Episode 1: Why are Men So Lonely? Preventing Deaths of Despair with Dr. Thomas Joiner
This podcast answers the question: “why are so many men of working age finding themselves in unbearable psychological pain that leads them to deaths of despair?” in a conversation with international thought leader and psychologist Dr. Thomas Joiner.
Dr. Thomas Joiner
Dr. Thomas Joiner, author of “Lonely at the Top: The High Cost of Men’s Success” and “Why People Die by Suicide”, has spent much of his career trying to find out why people die of suicide. The desire for death, according to Joiner, is comprised of two psychological states. One is a perception of being a burden to others, having let everyone down, and the other is a feeling of not belonging, not feeling connected to a family or a relationship. Alone, neither of these states is enough to instill the desire for death, but together with what Dr. Joiner has labeled an “acquired capacity” for suicide (a fearlessness for death) the risk for suicide is increased. Join us in a conversation about how we can best help men avoid the pits of despair – such as isolation and addiction – through proactive changes in our culture and support services. If you are a man living with these challenges, or if you are worried about a man in your life, come listen to Thomas’ suggestions to bring back a passion for living.
Show Notes:
Resources
1-800-273-8255 National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
Man Therapy (a humorous mental health program for men): www.ManTherapy.org
· White Paper on why we did what we did: http://mantherapy.org/pdf/ManTherapy.pdf
· Outcomes: http://mantherapy.org/pdf/White-Paper-Man-Therapy.pdf
· YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/DrMahogany
Thomas Joiner’s Books and Research
· Lonely at the Top: The High Cost of Men’s Success
· The Perversion of Virtue: Understanding Murder-Suicide
More on Thomas Joiner’s Research Lab at Florida State University: https://psy.fsu.edu/~joinerlab/
Opioid Crisis and Deaths of Despair
Military Suicide Research Consortium
Suicide as a derangement of the self-sacrificial aspect of eusociality
Tracking a Movement: U.S. Milestones in Suicide Prevention
About Thomas Joiner:
Dr. Joiner grew up in Georgia, went to college at Princeton, and received his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Texas at Austin. He is The Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor in the Department of Psychology at Florida State University (FSU), Tallahassee, Florida. Dr. Joiner’s work is on the psychology, neurobiology, and treatment of suicidal behavior and related conditions. Author of over 600 peer-reviewed publications, Dr. Joiner was awarded the Guggenheim Fellowship and the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Residency Fellowship. He received the Young Investigator Award from the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression, the Shakow Award for Early Career Achievement from the Division of Clinical Psychology of the American Psychological Association, both the Shneidman Award and the Dublin Award for excellence in suicide research from the American Association of Suicidology, and the Award for Distinguished Scientific Early Career Contributions from the American Psychological Association, as well as research grants from the National Institute of Mental Health, Department of Defense (DoD), and various foundations. The Lawton Professorship, which Dr. Joiner received in 2010, is FSU’s single highest honor.
He was a consultant to NASA’s Human Research Program, and is the Director, with Pete Gutierrez, Ph.D., of the DoD-funded Military Suicide Research Consortium, a ten-year $70 million project.
Largely in connection with Why People Die by Suicide, he has made numerous radio, print, and television appearances, including articles in The Wall Street Journal and The Times of London, a radio interview on NPR’s Talk of the Nation, and two appearances on the Dr. Phil Show. He runs a part-time clinical and consulting practice specializing in suicidal behavior, including legal consultation on suits involving death by suicide. He lives in Tallahassee, Florida, with his wife and two sons, the elder of whom is an FSU senior and the younger of whom hopes soon to be an FSU freshman.
Lonely at the Top