A Pandora’s box full of smart drugs

Ann Robinson: We should think very carefully before we start routinely taking drugs such as Modafinil to boost cognitive function

Reading your way out of depression

Wayne Gooderham: I suspect you need a very individual prescription, but I know that Saul Bellow helped lead me out of a very dark time

Family under the microscope

Why are female undergraduates so much more likely to suffer from psychological distress than male students?

Relationships: Not just for Christmas

Editorial: The welfare state was developed to ensure material needs were met, but its architects presumed that emotional and psychological needs would be met by family and community. That is not always so

Real loneliness can do serious damage

Neuroscientist John Cacioppo says social pain is akin to physical pain. So what can be done to make it better?

It’s absurd to think that you can measure happiness

Catherine Bennett: Rather than trying to legislate for contentment, we should be tackling society's more immediate failings

The human cost of screening for Down’s

Tom Shakespeare: We must provide better information about Down's syndrome to help inform the traumatic decisions behind the statistics

Mental health: a survival story

Andrew Smith, living with schizo-affected disorder, was only diagnosed after years of depression

Fit for purpose?

Should a political leader's health be a matter of public interest? Former foreign secretary David Owen says that honesty is always the best policy