Latest science news in Psychology & Sociology
Study linking browser choice and IQ level a hoax
In a truly bizarre case of what is both right and wrong with modern technology, a hoax has been uncovered regarding a story about a psychometric consulting company that had...
Virginia Tech shootings: Professors publish research on post-traumatic stress
Prevalence of post-traumatic stress was significantly higher among women after the 2007 shootings at Virginia Tech, according to researchers.
Recipes for Health: Watermelon Mint Smoothie
This smoothie tastes something like sweet mint tea blended with watermelon agua fresca.
Study on magnetic fields, asthma is flawed: critics
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Critics say a controversial new study that linked high exposure to electromagnetic fields during pregnancy to asthma in children is flawed and ignores many prior studies that...
Can 'marketing' sway a monkey's choices?
NEW YORK, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- A U.S. psychologist and a New York ad agency are creating a marketing campaign aimed at monkeys to investigate human susceptibility to marketing...
Caregivers and their relatives disagree about care given, received
Caregivers and their relatives who suffer from mild to moderate dementia often have different perceptions regarding the amount and quality of care given and received. A new study examined a...
People tend to exaggerate influence of political ads on others
The push for campaign finance reform may be driven by a tendency to overestimate the power of political messages to influence other people's opinions, according to researchers.
Gloating And Envy - Oxytocin Is Not All Cuddling
The hormone oxytocin may be the "cuddle chemical" but recent research has found that oxytocin can promote negative emotions too.Salespeople love oxytocin - they think if they spray it on...
Prenatal exposure to stress linked to accelerated cell aging
Young adults whose mothers experienced psychological trauma during their pregnancies show signs of accelerated aging.
More illness, doctor visits reported in years after Sept. 11, 2001; Researchers cite stress from ‘collective trauma’ of terrorist attacks
The events of Sept. 11, 2001, changed the way Americans travel and view the world. They may also have made Americans sicker and more likely to access health-care services, according...
More than half of Americans drink alcohol: report
More than half of Americans aged 12 and up drink alcohol, a quarter binge-drank in the past month, and one in 14 teens has used marijuana, a US government agency...
Unhealthy Midlife Leads to Brain Shrinkage, Dementia Later On
A sound mind requires a sound body, it seems.
Social challenges of synthetic biology examined
In the wake of last year's creation of the first self-replicating cell with a synthetic genome which was quickly followed by a request from President Barack Obama for a...
Nobel Prize winner’s unfinished symphony
When Robert Burns Woodward passed away in 1979 he left 699 pages of handwritten notes. Because R.B. Woodward was a Nobel Laureate (Chemistry, 1965) his family had carefully preserved his...
Personality Can Make Worry Disorder Worse
People with Generalized Anxiety Disorder express their worries based on their personality type.
Helping children learn to understand numbers: It's all in the way we speak to them
Most people know how to count, but the way we master this ability remains something of a puzzle. Now a formal model of the cognitive basis of counting has been...
New brain imaging research reveals why autistic individuals confuse pronouns
A new brain imaging study provides an explanation as to why autistic individuals' use of the wrong pronoun is more than simply a word choice problem. Researchers found that errors...
Chinese depression survey holds surprises
Parenting style and level of education have different impact than in the West.
Women In Science - You Are Oppressed, Even If You Are Not
Some stereotypes are self-reinforcing. If someone tells you over and over that you are oppressed, if you hit an obstacle and fail, like all of us do at some...
Copying Someone's Behavior? Watch Who You Mimic
"Mirroring," or consciously or subconsciously copycatting someone's body language, can come at a cost, a new study shows.
Green: A Word to the Water Wasters
A New York resident laments the way that men in gym locker rooms take long showers and leave the tap running as they shave.
Study finds conformity does not equal cooperation
If you follow the pack are you more likely to co-operate with others in it? Not necessarily according to research into social behaviour by academics at the University of East...
Facebook will destroy your children's brains
Facebook users face a future of rolling around on the floor, dribbling incoherently as they demand approval from passers-by.Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter have left a generation of young adults vulnerable...
Human Generosity As Evolutionary By-Product?
In both biology and economy, game-theory models are used to understand human behavior, mainly concerning cooperation. These models usually incorporate gains, benefits, and reciprocity. And this reciprocity seems to be...
Making runways safer
Airplanes undergo significant stresses during take-off and landing, and parts often become detached, putting subsequent runway users at risk. Until now, airport staff have had to monitor runways without technical...
Obesity counseling should focus on neurobehavioral processes, not personal choice, researchers say
Current approaches to dietary counseling for obesity are heavily rooted in the notion of personal choice and will power the ability to choose healthy foods and portion sizes consistent...
Archbishop Charles Chaput's bigger pulpit
A forceful advocate of holding Catholic politicians to account for 'anti-Catholic' positions, he's the new Roman Catholic archbishop of Philadelphia.The new Roman Catholic archbishop of Philadelphia seems to owe his...
Pretty Young Squid
I thought I'd write a compelling story about Humboldt squid and one of their favorite prey items, the lightfish Vinciguerria. These two creatures are quite the dynamic duo: one flashing...