A common misconception in popular psychology is the belief that the majority of people go through a psychological midlife crisis during their 40s or 50s. Scientific research has shown that a normative, universal midlife crisis is a myth.

The Midlife Crisis Myth

A prevalent myth in popular psychology suggests that students learn most effectively when educational methods are tailored to their specific learning styles. Scientific studies have demonstrated that matching teaching styles to learning styles is a misconception that does not improve educational outcomes.

The Learning Styles Myth

A widely held commonsense belief is that low self-esteem is a major underlying cause of various psychological problems. However, empirical research indicates that this popular psychology myth overstates the causal role of self-esteem in mental health issues.

The Low Self-Esteem Myth

A prominent myth in popular psychology and an example of an illusory correlation is the widespread belief that the moon's phases influence human behavior, such as the idea that psychiatric admissions and crimes increase during a full moon. Extensive scientific research has consistently found no such statistical relationship, and the perception of this link is likely due to attentional bias.

The Full Moon Myth

A widely held myth of popular psychology is the incorrect belief that individuals utilize only 10% of their brain's capacity. Scientific evidence has debunked this idea, showing that humans use virtually all parts of their brain.

The 10% Brain Power Myth

- People are predominantly left-brained or right-brained
- Memories of trauma can be repressed and hypnosis used to retrieve them
- Polygraph tests can tell when people are lying

Washington State University at Tri-Cities

While some ideas represented in pop psychology are true, much of pop psychology is full of misinformation that is mistaken for fact by laypeople, non-psychological professionals, and even some in the mental health field.

Pop Psychology Myths

Lilienfeld, S. O., Lynn, S. J., Ruscio, J., & Beyerstein, B. L. (2009). 50 great myths of popular psychology : Shattering widespread misconceptions about human behavior.

50 Great Myths of Popular Psychology

Pop Psychology Myth Examples

This myth suggests that memories of traumatic events can be repressed and that hypnosis is a valuable psychological tool for retrieving those memories

Learn Before

Related

Learn After