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IPIS002 Psycho (1960): We all go a little mad sometimes?
⚠ Content Note: This episode discusses murder, gender-based violence, queerphobia, and ableist tropes in film. Listener wellbeing comes first — take breaks when needed.
Aurora Brown and true-crime podcaster and author Nicole Engelbrecht check into the Bates Motel to unpack Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960) — the film that redefined horror, shocked censors, and spawned a thousand shower-scene parodies. But beneath the shrieking violins and the chocolate-syrup blood, Psycho is a story about repression, gender panic, and the ways patriarchy pathologises femininity, queerness, and mental illness.
Together, they trace Norman Bates from Ed Gein’s farm to Freud’s couch. The episode closes with the Fanon Test for Mental Health Representation. Spoiler: Norman doesn’t score well.
Connect with Nicole Engelbrecht
Website: https://truecrimesouthafrica.com/
Socials: @truecrimesouthafrica
🎁 Support the podcast and get exclusive bonus content
Patreon.com/IntersectionalPsychology
🌈 If this episode resonates, please share it, rate the show, and send us your thoughts.
📄 Download a transcript of this episode on IntersectionalPsychology.com.
⏳ Chapter Timestamps
00:00:00 Land acknowledgement
00:00:28 Title credits
00:01:14 Content note
00:01:45 Welcome
00:05:17 Introduction: "Am I acting as if there's something wrong?"
00:09:59 Recap of Psycho: "Twelve cabins, 12 vacancies."
00:30:15 Discussing Psycho: "A son is a poor substitute for a lover."
00:52:32 Scene Analysis: Privately trapped in a parlour with Norman Bates
01:00:46 Does Psycho pass the Fanon Test?
01:11:59 Checking Out: "I'm looking for a private island."
01:13:02 End credits
Stay connected to Aurora and Intersectional Psychology
🔗 Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts
📮 Got feedback or questions? Reach out at @IntersectionalPsychology or IntersectionalPsychologyPod[@]gmail.com
You can contribute to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund at https://www.pcrf.net/
📚 References
American Psychiatric Association. (1952). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-I). Washington: APA.
American Psychiatric Association. (2022). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5-TR). Washington: APA.
Anderson, M. (2003). ‘One flew over the psychiatric unit’: mental illness and the media, Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing , 2003, 10, 297–306.
Benshoff, H.M. & Griffin, S. (2021). America on Film: Representing Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality at the Movies (3rd ed.). Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.
Chare, N., Hoorn, J. & Yue, A. (eds.) (2020). Re-reading the Monstrous-Feminine. New York: Routledge.
Clover, C.J. (1992, 2015). Men, Women, and Chain Saws: Gender in the modern horror film. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Clover, C.J. (199, 2015). Her body, himself: Gender in the slasher film. In B.K. Grant (ed.) The Dread of Difference, 2nd ed. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Creed, B. (1993, 2007). The Monstrous-Feminine: Film, feminism, psychoanalysis. New York: Routledge.
Doyle, J. (2019). Dead Blondes and Bad Mothers: Monstrosiy, patriarchy, and the fear of female power. Brooklyn: Melville House Publishing.
Elliot-Smith, D. (2016). Queer Horror Film and Television: Sexuality and masculinity at the margins. Lndon: I.B.Tauris.
Frost, D.M. & Meyer, I.H. (2023). Minority Stress Theory: Application, Critique, and Continued Relevance.
Greven, D. (2013). Psycho-Sexual. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Hitchcock, A. (Director). (1960). Psycho [Film]. Paramount Pictures.
Hermann, B. (1960). Psycho (Original Motion Picture Score).
Packer, S. (2017). Mental Illness in Popular Culture. Santa Barbara: Praeger.
Perkins, A., Leigh, J., & Gavin, J. (Performers). (1960). Psycho [Film].
Monster: The Ed Gein Story (2025). [Netflix series referenced in-episode].
Shand, J.P., et al. (2014). The horror, the horror: stigma on screen. The Lancet Psychiatry, Volume 1, Issue 6, 423-425.
Venkatesan, S., & Saji, S. (2019). Conjuring the 'Insane': Representations of Mental Illness in Medical and Popular Discourses. Media Watch, 10(3), 522-538. https://doi.org/10.15655/mw/2019/v10i3/49683
Wahl, O.F. (1992). Mass Media Images of Mental Illness: A Review of the Literature. Article in Journal of Community Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1002/1520-6629(199210)20:4%3C343::AID-JCOP2290200408%3E3.0.CO;2-2
See Privacy Policy at https://intersectionalpsychology.com/privacy-policy/
View all episodes
By Aurora Brown, Registered Counsellor⚠ Content Note: This episode discusses murder, gender-based violence, queerphobia, and ableist tropes in film. Listener wellbeing comes first — take breaks when needed.
Aurora Brown and true-crime podcaster and author Nicole Engelbrecht check into the Bates Motel to unpack Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960) — the film that redefined horror, shocked censors, and spawned a thousand shower-scene parodies. But beneath the shrieking violins and the chocolate-syrup blood, Psycho is a story about repression, gender panic, and the ways patriarchy pathologises femininity, queerness, and mental illness.
Together, they trace Norman Bates from Ed Gein’s farm to Freud’s couch. The episode closes with the Fanon Test for Mental Health Representation. Spoiler: Norman doesn’t score well.
Connect with Nicole Engelbrecht
Website: https://truecrimesouthafrica.com/
Socials: @truecrimesouthafrica
🎁 Support the podcast and get exclusive bonus content
Patreon.com/IntersectionalPsychology
🌈 If this episode resonates, please share it, rate the show, and send us your thoughts.
📄 Download a transcript of this episode on IntersectionalPsychology.com.
⏳ Chapter Timestamps
00:00:00 Land acknowledgement
00:00:28 Title credits
00:01:14 Content note
00:01:45 Welcome
00:05:17 Introduction: "Am I acting as if there's something wrong?"
00:09:59 Recap of Psycho: "Twelve cabins, 12 vacancies."
00:30:15 Discussing Psycho: "A son is a poor substitute for a lover."
00:52:32 Scene Analysis: Privately trapped in a parlour with Norman Bates
01:00:46 Does Psycho pass the Fanon Test?
01:11:59 Checking Out: "I'm looking for a private island."
01:13:02 End credits
Stay connected to Aurora and Intersectional Psychology
🔗 Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts
📮 Got feedback or questions? Reach out at @IntersectionalPsychology or IntersectionalPsychologyPod[@]gmail.com
You can contribute to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund at https://www.pcrf.net/
📚 References
American Psychiatric Association. (1952). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-I). Washington: APA.
American Psychiatric Association. (2022). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5-TR). Washington: APA.
Anderson, M. (2003). ‘One flew over the psychiatric unit’: mental illness and the media, Journal of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing , 2003, 10, 297–306.
Benshoff, H.M. & Griffin, S. (2021). America on Film: Representing Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality at the Movies (3rd ed.). Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.
Chare, N., Hoorn, J. & Yue, A. (eds.) (2020). Re-reading the Monstrous-Feminine. New York: Routledge.
Clover, C.J. (1992, 2015). Men, Women, and Chain Saws: Gender in the modern horror film. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Clover, C.J. (199, 2015). Her body, himself: Gender in the slasher film. In B.K. Grant (ed.) The Dread of Difference, 2nd ed. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Creed, B. (1993, 2007). The Monstrous-Feminine: Film, feminism, psychoanalysis. New York: Routledge.
Doyle, J. (2019). Dead Blondes and Bad Mothers: Monstrosiy, patriarchy, and the fear of female power. Brooklyn: Melville House Publishing.
Elliot-Smith, D. (2016). Queer Horror Film and Television: Sexuality and masculinity at the margins. Lndon: I.B.Tauris.
Frost, D.M. & Meyer, I.H. (2023). Minority Stress Theory: Application, Critique, and Continued Relevance.
Greven, D. (2013). Psycho-Sexual. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Hitchcock, A. (Director). (1960). Psycho [Film]. Paramount Pictures.
Hermann, B. (1960). Psycho (Original Motion Picture Score).
Packer, S. (2017). Mental Illness in Popular Culture. Santa Barbara: Praeger.
Perkins, A., Leigh, J., & Gavin, J. (Performers). (1960). Psycho [Film].
Monster: The Ed Gein Story (2025). [Netflix series referenced in-episode].
Shand, J.P., et al. (2014). The horror, the horror: stigma on screen. The Lancet Psychiatry, Volume 1, Issue 6, 423-425.
Venkatesan, S., & Saji, S. (2019). Conjuring the 'Insane': Representations of Mental Illness in Medical and Popular Discourses. Media Watch, 10(3), 522-538. https://doi.org/10.15655/mw/2019/v10i3/49683
Wahl, O.F. (1992). Mass Media Images of Mental Illness: A Review of the Literature. Article in Journal of Community Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1002/1520-6629(199210)20:4%3C343::AID-JCOP2290200408%3E3.0.CO;2-2
See Privacy Policy at https://intersectionalpsychology.com/privacy-policy/