By Mary Dai
On the 28th of November, Year 12 Psychology students went on a trip to the Emmanuel Centre for a conference on Science & Psychology hosted by EduConference. We were delighted to have 7 different speakers, including the author of our Psychology book: Cara Flanagan.
This conference gave us a better insight on how psychology is linked and intertwined with a lot of different topics in our lives, such as ‘Science and Performance’ by Lucie Clements, which talked about her journey to dancing and how it had a huge impact on creativity, divergent thinking and well-being. ‘The Psychology of Belief in Conspiracy Theories’ by Chris French and ‘The Psychology of Magic’ by Oliver Meech, which explains optical illusion. For example, ambiguous images and the after effects of our brains. The conference used interactive methods that engaged us to stretch the limits and boundaries of Psychology beyond our lessons.
Andrew Newton is our last speaker of the day, who performed hypnosis in action. He invited student volunteers on stage to have a demonstration of hypnosis. He showcased his impressive techniques where the volunteers were told to imagine two different weights on their hands: one with a light feather and another with a really heavy rock. Soon, we can see their hands began to move apart, one rising high; another moving down. This was done purely through speaking to the volunteers.
Following up, he asked the volunteers to have their arm outstretched, imagining it being stuck in position as he gave the command to ‘sleep’. Then, when he asked the volunteer to ‘wake up’, they were challenged to catch the £5 placed below their arms. Surprisingly, most of the volunteers struggled and failed to control their own body. This demonstration was a captivating experience which allows us as students to explore concepts beyond our textbooks.