The British Journal of Medicine
Originally published May 21, 2012
Psychological and psychiatric comment are often sought, be it for a morning television programme featuring the motivations of celebrities or whether Anders Breivik, the Norwegian on trial for mass murder, is sane.
Informed debate and information sharing necessitates that healthcare expertise should be used.
But what is appropriate for healthcare professionals to comment on, and who is best qualified to take the call?
So called celebrity psychology--used to explain or discuss behaviour--is burgeoning in the entertainment industry, and central to many reality TV shows.
Emma Kenny, who has a psychology degree and is a member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy, says on her website that she has been "resident psychologist" on many television shows.
On ITV's This Morning she appeared with Samantha Brick, who had written an article stating that she is disliked by many women because she is attractive.
In the discussion Kenny said, "If, as a person, everywhere I go, I am met with a certain reaction from people . . . I have to embrace the fact that actually it might be me that needs to change and not the society around me. The very fact that you are entertaining these relationships with people--you instantly have a paranoia."1
Kenny runs a service called Exclusive Ethics, which helps programme makers to work within the 2009 Ofcom broadcasting code (the code contains provisions designed to ensure the emotional welfare of television participants), and offers to compile psychological profiles of contestants.
The entire article is here.
Thanks to Ken Pope for this information.
