Psychology news

• I have become an optimist – it’ll never work! | Stuart Heritage

  13-01-2015 21:00
  
  Optimists are fitter, happier and live longer than the rest of us, so I’m going to have to start looking on the bright side. But hang on, there’s a flaw to this plan …I’ve just discovered that I’m going to die. Now, for the sake of transparency, I should point out that I’m not going to die right away, but that’s not really the point. I’m going to die, and I’m probably going to die before you, and I’m slightly narked off about it. Apparently a colossal heart attack is going to
  
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• Barbara Tizard obituary

  13-01-2015 19:16
  
  Psychologist with a special interest in early child developmentBarbara Tizard, who has died aged 88, was an eminent developmental psychologist. Her exhaustive research was driven by important theoretical questions, but also by her strong determination to make life as good as possible for children.One set of studies, published as Early Childhood Education (1975), Adoption: A Second Chance (1977) and Involving Parents in Nursery and Infant Schools (1983), looked at the long-term effects of growin
  
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• Ever liked a film on Facebook? You’ve given the security services a key to your soul | Andrew Brown

  13-01-2015 16:59
  
  The most banal acts on Facebook can add up to an accurate psychological profile, according to new researchWhy on earth does David Cameron feel the need to call for new digital powers for the security services when they are only beginning to use the ones they already have? Suppose you wanted personality profiles of a quarter of the population of England? Turns out you can mine them from Facebook with publicly published algorithms. About half the adult population of England uses Facebook at least
  
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• Blocking hormone could eliminate stress-induced infertility

  13-01-2015 15:06
  Stress is known to interfere with reproduction, but a new study shows that the effects of chronic stress on fertility persist long after the stress is gone. This is because a hormone that suppresses fertility, GnIH, remains high even after stress hormone levels return to normal. In rats, they successfully blocked the hormone gene and restored normal reproductive behavior, suggesting therapeutic potential for stressed humans and animals in captive breeding programs.
  
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• Development of psychosis: Gray matter loss and the inflamed brain

  13-01-2015 15:04
  The thickness of cortical brain tissue progressively reduces as individuals develop psychosis, according to researchers of a large, multi-site study of young adults at clinical high risk. Onset of psychosis typically occurs during the transition from adolescence to early adulthood, a period of time when the brain is also maturing, they note.
  
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• People prefer fair, but does the brain?

  13-01-2015 15:04
  
  Whether for oneself or for others, fairness is preferred by people, but the brain network changes depending on who is actually benefiting. "In previous studies," explains the lead investigator, "we found the same tendency to reject unfair offers regardless of whether the decision involved the subjects themselves or a third party. Brain imaging, however, suggested that the brain was working differently in the two situations."
  
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• Veterans say experimental PTSD treatment has changed their lives

  13-01-2015 14:43 via washingtonpost.com
  
  Some of the latest tools to help vets recover from wounds both mental and physical include bionics, virtual reality and magnetic waves.
  
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• London personality maps show where nice, nasty and arty are most at home

  13-01-2015 13:43
  
  Regardless of crime and income levels, people are happiest living in an area that matches their personality, claim researchersThe bustling streets and tourist attractions of central London and Westminster draw crowds from far and wide, but according to a survey by psychologists, they are home to the most disagreeable people in the capital.Researchers in Cambridge used responses from 56,000 Londoners to compose maps of personality types ranging across 216 postal districts. The maps revealed the a
  
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• Your computer knows you better than your friends do, say researchers

  13-01-2015 13:34
  
  Computers can sum up personality traits better than friends and family, according to a joint study by Cambridge and Stanford University
  A computer can be a better judge of character than an individual’s parents or close friends, research has shown.All it needs is the right input data – namely the thumbs-up clues left by someone’s Facebook “likes”. By “mining” for likes, the software was able to predict personality more accurately than friends and family. Only husbands and wives riv
  
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• London personality maps show where nasty, nice and arty are most at home

  13-01-2015 13:34
  
  Regardless of crime and income levels, people are happiest living in an area that matches their personality, claim researchersThe bustling streets and tourist attractions of central London and Westminster draw crowds from far and wide, but according to a survey by psychologists, they are home to the most disagreeable people in the capital.Researchers in Cambridge used responses from 56,000 Londoners to compose maps of personality types ranging across 216 postal districts. The maps revealed the a
  
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• Impaired Consent and Rape

  13-01-2015 12:40 via counsellingresource.com
  
  A person impaired by alcohol or drugs is necessarily incapable of fully and freely consenting, and the mere absence of objection (i.e., silence) doesn't mean consent has been given. Only "Yes" means "Yes".Tags: abuse and trauma, alcohol, responsibility, violence
  
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• Go places when you’re asleep with lucid dreaming

  13-01-2015 12:00
  
  Fancy flying, or hanging out with celebrities? With simple techniques you can learn to control your dreamsWhat if you could go to bed each night, fall asleep and have total control of your dreams? That is what happens when you lucid dream, and when it happens it’s as if you’re the architect of your own world, the director and star of your own movie.You can change scenery, add characters and orchestrate events. People say it feels like being inside a computer game. It’s an alternate univers
  
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• Social Media could impact on quality of conference presentations

  13-01-2015 11:00
  
  A new pilot study into the impact of Twitter on conferences suggests that social media may impact on quality of presentations as speakers receive real-time feedback.
  
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• Gut microbiota, new EU project studies our friends in the shadows

  13-01-2015 11:00
  
  A new project comprising thirty organisations from fifteen countries has started working together to study the microorganisms in our intestines and the role they play in health, well-being, and how...
  
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• No Such Thing As a Child Prostitute, Anti-Trafficking Groups Say

  13-01-2015 10:05 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: Reuters - World NewsChildren sold for sex are crime victims and should not be branded as prostitutes, anti-slavery advocates said on Thursday in launching a U.S. campaign to raise awareness of child sex trafficking and to change how its victims are treated.
  
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• Many Teens Wrongly Believe That Light Smoking Is Safe

  13-01-2015 10:05 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Yahoo News - HealthMany teens wrongly think light or occasional smoking isn’t bad for them, according to an analysis of a nationwide youth survey. “Our findings suggest that decades of anti-tobacco work have succeeded in convincing adolescents that heavier smoking patterns are dangerous,” said lead author Stephen M. Amrock of the New York University School of Medicine. But they are wrong to think that lighter smoking is not very dangerous, he said. “Even...
  
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• Infamous Study of Humanity's "Dark Side" May Show How to Keep It at Bay

  13-01-2015 10:05 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailyIn 1961, with memories of Holocaust atrocities and the prosecution of Nazi officials at Nuremburg still fresh, psychologist Stanley Milgram undertook a series of now infamous experiments on obedience and reprehensible behavior. But Milgram divided his subjects into just two categories: obedient or disobedient. After examining the experiences of more than 100 of Milgram's participants, a modern day graduate student in sociology sees a great deal...
  
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• Imagining Exercise May Have an Effect on Muscle Strength

  13-01-2015 10:05 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: U.S. News and World ReportMental imagery reduces muscle loss associated with immobilization, study suggests.
  
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• Ebola Takes Mental Health Toll Where "Life Has Frozen" in Sierra Leone

  13-01-2015 10:05 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: The GuardianPanic and depression rise in hard-hit area as communities battle bereavement, changing family roles – and even boredom. Ebola is causing mental health problems in Sierra Leone, with the country’s overstretched health system unable to deal with the psychosocial legacy of the outbreak, according to a report by the International Medical Corps.
  
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• Psychosocial experiences in childhood may influence later-life cardiovascular health

  13-01-2015 10:00
  Children who have good psychosocial experiences may be more likely to have better cardiovascular health as an adult, according to the results of a new study.
  
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• Optimism associated with healthier hearts

  13-01-2015 09:00
  
  People who have upbeat outlooks on life have significantly better cardiovascular health, suggests a new study that examined associations between optimism and heart health in more than 5,100 adults.
  
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• Research shows promise for reducing risk of breast cancer spreading to brain

  13-01-2015 00:10
  New research seeks to better understand why and how breast cancer can spread to the brain with the goal of developing a way to reduce the risk of this phenomenon. "Unfortunately, the rate of secondary breast tumors in the brain is now threefold higher than it was 10 years ago," the lead researcher said. "Once a woman has a brain tumor coming from the breast, we have few effective therapies."
  
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