been a precursor of certain behaviors that have been the subject of study in psychology.. This is because, in their representations, the actors function as social models. And the actors are admired and followed by a large number of people.

The functions of the psychologist in the world of cinema

By delving into the potential that both disciplines draw on, we can outline what the functions that the psychologist exercises in the audiovisual world. Let’s see them.

Psychologists can conduct studies on the script. Its function would be to guide behavior regarding different personality styles or different psychopathologies. In this way, the psychologist would act as an expert consultant to show an undistorted reality and bring it closer to society without magnifying or caricaturing it.

Another function of psychologists in cinema would be to guide the actors. By guiding the actors’ actions regarding certain psychopathological conditions, overacting could be prevented. This would contribute to the improvement of interpretive techniques.

A very important function is to mediate the transmission of values. What we observe usually leads us to consider it within normality and have a negative influence. This is especially true in young people, although it also occurs in adults.

Both in television series and in some movies we are surprised by how promiscuous or violent behavior is normalized. However, They do not show us with due attention the possible consequences of such acts.

As an example we can cite the repeated samples of coping strategies based on the consumption of potentially addictive substances for its effect on our reward circuit. These are viewed by the population on the big screen, having consequences that are difficult to define.

The psychologist, in addition, can be a good film critic. The profession that best understands human behavior and its disorders is psychology. Any movie shows behaviors, attitudes, etc. that can be reviewed and commented on by psychologists specializing in this topic.

When the cinema shows the profession of psychologist

Cinema has served as a promotion for the profession of psychologist. Just remember Bruce Willis in the movie The sixth Sense. However, it has also contributed to distorting his work performance. Cinema has generated a large number of myths and misconceptions about clinical interventions.

Almost exclusively, contrary to what happens in the majority of consultations in our environment, cinema has shown us couch sessions with psychoanalysts. This bias in favor of a way of doing psychology, which in Europe we could consider as a minority, is still distort the image that a large part of society has regarding clinical procedure.

There are also numerous films where actors and actresses have acted as psychotherapists. In the vast majority of movies they are not differentiated the profession of psychiatrist and psychologist. As we have seen, the convergences between psychology and cinema are many and varied, which has been a source of value for both disciplines.

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