Research suggests that wearing a partner's favorite T-shirt can improve sleep quality, with participants sleeping over nine minutes more efficiently per night. This effect is comparable to that of melatonin supplements and may have broader health benefits.
A study published in Psychological Science found that people who help strangers are generally viewed as morally better and more trustworthy than those who help family members. However, this judgment changes when the helper has to choose between helping a stranger or a family member. The researchers suggest that familial obligations pla...
Children are more likely to delay gratification when working together with a peer, according to new research. The study found that children from diverse cultural backgrounds showed improved self-control in cooperative conditions, suggesting an early development of social obligations.
Repeated exposure to fake news can make it seem more acceptable to share, even if individuals know it's false. In a series of experiments involving over 2,500 participants, researchers found that people rate fake headlines as less unethical to publish and share when seen multiple times.
A study of 1,369 children found that high levels of good cholesterol and bad fats at birth can predict social and emotional development issues at age 5. Children with high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and low triglycerides showed improved psychological ratings from teachers.
A study published in Psychological Science found that when asked to answer questions quickly and impulsively, people tend to respond with a socially desirable answer. The researchers argue that the 'quick-answer' technique may be flawed as it can lead participants to misrepresent themselves.
Researchers propose novel treatment strategies that can help prevent opioid abuse by identifying vulnerable individuals through advances in brain science. These findings have implications for addressing the opioid epidemic, particularly in understanding the neurological response to opioids.
A new study suggests that evocative labels emphasizing taste and positive experience can help people choose and consume more vegetables. Researchers found that diners put vegetables on their plates 29% more often when the food had taste-focused names, and ate 39% more vegetables by weight.
A large-scale international study found that people in economically unequal societies are more supportive of strong, even autocratic leaders. The researchers suggest that economic inequality perceptions fuel a desire for a leader who will restore order by whatever means necessary.
A study published in Psychological Science found that individuals who make concrete plans to meet their goals, such as exercising, tend to engage in more physical activity. Those with high planfulness ratings went to the gym more frequently during a 20-week period compared to those with lower planfulness ratings.
A national survey of over 1,000 adults reveals widespread misperceptions about racial economic progress, with 97% of participants underestimating the Black-White wealth gap. The researchers argue that cognitive factors and stereotypes contribute to these misperceptions.
Researchers found that sound-shape associations, such as the bouba-kiki effect, are formed during a sensitive period of visual development in early childhood. Participants with congenital or late-onset blindness did not form these associations, while those with normal vision showed evidence of reliable sound-shape associations.
A recent study published in Psychological Science found that a person's premarital views on uncommitted sex can negatively impact their marriage. Research suggests that individuals with unrestricted sociosexual behaviors and attitudes prior to marriage are more likely to experience marital dissatisfaction and dissolution.
Research reveals that individuals who experienced financial, housing-related, or job-related hardships during the Great Recession showed increased symptoms of depression, anxiety, and problematic drug use. These findings suggest that government-funded mental health support may be a sound investment to stimulate economic recovery.
A recent study published in Clinical Psychological Science found that parental burnout can lead to increased neglect, violence, and thoughts of escape. The research suggests that self-care is essential for parents and that health professionals need to be aware of parental burnout to provide accurate diagnosis and care.
A recent study published in Psychological Science found that students' ability to comprehend texts depends on their background knowledge of the subject. A specific threshold score indicates when students need additional support. The researchers analyzed data from over 3,500 high-school students and discovered a correlation between back...
Researchers found that nearly half of respondents recalled rich details about fabricated news stories, especially those aligned with their political beliefs. The study suggests that fake news can plant entirely fabricated memories, even after explicit warnings, and that people may be more likely to act on these false memories.
Research using identical and fraternal twins suggests that genetic variation contributes to individual differences in pleasure and reward processing. The study found that activation of the nucleus accumbens, a key structure in the brain's reward system, is moderately heritable, as are scores for physical anhedonia and pleasure.
A comprehensive report finds that facial movements are inexact gauges of emotions and behaviors, challenging current technology's reliance on these signals. The study proposes a new model for studying complex emotional responses by measuring multiple indicators beyond facial cues.
A study analyzing over 2 million spending records found correlations between spending categories and specific personality traits. For example, those who were more open to experience tended to spend more on flights, while those with greater self-control spent less on bank charges.
Researchers found that tilting one's head downward systematically changes the way the face is perceived, making a neutral face appear more dominant. The effect is caused by the artificial appearance of lowered and V-shaped eyebrows, which elicit perceptions of aggression and dominance.
Studies found that writing prompts influencing positive attributes led to stronger recall of love for mothers in early childhood, but effects faded over time. Researchers also discovered that participants' current feelings were misremembered 8 weeks later.
People tend to be more envious of future events than past ones, but the passage of time can reduce negative emotions. Research showed that imagining an event's aftermath leads to lower envy and stress.
A study published in Psychological Science found that spousal life satisfaction was associated with lower mortality rates, even after controlling for individual factors. The research suggests that having a happy spouse can have significant consequences for one's health and longevity.
A large-scale replication project found that most links between personality traits and life outcomes are indeed replicable, with 85% of attempts reproducing previously identified trait-outcome associations. However, the study also revealed weaker-than-expected associations between some personality traits and life outcomes.
A study of over 17,000 teenagers found no clear evidence that screen time decreases adolescent well-being, even before bed. The research analyzed data from three different countries and used rigorous methodology to gather information about screen time.
Research finds that childhood stress can have a lasting impact on cortisol levels in adulthood, increasing the risk of negative health outcomes. The study, published in Psychological Science, suggests that early life stress can recalibrate the brain's stress-response system, making it more sensitive to stressors later in life.
Trigger warnings were found to be ineffective in reducing symptoms of distress, intrusive thoughts, and avoidance among participants. The studies, involving over 1,400 participants, suggest that trigger warnings are neither helpful nor harmful.
A study published in Psychological Science found that participants' brains automatically attended to their own faces, even when they were instructed not to. The researchers used EEG to monitor brain activity and confirmed that the phenomenon occurs with more complex stimuli like faces, which require detailed analysis to recognize.
Researchers outline four types of self-control strategies that go beyond sheer willpower to address pressing issues like obesity and educational underachievement. By changing the situation or thinking about it differently, individuals can exercise more effective self-control.
A scholarly review found that policy statements on media effects frequently oversimplify complex issues, relying on biased evidence and exaggerated claims. The study evaluated 24 policy statements from professional organizations and identified widespread citation bias, false consistency, and overgeneralization.
Researchers found that taking someone else's perspective can make people less open to their opposing views, particularly when values are incongruent. In contrast, simply generating arguments for the other side without engaging in perspective-taking was effective in increasing receptiveness.
Research published in Clinical Psychological Science found no evidence that social media use predicts later depressive symptoms among adolescents and young adults. Instead, greater depressive symptoms predicted more social media use over time, but only among adolescent girls.
A study published in Psychological Science found that participants' self-reported attitudes toward various social groups have shifted towards neutrality over a decade, while their implicit attitudes also decreased in bias. Notably, changes in implicit sexual orientation and race attitudes occurred across all generations.
People tend to criticize others for using statistics to make judgments, yet they apply the same statistical approach when making their own judgments. The study found that participants viewed others' statistically-based judgments as unfair, inaccurate, and unintelligent.
A study published in Psychological Science found that participants' happiness did not decline when they repeatedly gave gifts to others, unlike when they received identical gifts. The researchers suggest that giving may help maintain social connection and belonging, leading to a slower adaptation to happiness.
A recent study found that people constantly record information about the order of events, even if they are unrelated, and use this order to help search memory. The researchers used real-world data from news stories to demonstrate that temporal proximity acts as a tether connecting memories for different events.
Research reveals a significant gender bias in how we perceive competence in faces, with masculine faces being rated as more competent. The study used a computational model to alter face stimuli and found that participants perceived more competent faces as more confident and masculine.
A new scientific report highlights the importance of collaborative problem-solving skills for tackling modern problems. The research team identifies key cognitive and social components of CPS and emphasizes the need for evidence-based standards and curricula in education to develop these skills.
A study published in Psychological Science found that exploring objects through touch generates durable memories, even when participants don't intend to memorize details. Participants recalled objects with high accuracy after just one week, challenging existing cognitive and neural models of memory storage.
A longitudinal study of 1,091 Scottish adults aged 70-79 found that decreased abstract reasoning ability was linked to worsening depressive symptoms over time. Lower cognitive function at each assessment was associated with subsequent increases in depressive symptoms, suggesting a potential causal relationship.
Researchers found that participants who believed they were multitasking transcribed more words per second and scored better on comprehension quizzes. The study suggests that our perception of multitasking can influence how well we engage with tasks.
Meetings can provide creative thinking, problem-solving, and idea generation when done correctly. Researchers recommend preparing for meeting success, using technology to analyze behaviors, and improving post-meeting follow-up to enhance team outcomes.
A longitudinal study of voters in New Zealand found that participants tended to shift their opinions to align with those of their preferred political party. Strong supporters of a party were more likely to change their opinions over time, while those whose opinions were already aligned with the party position were less likely to shift.
A study published in Psychological Science found that people infer a wide range of personality traits from physical body features. Heavier bodies were associated with negative traits, while lighter bodies had more positive traits. The researchers developed 140 realistic body models to analyze these associations.
A series of studies suggests that showing people the consequences of their unhealthy behaviors may be more effective than retraining mental associations. Participants who had a health-related goal internalized the relationship between foods and consequences, leading to positive automatic evaluations and actual eating behavior changes.
Research found that people have a tendency to dichotomize data distributions and ignore differences in the degree to which instances differ from an explicit or inferred midpoint. This binary bias influences how people interpret sequences of information across various contexts and graphical displays.
A recent study found that attending socioeconomically advantaged high schools tends to lead to higher educational attainment, income, and occupational prestige, while attending high-achievement schools can harm students' career prospects. Researchers hope to identify teacher-related factors that can buffer against these negative effects.
A study found that individuals from higher social classes experience more happiness from experiential purchases, while lower-class individuals derive more happiness from material goods. This is due to differences in resource availability and consumer motives.
Researchers found that even when participants couldn't identify a familiar voice, they still found it easier to understand than an unfamiliar voice. The study suggests that resonance is a critical acoustic feature for recognizing voices and improving understanding in noisy settings.