Psychology news

• Scientists find neural signals predict conformity with social signals of safety and risk

  19-05-2015 18:00
  The hottest hairstyle, the latest extreme sport, the newest viral stunt - trends happen for a reason and now scientists have a better understanding of why.
  
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• Imagination beats practice in boosting visual search performance

  19-05-2015 17:00
  Practice may not make perfect, but visualization might. New research shows that people who imagined a visual target before having to pick it out of a group of distracting items were faster at finding...
  
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• Stuttering linked to rhythm perception deficiency

  19-05-2015 16:59
  Stuttering may be more than a speech problem. For the first time, researchers have found that children who stutter have difficulty perceiving a beat in music-like rhythms, which could account for their halting speech patterns.
  
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• Stress levels linked to risk of liver disease death, study shows

  19-05-2015 16:58
  Suffering from anxiety or depression could carry an increased risk of death from liver disease, a study suggests. The study is the first to identify a possible link between high levels of psychological distress and deaths resulting from a variety of liver diseases.
  
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• How does the brain respond to hearing loss?

  19-05-2015 16:46
  Researchers suggest that the portion of the brain devoted to hearing can become reorganized even with early-stage hearing loss, and may play a role in cognitive decline. They have applied fundamental principles of neuroplasticity, the ability of the brain to forge new connections, to determine the ways it adapts to hearing loss, as well as the consequences of those changes.
  
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• Cognitive process speed in teen years affects depression risk in adulthood

  19-05-2015 16:46
  Teens with slower performance on a test of "cognitive processing speed" are more likely to have depression and anxiety symptoms as adults, reports a new paper. Previous studies have shown that people with more severe depression have slower reaction times and other cognitive deficits. It has generally been assumed that this "psychomotor slowing" is a consequence of depression, rather than a risk factor for it. The new study suggests that slower processing speed may contribute to the development o
  
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• Omega-3 fatty acids enhance cognitive flexibility in at-risk older adults

  19-05-2015 14:43
  A study of older adults at risk of late-onset Alzheimer's disease found that those who consumed more omega-3 fatty acids did better than their peers on tests of cognitive flexibility -- the ability to efficiently switch between tasks -- and had a bigger anterior cingulate cortex, a brain region known to contribute to cognitive flexibility.
  
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• Microclinics help keep Kenyan HIV patients in care

  19-05-2015 14:00
  A team led by researchers from UC San Francisco, Organic Health Response, and Microclinic International is reporting results of a study that showed significant benefits of microclinics -- an...
  
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• Brain scans show birds of a feather do flock together

  19-05-2015 14:00
  The hottest hairstyle, the latest extreme sport, the newest viral stunt -- trends happen for a reason and now scientists have a better understanding of why.
  
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• Elementary-age suicides: rate rising among black children

  19-05-2015 10:00
  Every year in the US, a few dozen 5-11-year-olds die from suicide - a stable overall level, but with the rate rising among black elementary kids and falling among white children.
  
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• Are we products of nature or nurture? Science answers age-old question

  19-05-2015 09:38
  
  Twin studies collated over the past 50 years reveal human traits and disease are almost equally determined by genetic and environmental factors The age-old question of whether human traits are determined by nature or nurture has been answered, a team of researchers say. Their conclusion? It’s a draw.By collating almost every twin study across the world from the past 50 years, researchers determined that the average variation for human traits and disease is 49% due to genetic factors and 51% du
  
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• Suicide Trends in U.S. School-Aged Kids Reveal Racial Disparity

  19-05-2015 08:03 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailyWhile overall suicide rates in children younger than 12 years have remained steady, a new study shows increasing rates in black children and decreasing rates in white children.
  
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• Hitmen Bury Their Feelings for a Successful "Hit"

  19-05-2015 08:03 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailyHitmen succeed in contract killing where they successfully bury any feelings or emotions, a study into the psychology of novice assassins has found. Hired killers who consider themselves strategists or businessman, doing 'just a job' as one hitman described it, can convince themselves they are dealing with a target rather than a person, research by a team of criminologists revealed.
  
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• "Empathy Cards" Help Consumers Find the Right Words

  19-05-2015 08:03 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: MSNBC - Top NewsCard designer Emily McDowell struck a chord with people who are tired of platitudes and false cheer.
  
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• Domestic Violence Offenders May Be Tracked Using GPS Ankle Bracelets

  19-05-2015 08:03 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: The GuardianFederal government proposal to monitor high-risk perpetrators of family and domestic violence will be taken to Coag for consideration by states and territories Ankle bracelets could be used to track high-risk perpetrators of family and domestic violence under a proposal to be put forward by the federal government. The proposal will see GPS monitoring devices attached to offenders who pose an immediate risk to their partners, children and other...
  
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• Braggers Gonna Brag, But It Often Backfires

  19-05-2015 08:03 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Yahoo News - Science"Most people realize that they experience emotions other than pure joy when they are on the receiving end of other people's self-promotion," said study co-author Irene Scopelliti, a behavioral scientist at the City University London in England. To avoid annoying their audience, boastful people should resist the urge to brag and try to put themselves in the other person's shoes, Scopelliti said. Career websites such as Monster.com urge...
  
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• Asian-American Groups Accuse Harvard of Discrimination

  19-05-2015 08:03 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: CNN - US NewsA coalition of Asian-American organizations says the federal government should step in to change Harvard's approach to admissions, accusing the university of racial discrimination.
  
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• Are Temper, Anxiety, and Moodiness Medical Issues? Parents Weigh In

  19-05-2015 08:03 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailyMany parents of children age 5-17 don’t discuss behavioral or emotional issues that could be signs of potential health problems with their doctors. The most common reason for not sharing these details with health care providers? Nearly half of parents believed that these simply were not medical problems. Another 40 percent of parents say they would rather handle it themselves and about 30 percent would rather speak to someone other than a doctor.
  
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• Obesity may exacerbate inactivity, due to poor motor skills

  19-05-2015 01:16
  Obese adults have very poor motor skills which makes fine movements difficult for them, according to a new study. The findings suggest inactivity may not be a cause of obesity, but instead a result of poor motor skills associated with the condition. The work changes perceptions about inactivity in obese people as well as improving their quality of life.
  
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