Category: Identity & The Self

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The Masculine and Feminine Sides of Men August 17, 2006

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Identity & The Self, Sexuality & Desire

Every man carries a feminine side and every woman a masculine one, and denying that hidden half drives attraction, obsession, and heartbreak. Armand DiMele draws on Jung’s concept of the anima and animus to explain why we fall hard for people who embody what we repress in ourselves, and how reclaiming that lost half is the real work of intimacy.

The Psychology of Grandparenting August 10, 2006

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Catherine, David Travland, Keith, Sante
Category: Family & Parenting, Identity & The Self

Grandparents are everywhere in family life yet almost nowhere in psychology literature. Armand DiMele builds a case for why grandparenting deserves serious study, examining how grandparents transmit love, jealousy, and dysfunction across generations, illustrated by callers sharing their own grandparent stories.

The Father Child Bond with Dr. Kent Robertshaw August 9, 2006

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Kent Robertshaw
Category: Family & Parenting, Identity & The Self

Fathers are the least understood figures in child development, and Armand DiMele and Dr. Kent Robertshaw, MD, Psychiatrist, dig into why. They trace how absent or emotionally unavailable dads shape children’s self-esteem, how puberty fractures father-daughter bonds, and why men are socialized to convert sadness into anger rather than seek help.

Fathers as Dark Matter with Dr. Scott Baum August 3, 2006

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Dr. Scott Baum
Category: Family & Parenting, Identity & The Self

Fathers exert enormous psychological force even through absence, argues Dr. Scott Baum, PhD, Psychologist, who calls them the dark matter of the psychic universe. Armand DiMele and Baum dig into male shame, competitive rage, and the hidden damage fathers inflict without ever raising a hand, drawing on Baum’s own story and calls from listeners navigating estranged sons.

Authority Figures and the Father Wound with Shreya Mundal August 2, 2006

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Shreya Mundal
Category: Communication & Conflict, Identity & The Self

Why do some people clash with every boss, landlord, or police officer they encounter? Armand DiMele and Shreya Mundal, a forensic social worker and mitigation specialist at the Legal Aid Society, trace recurring authority conflicts back to early parental relationships, arguing that unresolved powerlessness keeps people locked in the same losing dynamic.

The Social Power of Reputation July 26, 2006

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Identity & The Self, Society, Culture & Current Events

Why does reputation matter so deeply? Armand DiMele traces the primal need for social acceptance from tribal survival through modern credit scores and gendered slurs, arguing that obsession with how others see us can hollow out intimacy and drive social phobia. Callers share their own struggles with image and belonging.

What Normal Actually Looks Like June 6, 2006

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Emotions & Inner Life, Identity & The Self

Most people mistake loudness, generosity, or relentless positivity for psychological health. Armand DiMele maps a spectrum from the quietly content ordinary person outward in both directions, arguing that extremes on either end, whether manic joy, compulsive giving, cold stoicism, or rage, all signal unmet needs rather than genuine wellbeing.

Truth, Innocence and Self-Deception April 27, 2006

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Anne O'Connell, Kent Robertshaw, Stephanie D'Ambra
Category: Addiction & Compulsion, Identity & The Self

Why do people lie to themselves, and what does that cost them? Armand DiMele and guests Dr. Kent Robertshaw, MD and Stephanie D’Ambra, LCSW explore how shame, unmet needs, and fear of self-examination keep people stuck in dysfunctional patterns, and why honest self-reflection is the foundation of real change.

Anorexia as a Control Issue January 31, 2006

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Christine Ulrich, Stephanie D'Ambra
Category: Addiction & Compulsion, Identity & The Self

Anorexia is not really about food but about control, perfectionism, and a refusal to grow up. Armand DiMele, joined by Stephanie D’Ambra, LCSW and Christine Ulrich, traces how starvation becomes a way to freeze development, reject femininity, and rebel against family pressure without openly defying it.

Youth Isolation and the Hikikomori Phenomenon January 17, 2006

Host: Armand DiMele
Category: Identity & The Self, Society, Culture & Current Events

A million Japanese youth have locked themselves in their bedrooms for years. Armand DiMele uses the hikikomori phenomenon as a lens for examining how overprotective parenting, competitive pressure, and cultural apathy are suppressing the natural rebelliousness of adolescence, with his assistant Stephanie Alomba joining the discussion.