Psychology news

• A nap to recap: How reward, daytime sleep boost learning

  16-10-2015 19:53
  Rewarding learning selectively enhances the consolidation of learned information during sleep, report scientists. This human study builds on what we know from Drosophila by showing how sleep and reward combine to boost memory.
  
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• Scientists identify neural switch for dreaming

  16-10-2015 18:00
  
  Researchers found that activating certain neurons in the brains of mice immediately induced REM sleep - the dreaming phase - while deactivating them stopped REM sleep.
  
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• Nicotine gives brain more codeine relief, risk of addiction

  16-10-2015 17:55
  Nicotine use over time increases the speed that codeine is converted into morphine within the brain, by increasing the amount of a specific enzyme, according to new research in rat models. It appears smokers' brains are being primed for a bigger buzz from this common pain killer -- which could put them at a higher risk for addiction, and possibly even overdose. These findings are part a new way of seeing the brain's role when it comes to drugs and toxins.
  
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• The pros and cons of porn: It just isn't what it used to be

  16-10-2015 15:26
  
  The evolution of porn might be toughest on young people just starting to explore sexual desire, experts say.
  
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• Can team sports help women crack the glass ceiling?

  16-10-2015 15:22
  
  Among other positive influences, sports increase confidence and offer networking opportunities.
  
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• Research Suggests How to Make Effective Political Arguments

  16-10-2015 15:13 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailyIn today's American politics, it might seem impossible to craft effective political messages that reach across the aisle on hot-button issues like same-sex marriage, national health insurance and military spending. But, based on new research, there's a way to craft messages that could lead to politicians finding common ground.
  
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• Brain Activity Differs in Anorexic People Making Food Choices

  16-10-2015 15:13 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailyWhen people with anorexia nervosa decide what to eat, they engage a part of the brain associated with habitual behavior. These findings open up entirely new avenues for treatment development and understanding of disease mechanisms, say the researchers.
  
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• Scans Show Brains Have Their Own "Fingerprint"

  16-10-2015 15:12 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: MSNBC - Health NewsPeople appear to have their own individual fingerprint of brain activity, one that might be used to predict the risk of mental illness and to see chan.
  
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• Age-Associated Financial Vulnerability Often Overlooked

  16-10-2015 15:12 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Yahoo News - HealthThe first step to fixing this problem is giving it a name, according to Dr. Mark Lachs of Weill Cornell Medical College in New York and Duke Han of Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, coauthors of the report, who want to describe the condition as “age-associated financial vulnerability.” “It is my hope that by coining this term – age-associated financial vulnerability – it will begin to get physicians to think about this in all...
  
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• Inflammation in the brain is linked to risk of schizophrenia, study finds

  16-10-2015 14:49
  A new study is the first to find that immune cells are more active in the brains of people at risk of schizophrenia as well as those already diagnosed with the disease.
  
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• FSU researchers find weight discrimination is linked to increased risk of mortality

  16-10-2015 14:00
  
  In recent years, Florida State University College of Medicine researchers Angelina R.
  
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• Is 'food porn' making us fat?

  16-10-2015 13:13
  
  A new scientific review suggests the relentless barrage of food images we see might be affecting our attitude to food. Is it time for the government to get involved?
  As the name suggests, “food porn” is usually considered a vicarious pleasure. You might not have the time, or the waistline, to make Nigella Lawson’s ice cream cake, for example, but, by seeing her making it on TV, you can get at least a little of the thrill without the calories. However, for those who think it&rsq
  
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• What are the roadblocks to successful scientific replications? | Pete Etchells

  16-10-2015 13:00
  
  Replication is the bedrock of science. But what happens when a scientist can’t – or won’t – share the experimental materials that allow it? It’s a simple question, but one that’s essential to science: if I repeat an experiment, how reliably can I get the same result? But it’s a question that you can’t ask without the right materials. It’s like baking a cake – if you’re not given enough instructions in the recipe, or told what sort
  
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• When It Comes to IQ, Brain Size Isn't What Matters Most

  16-10-2015 10:49 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailyIs brain size related to cognitive ability of humans? This question has captured the attention of scientists for more than a century. An international team of researchers provides no evidence for a causal role of brain size for IQ test performance. In a meta-analysis of data from more than 8000 participants, they show that associations between in vivo brain volume and IQ are small.
  
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• Conversion Therapy Endangers LGBT Youth and Should Stop, Says Report

  16-10-2015 10:49 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: U.S. News and World ReportMental health experts say the practice is ineffective, potentially harmful.
  
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• Stress During Pregnancy Related to Child's Motor Development

  16-10-2015 10:48 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailyStress experienced during pregnancy is related to a child's motor development, found a longitudinal study of 2,900 mothers. Stress experienced by mothers during pregnancy is also related to their children's behavior, as well as mental and cognitive outcomes in middle childhood and into adolescence, previous work has demonstrated.
  
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• Anti-Smoking Drug May Help Women Sooner Than Men

  16-10-2015 10:46 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: U.S. News and World ReportAn effective prescription drug used to help people quit smoking initially helps women more than men, new research suggests. The study, from Yale School of Medicine, found that Chantix (varenicline) helped women more than men for the first year of treatment. After a year, however, the anti-smoking medication worked equally well for both men and women.
  
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• Don't stop at 'Don't do that again!'

  16-10-2015 10:00
  
  New University of Iowa study finds conversations parents have with their children after an injury help them avoid danger in the futureResearchers say it's these types of conversations parents...
  
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• Study Suggests We May Not Be Wired to Need 8 Hours of Sleep

  16-10-2015 09:56 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Google News - HealthModern life's sleep troubles — the chronic bleary-eyed state that many of us live in — have long been blamed on our industrial society. The city lights, long work hours, commutes, caffeine, the Internet. When talking about the miserable state of our...
  
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• How Germany Treats Paedophiles Before They Offend

  16-10-2015 09:56 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: The GuardianDunkelfeld project aims to allow people who feel they may offend access to professional mental health treatment and attempts to modify their behaviour. The first time Max Weber made his way to Berlin to take part in a therapy session, he was so nervous he vomited on the train. “I went straight home again and phoned the clinic to tell them I wouldn’t make it,” he said. “I was so shocked by what I was doing I was shaking all over.” The...
  
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• ​More People Coming Out on Facebook Than Ever Before

  16-10-2015 09:42 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: CBS News - Science and TechnologyIn the past year, about 800,000 Americans updated their profile to express a same-sex attraction or redefine their gender.
  
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• Does immune activity affect schizophrenia?

  16-10-2015 09:00
  
  A new MRI technique highlights excess blood flow to frontal areas of the brain in patients with schizophrenia and increased activity of microglia, suggesting new therapy solutions.
  
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• Weeping Britannia: Portrait of a Nation in Tears by Thomas Dixon – review

  16-10-2015 08:29
  
  Are we witnessing a renaissance of crying? Do men now blub? A nuanced emotional history explodes the myth of the stiff upper lipWhat to do with the tears of the past? Tears matter because they’re everywhere, from the ecstatic religious narratives of the middle ages to the diaries of 20th-century cinemagoers who enjoyed a good blub in the dark. The problem is that tears don’t speak a universal language. People who lived centuries ago didn’t necessarily cry in the way we do, or a
  
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• The Guardian's relaunched climate campaign and attitudes to autism - podcast

  16-10-2015 08:00
  
  Technology writer Steve Silberman's new book charts the evolution of autism Continue reading...
  
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• Steve Silberman winner of the Samuel Johnson prize 2015 discusses Neurotribes

  16-10-2015 08:00
  
  Awarded the prestigious Samuel Johnson prize 2015 Neurotribes traces our scientific and social understanding of the autism spectrum Continue reading...
  
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• How attitudes to autism have radically changed - podcast

  16-10-2015 08:00
  
  Technology writer Steve Silberman's new book charts the evolution of autism Continue reading...
  
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