People and spaces, the tragedy of commonsense morality, myths about meaning of life, and remaking love were four themes at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP) conference in Austin. Researchers presented new work, showing how psychology reaches into our everyday lives. Video from four of these talks is now available online .
Highlights include:
In his study of about 200 people, for example, 60% of participants chose one of the following words to describe the ambiance they most wanted for their kitchens: organization, family, productivity, abundance, and togetherness. And they found that 62% of participants wanted their bedrooms to evoke a sense of romance, comfort, relaxation, love, and privacy. Watch the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88tcUBZRbwk
Take the case of the vagus nerve, which, in part, regulates our emotions and is responsible for associated changes in our heartbeat. The nerve calms our racing hearts after a fight and helps keep our hearts on a healthy rhythm. It affects the body's ability to regulate glucose and our biological capacity for connection, Fredrickson said. Her research has found that increasing micro-moments boosts the functioning of the vagus nerve. Watch the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsGlcNFB-pM
Gosling, Frederickson, Greene, and King presented their work on Feb. 14, 2014, at the SPSP conference in Austin. More than 3,500 scientists attended the conference in Austin from Feb. 13-15.
SPSP promotes scientific research that explores how people think, behave, feel, and interact. With more than 6,000 members, the Society is the largest organization of social and personality psychologists in the world.