Psychology news

• Norepinephrine aids brain in sorting complex auditory signals

  24-06-2015 20:32
  The neuromodulator norepinephrine has an unexpected, direct action on auditory processing of complex signals, specifically bird songs in the zebra finch, new research suggests.
  
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• Why parrots are great vocal imitators

  24-06-2015 20:31
  Scientists have uncovered key structural differences in parrot brains that may help explain why this group of bird species can mimic speech and songs so well. These brain structures went unrecognized in studies published in the past 34 years. The results may lend insight into the neural mechanisms of human speech.
  
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• An uphill struggle could help you go from heartsick to fighting fit | Letters

  24-06-2015 20:19
  
  Thank you for the article by Luisa Dillner (How do you mend a broken heart?, 8 June). I am grateful that some solutions of how to deal with heartache are shown. The one I like best is the suggestion of doing sports to get over your ex: “The endorphins released during exercise are nature’s own brand of pain relief.” I always feel better after a challenging workout, even without heartache. Most people experiencing serious heartache feel like never leaving their beds again. Instead, more
  
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• Psychodynamic psychotherapy works

  24-06-2015 18:00
  A paper published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic by a group of German investigators analyzes the data collected on the effectiveness of brief psychodynamic psychotherapy.
  
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• UK Trial "Transforms Lives" of Young Anorexia and Bulimia Sufferers

  24-06-2015 17:08 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: The GuardianNine-month trial led by King’s College London shows that speeding up treatment for eating disorders has a wide range of benefits. “If you have a child with cancer, you wouldn’t wait until they had reached stage four cancer before starting treatment. It’s no different with an eating disorder, because if you delay treatment, then the illness becomes more ingrained and more difficult to treat.” Ulrike Schmidt, professor of eating...
  
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• Movement in ADHD May Help Children Perform Better in School

  24-06-2015 17:08 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailyThe constant movement of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may be distracting -- but the fidgeting also may improve their cognitive performance.
  
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• Mental and Social Activity Delays the Symptoms of Alzheimer’s

  24-06-2015 17:08 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Time MagazineThere’s evidence that such activities do little to change the underlying drivers of Alzheimer’s, but doctors say they delay symptoms.
  
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• Many U.S. Men with Depression Don't Get Treated, Survey Finds

  24-06-2015 17:08 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: U.S. News and World ReportYoung minority males less likely than whites to access mental health care.
  
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• Historic Slave Concentration Linked to Modern School Segregation

  24-06-2015 17:08 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailySlavery was abolished more than 150 years ago, but its effects are still felt today in K-12 education in the south, according to a new study. Using regression analysis to explain differences in the degree of attendance disparities across most counties in the south, researchers found a correlation between historical geographic slave concentration and modern day K-12 school segregation. An increase in slave concentration is related to greater...
  
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• Campaigners Work to End Use of the R-Word

  24-06-2015 17:08 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: The GuardianUse of the word retard as an insult aimed at people with learning disabilities is still common in the US. But a grassroots campaign under the banner of the Special Olympics aims to eliminate it. The website for the campaign to banish the “R-word” is filled with stories from people vowing to never use the word again and pledging to encourage others to do the same. One woman from northern California is typical – she writes: “I have used...
  
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• Photo selection study reveals we don't look like we think we look

  24-06-2015 17:00
  Be careful when choosing your next passport photo or profile image as a new study suggests we are so poor at picking good likenesses of our face that strangers make better selections.
  
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• New Zealand blackcurrants good for the brain

  24-06-2015 16:59
  New Zealand blackcurrants are good for keeping us mentally young and agile, researchers report, a finding that could have potential in managing the mental decline associated with aging populations, or helping people with brain disorders such as Parkinson's disease or depression.
  
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• How our brains can form first impressions quickly

  24-06-2015 16:59
  A study of how people can quickly spot animals by sight is helping uncover the workings of the human brain. Researchers found that one of the first parts of the brain to process visual information -- the primary visual cortex -- can control this fast response, rather than more complex parts of the brain being required.
  
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• South Carolina Governor Calls for Removal of Confederate Flag

  24-06-2015 16:39 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Yahoo News - Top HeadlinesSouth Carolina's Republican Governor Nikki Haley led bipartisan calls for the removal of the controversial Confederate flag from the grounds of the state capitol, after last week's deadly shooting at a black church in Charleston. The contentious flying of the Civil War battle flag -- seen by some as a symbol of lingering racist sentiment in the American South, but by others as a hallmark of Southern pride and heritage -- has returned...
  
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• Same-Sex Ruling in U.S. Will Trigger Next Round of Fights

  24-06-2015 16:22 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: USA Today - U.S. NewsA U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing same-sex marriages in Michigan and across the nation will have sweeping ramifications for gays and lesbians, giving those who marry many rights that opposite-sex couples have, including tax benefits, hospital visitations, joint adoptions and more.
  
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• Can Pope Francis's Call to Action Shift the Climate Change Debate?

  24-06-2015 16:22 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Canadian Broadcasting Company - Top Stories NewsPope Francis has issued a loud call for action against climate change, linking the problem to social justice and saying the crisis is man-made and must be fixed. Can he make a difference?
  
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• Big Study Finds Autism Risk Higher If Teen Mom or Parental Age Gap

  24-06-2015 16:22 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Google News - HealthThis we already knew: That the children of older parents, particularly older fathers, are at heightened risk for autism. Now, a big new study just out in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, funded by Autism Speaks and encompassing more than 5 million children across five countries, adds some new age factors ito the risk equation.
  
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• Virginia Governor Orders Confederate Flag Removed From License Plates

  24-06-2015 16:06 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Yahoo News - Top HeadlinesVirginia will phase out vehicle license plates featuring the Confederate battle flag, the state's governor said on Tuesday, following the fatal shootings of nine black worshipers at a historic South Carolina church, allegedly by a white gunman. The state, which was part of the pro-slavery Confederacy in the U.S. Civil War, will no longer allow specialty license plates for the Sons of Confederate Veterans group that feature the flag, said...
  
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• Meryl Streep Urges Congress to Back Equal Rights Amendment

  24-06-2015 16:06 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: The GuardianHollywood star sends letter and book calling for constitutional change Streep to play Emmeline Pankhurst in forthcoming film Suffragette Movie star Meryl Streep sent a letter to each member of Congress on Tuesday urging them to revive the battle to add the equal rights amendment, guaranteeing parity for women under the law, into the US constitution. Streep will be seen on screen in October playing the British suffragette leader Emmeline...
  
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• Low-field synchronized transcranial magnetic stimulation effective for major depressive disorder

  24-06-2015 16:02
  The results of a study assessing safety and efficacy of sTMS therapy with the NEST device in adult patients with Major Depressive Disorder have been published.
  
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• Word recognition 'could be the key' to early diagnosis of Alzheimer's

  24-06-2015 16:00
  Scientists say they have a better understanding of why people with Alzheimer's struggle to recognise and understand words - and their research has the potential to be developed into a test which...
  
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• Atlas of older brains could help diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease

  24-06-2015 15:06
  A digital map of the aging brain could aid the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders in older people, a study suggests. The atlas created using images from MRI scans of older people could aid diagnosis by comparing the patients' scans with a detailed map of the healthy aging brain.
  
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• Inflaming the drive for suicide: Analysis reveals link between suicide, inflammation

  24-06-2015 14:01
  One American dies from suicide every 12.8 minutes, making suicide the tenth leading cause of death in the United States. There is consensus that if we could better predict who was at risk for suicide, then we could more effectively intervene to reduce this terrible burden on individuals, families and public health.
  
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• The shame of psychology

  24-06-2015 14:00
  The inability to address emotion is holding back the field of psychology, argues UCSB sociologist Thomas ScheffThese are emojis.
  
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• Could 'virtual reality' treat alcoholism?

  24-06-2015 14:00
  A form of 'virtual-reality' therapy may help people with alcohol dependence reduce their craving for alcohol, a new study suggests.
  
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• Childhood adversities, including witnessing parental domestic violence, linked to later migraines

  24-06-2015 14:00
  Adults who were exposed to childhood adversity, including witnessing parental domestic violence, childhood physical and sexual abuse have higher odds of experiencing migraine headaches in adulthood...
  
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• Is life's happiness curve really U-shaped?

  24-06-2015 13:40
  
  Ageing doesn’t mean a steady descent into misery – evidence suggests that happiness is likely to increase as we head towards old age, but is it that simple?
  “I hope I die before I get old,” wrote Pete Townsend of the Who in 1965, neatly encapsulating our culture’s veneration of youth – and disdain for those benighted souls who no longer possess it.The 20-year-old Townsend was, of course, to be disappointed: last month he turned 70. But over the decades he may have revised his views o
  
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• Getting children to embrace healthy food

  24-06-2015 13:00
  Researchers at the University of Bonn: attractive packaging makes identical products taste betterIf the packaging has an appealing design, primary school children also reach for healthy foods.
  
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• Color memory influenced by categories, according to new Rutgers-Camden research

  24-06-2015 13:00
  Colors best remembered in combination of the color that was actually seen and the color category assigned to that colorHow do we remember colors? What makes green... green?
  
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• Patient-initiated workplace violence affects counselors, treatment and outcomes, research finds

  24-06-2015 12:00
  More than four out of five counselors who treat patients for substance abuse have experienced some form of patient-initiated workplace violence according to the first national study to examine the...
  
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• Brain scans of passengers who experienced nightmare flight

  24-06-2015 11:00
  A group of passengers who thought they were going to die when their plane ran out of fuel over the Atlantic Ocean in August, 2001 have had their brains scanned while recalling the terrifying moments...
  
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• Resiliency training program helps teens deal with today's stresses

  24-06-2015 10:00
  Amid reports that rank today's teens as the most stressed generation in the country, a new study offers hope for helping them effectively manage stress and build long-term resiliency.
  
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• Single gene controls fish brain size, intelligence

  24-06-2015 02:01
  A single gene called Angiopoietin-1 (Ang-1) drives brain size and intelligence in fish according to a new study. Fish with larger brains and higher intelligence had higher expression of Ang-1, and when expression levels of Ang-1 were experimentally reduced, brains shrunk. These trends were seen in two unrelated species of fish -- guppies (Poecilia reticulata) and zebra fish (Danio rerio) -- indicating expression of Ang-1 is important for brain growth and development in fish generally.
  
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• Autistic children improved reading, brain activity after 10-week reading intervention

  24-06-2015 00:04
  Ten weeks of intensive reading intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder was enough to strengthen the activity of loosely connected areas of their brains that work together to comprehend reading, researchers have found.
  
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