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The Bat of the Shadow: Batman’s Role Models

Who were Batman’s role models? Which theories in psychology might best address the ways in which people in life (his parents, their butler, a pacifist physician), fictional masked men of mystery (Zorro, the Shadow), and others influenced this frightened boy who, praying by his bedside a few nights after his parents died before his very eyes, became an avenger on a mission?

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"Legends of the Knight" Video Chat on Batman and Psychology

“Legends of the Knight” filmmaker Brett Culp brings together Drs. Patrick O’Connor, Vasilis Pozios, and Travis Langley for a video discussion on Spreecast to discuss Batman and psychology – not the psychology of Batman himself but rather the psychology of why Batman resonates so powerfully in the public consciousness. How and why does a fictional hero inspire real people?

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Doctor Who: Fear the Weeping Angels and Don’t Blink

They can kill you in a blink or cast you into the past, turning you into nothing but a memory or a name engraved on an old tombstone. The Weeping Angels, not the most dangerous foes that science fiction hero Doctor Who and his traveling companions have ever faced and yet widely considered the scariest, evoke fears in characters and fans alike, but fears of what exactly?

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The Dark Knight Rises: What Motivates Bane?

What motivates Bane, the featured villain in the 2012 blockbuster motion picture “The Dark Knight Rises”? Why does he become the man who breaks the bat? Whereas Need for Achievement and subsidiary Need for Power drive the comic book version of Bane, Need for Affiliation motivates movie Bane. The motion picture version of this psychopathic character does it all for love.

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Are Batman’s Enemies Insane? Unsound Minds—Part 2

Are supervillains insane? With some exceptions, no, most comic book heroes’ nemeses know what they’re doing. They know who they hurt and they know it’s wrong. For them, that’s part of the fun. Using Batman’s enemies as examples, we explore the more bizarre villains in DC Comics’ Gotham City. Which of Gotham City’s colorful crooks come closest to qualifying as insane?

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