Feature Channels: Psychology and Psychiatry

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Generally considered a negative trait, entitlement, in small doses, can actually have the positive effect of boosting creativity

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The number of pregnant women who abuse or are dependent on opioids (narcotics) jumped 127 percent in 14 years, leading to an increased risk of maternal death and stillbirth among other serious problems, according to a review of more than 57 million American women admitted for delivery. The results were published in the December issue of Anesthesiology, the official medical journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists® (ASA®).

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Making friends is often extremely difficult for people with social anxiety disorder and to make matters worse, people with this disorder tend to assume that the friendships they do have are not of the highest quality. The problem with this perception, suggests new research from Washington University in St. Louis, is that their friends don’t necessarily see it that way.

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Both environmental and genetic factors influence employee proactivity, according to the latest research from a Kansas State University psychology professor.

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Taking omega-3 supplements reduces craving for nicotine and even reduces the number of cigarettes that people smoke a day.

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Empathy is among humanity’s defining characteristics. Yet under certain circumstances, feelings of warmth, tenderness and sympathy can in fact predict aggressive behaviors, according to new University at Buffalo research.

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Hoping for sex with two women is common but fantasizing about golden showers is not. That's just one of the findings from a research project that scientifically defines sexual deviation for the first time ever.

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A new study published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B finds that people are quick to change their moral values depending on which rule means more cash for them instead of others

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We’re more likely to punish wrongdoing as a third party to a non-violent offense than when we’re victimized by it, according to a new study by New York University psychology researchers. The findings may offer insights into how juries differ from plaintiffs in seeking to restore justice.

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Forgiving — and being forgiven — are good for your emotional health, research has shown, and Oct. 25, National Forgiveness Day, may be the time to let bygones be bygones and also to make amends.

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Playing violent video games in 3-D makes everything seem more real – and that may have troubling consequences for players, a new study reveals.

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Animal-assisted therapy can reduce symptoms of anxiety and loneliness among college students, according to researchers at Georgia State University, Idaho State University and Savannah College of Art and Design.

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Gordon Burghardt and his colleagues Vladimir Dinets, a psychology research assistant professor, and James Murphy of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C., are the first to document play with objects in a cichlid fish species.

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Beware of trivial graphs and formulas, warns new research from Cornell University. Published this week in Public Understanding of Science, the Cornell Food and Brand Lab study found trivial graphs or formulas accompanying medical information can lead consumers to believe products are more effective.

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Have you ever noticed you find your candidate for political office more attractive than the opponent? New research from Cornell University shows you’re not the only one.

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Oct. 15 has been designated as National Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. In comprehensive interviews with 20 couples who had recently experienced a miscarriage, two researchers explored how the couples handled the difficulties they faced when talking about their loss.

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Adolescents whose parents better understand their daily experiences have better psychological adjustment, suggests a study in the October issue of Psychosomatic Medicine: Journal of Biobehavioral Medicine, the official journal of the American Psychosomatic Society. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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In "The Motivating-Uncertainty Effect: Uncertainty Increases Resource Investment in the Process of Reward Pursuit," Professors Ayelet Fishbach and Christopher K. Hsee of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and Luxi Shen of the University of Hong Kong compared the time, money and effort that people put into wining a certain reward versus an uncertain reward, and found that the uncertain reward was more motivating.

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Hayeon Song, a researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, analyzed existing research on the impact of Facebook on loneliness. She concluded Facebook didn't make people lonely, but lonely people were more likely to use the popular social media site.

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A new study from the University of Utah confirms that substantial numbers of teens are sexting – sending and receiving explicit sexual images via cellphone. Though the behavior is widely studied, the potentially serious consequences of the practice led the researchers to more accurately measure how frequently teens are choosing to put themselves at risk in this fashion.

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Children who are emotionally abused and neglected face similar and sometimes worse mental health problems as children who are physically or sexually abused, yet psychological abuse is rarely addressed in prevention programs or in treating victims, according to a new study published by the American Psychological Association.

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Researchers at the University of Montreal and its affiliated CHU Sainte-Justine children’s hospital are warning parents that difficult eaters could have underlying psychological issues, as they have found that restrictive behaviours can appear before puberty.

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During the weeks leading up to Halloween, kids dressed in white sheets as ghosts, silly-looking goblins and dancing zombies can make death seem comical or cartoonish. However, this pretend, temporal idea of death can be confusing for children, especially a child who is trying to understand the loss of a loved one.

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Majorities of media researchers, parents and pediatricians agree that exposure to violent media can increase aggression in children, according to a new national study.

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It is not only prenatal drug exposure, but also conditions related to drug use that can influence negative behavior in children, according to a new study from the University at Buffalo’s Research Institute on Addictions.

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People were more likely to cope with stress by problem-solving; looking on the bright side, trying to relax, talking to others, blaming oneself, ignoring stress or praying, rather than being active.

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A toddler who doesn't feel guilty after misbehaving or who is less affectionate or less responsive to affection from others might not raise a red flag to parents, but these behaviors may result in later behavior problems in 1st grade.

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The signs of dementia are the same in any language. And symptoms of traumatic brain injury are similar regardless of socioeconomic status or place of birth. But the tools neuropsychologists use to assess and measure cognitive ability are not necessarily standardized from one country to another – or even from one neighborhood to another nearby. Cedars-Sinai's Enrique Lopez, PsyD, is working to change that.

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When people are in a bad mood, they are more likely to actively search social networking sites like Facebook to find friends who are doing even worse than they are, a new study suggests.

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New research suggests the adage that encourages people to keep their “eyes on the prize” may be on target when it comes to exercise. When walking, staying focused on a specific target ahead can make the distance to it appear shorter and help people walk there faster, psychology researchers have found.

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Children's Hospital Los Angeles experts provide tips on how parents can talk to their children before, during and after a natural disaster and how to develop a disaster preparedness plan.

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A new study led by University of North Carolina School of Medicine researchers is the first large scale effort to longitudinally evaluate health outcomes after sexual assault.

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A new study shows just what it takes to convince a person that she is qualified to achieve the career of her dreams.

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Child development expert Dorothy Espelage, PhD, discusses recent research

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A new study by researchers from the University of Montreal reveals the current state of knowledge about anorexia in men and boys. "Our results show that certain particularities can be identified in males, especially related to personality, gender identity, and sexual orientation", says Laurence Corbeil-Serre.

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A U.Va. study ranks the top 200 psychologists from recent decades.

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While antidepressants are the most commonly used treatment for social anxiety disorder, new research suggests that cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is more effective and, unlike medication, can have lasting effects long after treatment has stopped.

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A therapist who had an amicable divorce after a 20-year marriage offers tips for how other divorcing couples can remain friends. “You don’t have to put on boxing gloves. When it becomes a fight, the only winners are the lawyers," he says.

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Where people look when watching video evidence varies wildly and has profound consequences for bias in legal punishment decisions, a team of researchers at NYU and Yale Law School has found. This study raises questions about why people fail to be objective when confronted with video evidence.

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A program that helps teachers modify their interactions with students based on an individual’s temperament helps shy children to become more engaged in their class work, and in turn, improves their math and critical thinking skills.

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As much as we might try to leave personal lives at home, the personality traits of a spouse have a way of following us into the workplace, exerting a powerful influence on promotions, salaries, job satisfaction and other measures of professional success, new research from Washington University in St. Louis suggests.

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Suicide is preventable, but not all Americans have access to effective treatment and crisis intervention, a member of the American Psychological Association told a congressional panel Thursday.

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We see art more as a person than an object, according to new research from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. And in some cases, we make distinctions between artworks — say, an exact replica of a piece created by the artist, versus one created by a different artist. Art, in other words, is an extension of the creator, write Professor Daniel M. Bartels of Chicago Booth, and Professor George E. Newman and Rosanna K. Smith, a doctoral student, both of Yale University School of Management.

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New research from Concordia University and the University of Montreal proves that having an understanding partner is just as important as having a supportive boss.

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A peek inside the brains of more than 750 children and teens reveals a key difference in brain architecture between those with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and those without.

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Magnetic stimulation of a brain area involved in "executive function" affects cravings for and consumption of calorie-dense snack foods, reports a study in the September issue of Psychosomatic Medicine: Journal of Biobehavioral Medicine, the official journal of the American Psychosomatic Society. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

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Research with barn owls reveals how the brain decides what it should pay attention to among competing external events.