Psychology news

• Bromances may be good for men's health

  03-03-2016 20:59
  A new study of the effects of stress on social behavior in male rats finds that moderate stress makes them more prosocial, raising oxytocin levels that are known to encourage bonding, which in turn leads to resilience in the face of stress and better health. Life-threatening stress, however, makes male rats avoid socializing and lowers oxytocin levels, akin to the effects of PTSD, leading to a spiraling decrease in bonding and resilience to stress.
  
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• Selfish or altruistic? Brain connectivity reveals hidden motives

  03-03-2016 20:57
  Often, it is hard to understand why people behave the way they do, because their true motives remain hidden. Researchers have now shown how peoples' motives can be identified as they are characterized by a specific interplay between different brain regions. They also show how empathy motives increase altruistic behavior in selfish people.
  
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• Discovery of a 'neuronal big bang' in brain of newborns

  03-03-2016 20:57
  Our neurons are derived from progenitor cells, which are specialized stem cells that have the ability to divide to give rise to neurons. Today, neuroscientists shed light on the mechanisms that allow progenitors to generate neurons. By developing a novel technology called FlashTag that enables them to isolate and visualize neurons at the very moment they are born, they have deciphered the basic genetic code allowing the construction of a neuron.
  
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• 30 small neurons join forces against pain

  03-03-2016 19:36
  Oxytocin plays a crucial role in modulating the response to pain, but until now the process leading to its release was unknown. Scientists have just identified a new pain control center situated in the hypothalamus. It comprises some thirty neurons that are wholly responsible for coordinating the release of oxytocin into the blood and spinal cord, thus reducing painful sensations.
  
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• People with anxiety show fundamental differences in perception

  03-03-2016 19:29
  People with anxiety fundamentally perceive the world differently, according to a new study. They aren't simply making the choice to 'play it safe.'
  
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• South Africa's Student Protests Have Lessons for All Universities

  03-03-2016 16:46 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: The GuardianThe uprising has specific roots in apartheid and colonialism. But issues of race, identity, fees and unemployment are provoking unrest across the world Violence at South Africa’s universities has escalated from damage to statues and artworks and confrontations with security staff and police, to the burning of buildings and brutal clashes between student factions . It’s the second year of conflict over tuition fees, shortages of student...
  
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• New Project to Watch Social Media for Signs of Mental Illness

  03-03-2016 16:46 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Canadian Broadcasting Company - Top Stories NewsA group of scientists in Canada and France are developing a set of tools to help doctors, psychologists and researchers monitor social media posts for signs of mental illness.
  
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• Analysis Disputes Landmark Study on the Reliability of Psychological Science

  03-03-2016 16:46 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: ScienceDailyAn in-depth examination of a 2015 landmark study showing that more than half of all psychology studies cannot be replicated has revealed serious mistakes that make its pessimistic conclusion completely unwarranted.
  
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• Monkeys drive wheelchairs using only their thoughts

  03-03-2016 15:43
  Neuroscientists have developed a brain-machine interface (BMI) that allows primates to use only their thoughts to navigate a robotic wheelchair.
  
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• New brain stimulation target identified for Tourette's syndrome

  03-03-2016 15:41
  Specifically-targeted deep brain stimulation improves symptoms in patients with severe Tourette's, according to new research. Gilles de la Tourette syndrome, often just called Tourette’s, is best known for the vocal and motor tics that are the most common symptoms of the disorder. Usually, these symptoms respond to a growing array of medications. However, some patients experience severe tics that do not respond to medications and may be disabling or even life-threatening. In these rare cas
  
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• Can some birds be just as smart as apes?

  03-03-2016 14:46
  At first glance, the brains of birds and mammals show many significant differences. In spite of that, the cognitive skills of some groups of birds match those of apes, according to a new article.
  
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• Key brain receptor sheds light on neurological conditions, researchers say

  03-03-2016 14:38
  Researchers have found that a key receptor in the brain, once thought to only strengthen synapses, can also weaken them, offering new insights into the mechanisms driving depression, drug addiction and even Alzheimer's disease.
  
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• Breast cancer: The mental trauma of severe disease

  03-03-2016 12:00
  
  According to a study led by Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich researchers, a majority of patients diagnosed with breast cancer go on to develop symptoms of post-traumatic stress...
  
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• We don't 'lose' our mothers – the reality is more violent that that | David Ferguson

  03-03-2016 11:00
  
  Saying goodbye to your mother is a pain we all must face. That doesn’t make it any easier to do Two dear friends of mine lost their mothers this month, a high school friend and an old love. I’ve been sitting here trying to write condolence cards to them, but the inadequacy of everything I’m trying to say, especially having lost my own mother 18 months ago, is leaving me stymied. “I’m so sorry you’ve lost your mother,” sounds like they might have left her
  
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• We don't 'lose' our mothers – the reality is more violent than that | David Ferguson

  03-03-2016 11:00
  
  Saying goodbye to your mother is a pain we all must face. That doesn’t make it any easier to do Two dear friends of mine lost their mothers this month, a high school friend and an old love. I’ve been sitting here trying to write condolence cards to them, but the inadequacy of everything I’m trying to say, especially having lost my own mother 18 months ago, is leaving me stymied. “I’m so sorry you’ve lost your mother,” sounds like they might have left her
  
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• Hostile attitude when young linked to memory problems later in life

  03-03-2016 09:00
  
  People who display hostile attitudes as young adults, and who find it difficult to cope with stress, appear to experience more severe memory loss as they reach middle age.
  
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• U.S. States Battle Over Transgender Bathroom Laws

  03-03-2016 06:28 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: USA Today - Top StoriesSouth Dakota governor faces big decision on whether to sign first-of-its-kind legislation.            .
  
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• Former Mexican President Stands Behind Comparing Trump to Hitler

  03-03-2016 06:28 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: CBS News - World NewsDuring an interview, the former Mexican president said the Republican presidential front-runner "believes in the white supremacy".
  
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• More Than a Third of People Shot by Los Angeles Police Mentally Ill

  03-03-2016 06:27 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Reuters - US NewsMore than a third of people hit by Los Angeles police officers' gunfire last year had indications of mental illness, double the prior year, according to a report on the use of force released on Tuesday by the Los Angeles Police Department.
  
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• India's Female Scavengers Enslaved by Caste, Gender Discrimination

  03-03-2016 06:27 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Reuters - World NewsNew legislation in India to crack down on the practice of forcing mainly the poorest women to clear other people's excreta will have little impact unless deeply entrenched sexism and caste bias are changed, activists said.
  
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• Happiness can break your heart too

  03-03-2016 02:44
  Happy events can trigger a heart condition known as takotsubo syndrome, according to new research. Takotsubo syndrome (TTS) is known as 'broken heart syndrome.' Now, for the first time, researchers have systematically analyzed data from the largest group of patients diagnosed with TTS worldwide, and found that some patients have developed the condition after a happy or joyful event; they have named it 'happy heart syndrome.'
  
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• Next-generation immunotherapy offers new hope for beating brain cancer

  03-03-2016 00:17
  High-grade glioma is the most aggressive form of brain cancer. Despite improvements in surgical procedures, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, this type of brain tumor is still notoriously hard to treat: less than 10 percent of patients survive beyond five years. Researchers have now shown that next-generation cell-based immunotherapy may offer new hope in the fight against brain cancer.
  
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• New weapon in the fight against children's brain tumors

  03-03-2016 00:17
  Children with brain cancer may soon get some help from mice with the same disease, thanks to a new brain tumor model in mice that should make it easier to test treatments.
  
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• Compound stems damage from brain bleeding

  03-03-2016 00:17
  A compound that blocks iron-containing enzymes in the brain improves recovery following brain hemorrhage, a new study in rodents shows, and it works in an unexpected way.
  
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