Psychology news

• Possible use of medical marijuana for depression

  04-02-2015 22:30
  Scientists are studying chronic stress and depression, with a focus on endocannabinoids, which are brain chemicals similar to substances in marijuana.
  
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• Can Facebook cause depression?

  04-02-2015 21:09 via npr.org
  
  Researchers found that those who engage in "surveillance usage," comparing the lives of others to their own, often experience feelings of envy and depression.
  
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• How the brains of “SuperAgers” are different

  04-02-2015 21:08 via abcnews.go.com
  The brains of a select group of elderly people look very different from many of their peers, according to a recently published study.
  
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• Anti-epilepsy drug preserves brain function after stroke, research suggests

  04-02-2015 19:41
  
  New research suggests that an already-approved drug could dramatically reduce the debilitating impact of strokes, which affect nearly a million Americans every year.
  
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• The brain's social network: Nerve cells interact like friends on Facebook

  04-02-2015 19:41
  
  Neurons in the brain are wired like a social network, according to new research. Each nerve cell has links with many others, but the strongest bonds form between the few cells most similar to each other.
  
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• Schizophrenia, depression, addiction: Different mental disorders cause same brain-matter loss

  04-02-2015 18:58
  In a study analyzing whole-brain images from nearly 16,000 people, researchers identified a common pattern across a spectrum of psychiatric disorders that are widely perceived to be quite distinct.
  
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• Attention: How eyes reveal the brain's focus

  04-02-2015 18:58
  
  A primate's ability to pay attention to, or tune out, particular sights and sounds is crucial for success and survival. Researchers looked into monkeys' eyes for insight into how the brain processes distractions. They found that neural activity and changes to pupil size in response to distractors can predict how well the brain helps focus on a goal.
  
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• Brain marker hints at depression, anxiety years later

  04-02-2015 18:57
  
  A car accident, the loss of a loved one, and financial trouble are just a few of the myriad stressors we may encounter in our lifetimes. How well will we deal with the inevitable lows of life? By looking at an area of the brain called the amygdala, scientists can predict depression or anxiety in response to stressful life events as far as four years in the future.
  
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• Investigators push for substantive study of body-mind therapy approaches

  04-02-2015 18:55
  Investigators note the lack of hypothesized scientific models for the mechanisms of action responsible for outcomes in Somatic Experiencing(SE) trauma therapy and other body-mind therapies.
  
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• More DNA and extra copies of disease gene in Alzheimer's brain cells

  04-02-2015 18:55
  Scientists have found diverse genomic changes in single neurons from the brains of Alzheimer's patients, pointing to an unexpected factor that may underpin the most common form of the disease.
  
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• Brain scans predict effectiveness of talk therapy to treat depression

  04-02-2015 17:19
  
  Researchers have shown that brain scans can predict which patients with clinical depression are most likely to benefit from a specific kind of talk therapy. The study is the first to use a technique known as resting-state functional brain connectivity MRI to identify differences in brain wiring that predict therapeutic responses to talk therapy.
  
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• Researchers identify peptide that reduces urge to eat

  04-02-2015 17:19
  
  Researchers have identified a peptide and hormone that when administered to a specific area of the brain may reduce the desire for food. The study may one day lead to medications that treat obesity and binge eating disorders.
  
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• How cocaine works in the brain, offers possibility of drug to treat addiction

  04-02-2015 16:27
  Scientists have discovered a mechanism in the brain that is key to making cocaine seem pleasurable, a finding that could lead to a drug treatment for fighting addiction.
  
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• Groundbreaking technique developed to measure oxygen in deep-sited tumor, brain

  04-02-2015 16:25
  A novel Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) oximetry technique will help clinicians directly measure oxygen and schedule treatments at times of high oxygen levels in cancer and stroke patients to improve outcomes, researchers have found.
  
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• New nanoparticle gene therapy strategy effectively treats deadly brain cancer in rats

  04-02-2015 15:01
  Nanoparticles have been used to successfully deliver a new therapy to cancer cells in the brains of rats, prolonging their lives, scientists report. Previous research on mice found that nanoparticles carrying genes can be taken up by brain cancer cells, and the genes can then be turned on. However, this is the first time these biodegradable nanoparticles have effectively killed brain cancer cells and extended survival in animals.
  
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• Lance Armstrong is a pathological liar. What if he knows no other way? | Philippa Perry

  04-02-2015 14:33
  
  We all tell lies. But sometimes we learn from our upbringing that lying brings rewards or that we’re special and above the lawLance Armstrong has been caught lying. Again. He got his girlfriend to take the blame for a car accident that was his fault. Why do some people seem to habitually lie?What follows is just a theory, I’m not saying it’s fact, but it is the narrative I use to make sense of lying. Related: Lance Armstrong charged after letting partner take blame for car crash Continue
  
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• Primed memories tempt people into gambling more

  04-02-2015 11:00
  
  When reminded, or primed, of past winning outcomes as part of a controlled test, people were over 15% more likely to gamble and select the risky option.
  
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• Language study offers new twist on mind-body connection

  04-02-2015 10:00
  
  Research from Northeastern professor of psychology Iris Berent and her colleagues finds that spoken language and motor systems are intricately linked -- though not in the way that has been widely...
  
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• Genomic differences between developing male and female brains in the womb

  04-02-2015 01:02
  New research has made significant progress towards understanding the complex process of prenatal human brain development.
  
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• How the brain ignores distractions

  04-02-2015 01:02
  
  By scanning the brains of people engaged in selective attention to sensations, researchers have learned how the brain appears to coordinate the response needed to ignore distractors. They are now studying whether that ability can be harnessed, for instance to suppress pain.
  
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• Cocaine users have impaired ability to predict loss

  04-02-2015 01:00
  Cocaine addicted individuals may continue their habit despite unfavorable consequences like imprisonment or loss of relationships because their brain circuits responsible for predicting emotional loss are impaired, according to a new study.
  
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