Psychology

Psychologists Study How To Create Better Soldiers But Fewer War Crimes

Combat troops must minimize the 'human-ness' of their enemies in order to kill them, they can't be effective fighters if they're distracted by feelings of empathy for opponents. But if the opponent is dehumanized, which entails seeing ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 7 2013 - 12:08pm

Intellectual Hubris: Despite Errors, People Remain Overly Confident In Their Knowledge

Overprecision, excessive confidence in the accuracy of our knowledge, can have profound consequences in various ways, making people intolerant of dissenting views,  leading physicians to gravitate too quickly to a diagnosis or inflating investors' va ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 10 2013 - 3:42pm

Like World War Z Or Justin Bieber? Thank Evolution

If you watch musicals from the 1950s or teen comedies from the 1990s, you find a lot of movies with different titles but the themes and plotlines barely change; two friends competing for a girl in the former or some teen wants to improve another teen, who ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 13 2013 - 1:10pm

Consumer Research: It's Easier To Lose Weight When The Target Is Not Exact

Goals need to be flexible, according to a new paper.  People who set a goal of losing between 2 and 4 pounds will still lose an average of 3 lbs. while a person who targets 3 lbs. specifically has less chance of success.  Consumers often have a choice abo ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 18 2013 - 12:00pm

Anesthesia Residents Have High Rates Of Burnout And Depression

Long hours, no money- medical residents have a hard job and it can wear them down. But topping the list are residents in anesthesiology training programs, reports a surve in the July issue of Anesthesia&Analgesia. The findings raise concerns that, &qu ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 20 2013 - 6:00pm

Babies Do Have A Secret Language With Each Other- Signaling

Adults may not understand what an infant is feeling but it's child's play to another baby. A paper in Infancy contends that infants can recognize each other's emotions by five months of age.  "Newborns can't verbalize to their mom ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 27 2013 - 10:00am

College Promiscuity Linked To Anxiety And Depression

As narratives of modern “hook-up” culture in young people take center stage in popular media, behavioral researchers are starting to ask what psychological consequences, if any, may be in store for young adults who engage in casual sex. A new survey found ...

Article - News Staff - Jun 29 2013 - 10:46pm

Altered Neural Circuitry May Lead To Anorexia And Bulimia

Anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are psychological disorders characterized by extreme eating behavior and distorted body image – both have few proven effective treatments. A new paper suggests that the altered function of neural circuitry contributes t ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 7 2013 - 6:08pm

What Can Facebook Tell A Potential Employer About You?

If you apply for a job and the company is interested, they will look at your social media presence to find risky behavior that they're not allowed to come right out and ask about. A new paper, by people who are not actually in the business of hiring ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 7 2013 - 10:08pm

Would You Rather Have A Robot Mom Or Robot Butler?

The uncanny valley has a new hill to climb- our ability to consider it human-like depends on its role in our lives, say a group of scholars.  And roles are also important in positive feelings. Designers and engineers assign robots specific roles, such as ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 8 2013 - 12:08pm