The brain’s image-processing and memory systems are involved in a range of conscious and unconscious experiences. Aphantasia is associated with a range of consequences, including impaired autobiographical memory and, potentially, less emotional awareness and empathy. It's an under-recognized aspect of neurodiversity.

Steve explores this experience and reflects on the uncanny fact that other peoples’ consciousnesses can work differently than our own, in more or less subtle ways with far-reaching effects.

Transcript

Selected Research

Beran, Michael J. et al (2023). Assessing aphantasia prevalence and the relation of self-reported imagery abilities and memory task performance. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2023.103548.

Blomkvist, A. (2023) Aphantasia: in search of a theory. https://doi.org/10.1111/mila.12432

Blomkvist A, Marks DF. Defining and ‘diagnosing’ aphantasia: Condition or individual difference?https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2023.09.004

Delem et al. Complete Aphantasics Process Emotions Differently, But No Less Efficiently: Evidence of a Non-linear Relationship Between Visual Imagery and Alexithymia. https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/es425_v1

McCormick C and Lange S (2025) Missing images: autobiographical memory in Aphantasia and blindness. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcogn.2025.1644533

Monzel M, et al. Aphantasia within the framework of neurodivergence. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2023.103567

Monzel M, et al. Affective processing in aphantasia and potential overlaps with alexithymia. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bionps.2024.100106.

Wicken M, et al. The critical role of mental imagery in human emotion. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.0267

Zeman, Adam. Aphantasia and hyperphantasia: exploring imagery vividness extremes. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2024.02.007

The music is “Dirt Rhodes" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com).

The cover art features “Concentric squares forming a geometric maze pattern” by Cansu Sarp.

I’m Steve, your host. My background is eclectic. I headed to university to study Applied Physics but wound up doing a PhD on Holocaust memoirs. I've been programming computers since I was a kid, and when I escaped the academic world, I worked for years as a web developer. More recently I’ve been a digital writer and producer working in climate change, human rights, and public history.

So I’ve always appreciated and used both sides of my brain. I love statistics, science and code but also words, ideas, and interpretation.

I'm fascinated by how we construct our selves and our stories to make meaning out of the unlikely enigma that is our shared existence.

In each episode I address a topic that intrigues me and matters to me in some more or less intimate way. In the first season I explore things including body image and masculinity, confidence and uncertainty, aphantasia - or thinking without images-, and birds.

I'm not presenting academic research here but these aren't just hot takes. I play with ideas, make connections, and generally explore the complexities involved in the perplexing, brief, and beautiful experience of being a person.

I’d be honoured if you’d join me.

Credits

Written, recorded, and produced by Steve McCullough.

The music is “Dirt Rhodes" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com), licensed under Creative Commons - By Attribution 4.0.

The cover art features “Concentric squares forming a geometric maze pattern” by Cansu Sarp.