ACX
COVID Suicides: Much More Than You Wanted To Know
Scott Alexander directs readers to his essay on Works in Progress examining why suicide rates didn't increase during the COVID-19 pandemic as expected.
1 min read 21 words
A thread through the archive
mental health
Essays tagged “mental health”. Follow an idea across the archive.
Essays on mental health
69 essaysACX
Peer Review Request: Depression
Scott Alexander presents a detailed guide on depression, covering its causes, symptoms, and various treatment options, including lifestyle changes, therapies, medications, and other interventions.
72 min read 11,078 words
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Toward A Bayesian Theory Of Willpower
Scott Alexander proposes a Bayesian theory of willpower as a process of weighing evidence from different mental processes to determine actions.
13 min read 1,995 words
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Ontology Of Psychiatric Conditions: Dynamical Systems
Scott Alexander examines mental disorders through the lens of dynamical systems theory, exploring how this perspective complements and contrasts with taxometric approaches.
27 min read 4,087 words
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Ontology Of Psychiatric Conditions: Taxometrics
Scott Alexander examines taxometrics in psychiatry, finding that most mental health conditions are dimensional rather than categorical, and discusses the implications for diagnosis and treatment.
31 min read 4,710 words
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Still Alive
Scott Alexander describes deleting his blog Slate Star Codex due to a doxxing threat, the aftermath, and his decision to return to blogging under his real name.
43 min read 6,643 words
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SSCJC: Real World Depression Measurement
Scott Alexander analyzes the PANDA Study, a large real-world antidepressant trial, discussing its methodology, results, and implications for understanding antidepressant efficacy.
10 min read 1,436 words
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Welcome (?), Infowars Readers
Scott Alexander addresses Infowars readers about a misattributed survey analysis, providing caveats and emphasizing proper attribution and vaccine safety.
3 min read 422 words
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What Intellectual Progress Did I Make In The 2010s?
Scott Alexander reviews his intellectual progress in the 2010s across various fields, crediting his blog for accelerating learning.
32 min read 4,854 words
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SSC Journal Club: Relaxed Beliefs Under Psychedelics And The Anarchic Brain
Scott reviews a paper proposing that psychedelics work by relaxing priors in the brain, potentially treating mental illness but also risking side effects.
18 min read 2,690 words
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Do People Like Their Mental Health Care?
Scott Alexander presents survey results on people's satisfaction with mental health care, showing varied preferences across different types of therapy and conditions.
5 min read 675 words
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Survey Results On SSRIs
Scott Alexander presents results from an SSC Survey on SSRI usage, covering effectiveness, side effects, and discontinuation experiences among 2,090 users.
11 min read 1,596 words
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Psychiat-List Now Up
Scott Alexander introduces the 'Psychiat-List', a crowd-sourced list of recommended mental health professionals for the rationalist community.
2 min read 196 words
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Working With Google Trends
Scott Alexander investigates the complexities of using Google Trends for mental health research, proposing methods to improve accuracy and interpretation of search data.
12 min read 1,706 words
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[ACC Entry] Should Transgender Children Transition?
This Adversarial Collaboration Contest entry examines the evidence and debates surrounding transgender children transitioning, covering desistence rates, social transitioning, puberty blockers, and mental health outcomes.
44 min read 6,739 words
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SSC Survey Results: ADHD And Rejection Sensitivity
Scott analyzes survey data to test the claim that rejection sensitivity is a key feature of ADHD, finding limited support and emphasizing caution in adopting such ideas without formal research.
12 min read 1,719 words
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Mental Health On A Budget
Scott Alexander offers various strategies for obtaining affordable mental health care and medication in the US, including discount programs, therapy alternatives, and supplement options.
15 min read 2,286 words
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Navigating And/Or Avoiding The Inpatient Mental Health System
Scott Alexander offers a detailed guide on navigating the inpatient mental health system, balancing caution with the importance of seeking necessary treatment.
55 min read 8,438 words
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Concept-Shaped Holes Can Be Impossible To Notice
Scott Alexander discusses the difficulty of recognizing concepts we might be missing, using examples from psychology and sociology to argue for keeping an open mind towards seemingly trivial ideas.
13 min read 1,915 words
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SSC Survey Results On Trust
Scott Alexander analyzes SSC survey results on trust, finding correlations with education, location, and political views, but not with gender, race, or religiosity.
5 min read 741 words
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Determining Consent
Scott Alexander explores the complex ethical and legal issues surrounding sexual consent for institutionalized and intellectually disabled individuals, arguing for a nuanced approach that balances protection and autonomy.
19 min read 2,866 words
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SSC Survey 2017 Results
Scott Alexander presents and analyzes the results of the 2017 Slate Star Codex reader survey, revealing demographic and psychological insights about the blog's audience.
27 min read 4,078 words
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Book Review: My Brother Ron
Scott reviews a book arguing against deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill, agreeing with many of its claims but ultimately disagreeing with its conclusion.
50 min read 7,612 words
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Reverse Voxsplaining: Prison and Mental Illness
Scott Alexander criticizes the idea that prisons have replaced mental hospitals, arguing for better community and forensic mental health care instead of long-term institutionalization.
19 min read 2,847 words
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How Bad Are Things?
Scott Alexander explores the hidden prevalence of misery in society, using his psychiatric experience and statistical analysis to argue that suffering is more widespread than commonly perceived.
15 min read 2,279 words