Is the Internet Making Us Dumb? Blacksplained by Dr. April Scott

Every week, Blacksplained asks an expert, scholar or person who knows what they’re talking about to tackle one question. This week, we’re talking neurodivergence, online psychology and misinformation about mental health with Dr. April Scott, director of Strategic Initiatives and Wellbeing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-M). She holds a B.S. in psychology from Tuskegee University, so we had to talk about the bonnet debate. She’s a Black woman with an M.S. in clinical psychology from Barry University and a Ph.D. in counseling psychology from Auburn University, so we had to talk about Cheyenne Bryant. She did her dissertation on hip-hop’s effects on Black women’s self-image, so we couldn’t avoid the debate over Yung Miami’s hit song. And since she has worked across multiple settings, including substance abuse treatment programs, community mental health centers, a Veterans Affairs hospital, group practice and university counseling centers, you’ll discover that what you believe about behavior, therapy and mental health is a combination of misinformation, misunderstanding and one of the most addictive drugs in history. That’s why Dr. April Scott, an actual psychology expert, is here to Blacksplain: Is the internet making us dumber? Chapters 00:00 Understanding Mental Health Professions 03:07 The Complexity of Mental Health 07:15 Challenges of Diagnosis and Overconsumption of Therapy 37:23 Phenomenon of Imposter Syndrome and Personality Traits 41:25 Pathologizing Personality Traits 42:22 Personality Disorders vs. Quirks 43:21 Sensory Overload and Racial Bias 58:40 Influence of Music on Body Image 56:16 Historical Impact of Racism in Research 01:11:27 Respectability Politics and Campus Norms 01:22:25 The Internet and Mental Health 01:30:16 Influence of Social Media on Behavior