Feature Channels: Behavioral Science

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The “loudness” of our thoughts--or how we imagine saying something--influences how we judge the loudness of real, external sounds.

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A UCLA study explored the relationship between new drivers' skills to age, gender and playing organized sports or video games. The results suggest all novice drivers should undergo mandatory training, not just teenagers. Age: Among males, the older the student, the worse his driving skills score.

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Recent studies suggest that ketamine, a widely used anesthetic agent, could offer a wholly new approach to treating severe depression—producing an antidepressant response in hours rather than weeks. Two reviews of recent evidence on ketamine and related drugs for treating depression appear in the Harvard Review of Psychiatry, published by Wolters Kluwer.

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Approximately one in four preschoolers in the US are overweight or obese, and poor nutrition in early childhood has enduring consequences to children’s cognitive functioning. Preschool, therefore, is a critical period for children to begin to make their own dietary decisions to develop life-long healthy eating habits. A new study published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior found that preschoolers who learned how to classify food as healthy or unhealthy were more likely to say they would choose healthy food as a snack.

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In one sense, the digital divide between teenagers from different socio-economic backgrounds is narrowing: All increasingly have access to technologies such as smartphones and computers. But a new digital divide appears to be emerging over the types of experiences these teens have online, according to a University of California, Irvine researcher.

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An international team of researchers led by a Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine scientist has uncovered a novel mechanism in which a protein—neuregulin 3—controls how key neurotransmitters are released in the brain during schizophrenia. The protein is elevated in people with schizophrenia and other severe mental illnesses, but the study is the first to investigate how it causes such severe mental illness.

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Paul Marvar, PhD, at GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences, received a large grant from the NIH to study a possible link between post-traumatic stress disorder and cardiovascular disease.

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A new study shows that individuals who possess high primary psychopathic characteristics appear to have distinct advantages over those who don’t, when working for an abusive supervisor.

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Cuando alguien padece una enfermedad crónica, bien puede poner sus esperanzas en los tratamientos de los ensayos clínicos que, al principio, muestran resultados positivos. Sin embargo, esos resultados posiblemente sean exagerados en 1 de cada 3 de los primeros ensayos clínicos.

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The midterm election may signal more than a change of direction in Washington, said Dianne Bystrom, director of Iowa State’s Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics. It also may determine if 2016 was an anomaly or the new norm for future elections.

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Republicans who believe that God is very involved with humanity are like Democrats — more liberal — when it comes to social and economic justice issues, according to a Baylor University study. Meanwhile, Democrats who see God as a strict father tend to agree about with "an eye-for-an-eye" policy when it comes to harsher criminal punishment and military solutions to foreign conflicts.

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Some young people with cerebral palsy and other conditions exceeded their own expectations during a ski trip to Windham Mountain. The Adaptive Sports Academy at New York City’s Hospital for Special Surgery sponsored the trip for young patients who see doctors or physical therapists at the hospital.

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New research finds that altruism – and social media – can help corporations cultivate trust with consumers on mobile devices during and after natural disasters, such as hurricanes.

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Nicole Elliot and Jessica Graham were all smiles as they cuddled and introduced their respective newborn daughters on a sunny fall afternoon in an examination room on the third floor of Sinai Hospital of Baltimore’s Rosenbloom Building at Sinai Community Care, where the proud moms had started a friendship a few months earlier.

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An increase in social conflict increases the likelihood of assassinations of political leaders, according to new research co-conducted by faculty at Binghamton University, State University of New York.

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New research finds young women who value their own desires as much as their partner's, are less likely to engage in unwanted sexual activity.

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Parents who allow their young children to occasionally sip and taste alcohol may be contributing to an increased risk for alcohol use and related problems when those kids reach late adolescence, according to a new study by a University at Buffalo psychologist. The findings contradict the common belief that letting kids sip and taste alcoholic drinks is harmless, and might even help to promote responsible drinking later in life.

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College roommates are sensitive to their roommates’ distress but tend to underestimate the level of distress being experienced by others.

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Need an expert in a hurry? Need to pitch an expert in a hurry? Find experts and manage your experts in the Newswise Expert Directory. Our database of experts is growing daily. Search by institution, name, subject, keywords, and place.

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Players of the competitive esports video game League of Legends showed no change in testosterone during game play, UNLV researchers have found.

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New study shows use of social media does not reduce face-to-face contact with friends, family

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Lesbian and gay youth showed significantly less psychological distress and were buffered against the negative effects of bullying and victimization when they were in a relationship than when they were not, reports a new Northwestern Medicine study conducted in collaboration with the University of Cincinnati.The finding is particularly important because prior research has not found a protective effect like this for support from parents and friends.

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Physician gives tips on how to have difficult conversations about world tragedies (i.e., shootings).

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Depressed youth, compared to non-depressed youth, are at greater risk for suicide, substance abuse, early pregnancy, low educational attainment, recurrent depression, and poor long-term health.

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This study investigates the influence of dopamine pathway (DA) genes on self-reported quality of life (QOL) after moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI).

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Concussion is a common diagnosis in sports medicine. Many providers use medication to target the residual symptoms of a concussion, although there are currently no medications that have been approved by the Federal Drug Administration for the treatment of concussion. This study examines the association of commonly-prescribed post-concussive medications, namely gabapentin and tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), to symptom reduction after a concussion.

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Individuals with disabilities face barriers to physical activity, recreation, and sport. The goal of this study was to determine whether the perception of these barriers differs among those with and without a disability. Second, it aims to determine if these perceptions change following a community-wide recreational festival (RF) targeting to increase adaptive physical activity, recreation, and sport.

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Using a unique computerized system to locate minute changes in handwriting, researchers at the University of Haifa managed to identify differences between people in various moods. The goal: to create an objective index of mood independent of the individual’s subjective report

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UCLA researchers have developed a way to use brain scans and machine learning — a form of artificial intelligence — to predict whether people with OCD will benefit from cognitive behavior therapy. The technique could help improve the overall success rate of cognitive behavioral therapy, and it could enable therapists to tailor treatment to each patient.

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More than 20 years later, platforms for pairing up – and the attitudes toward those who use them – have changed considerably. But is the proliferation of dating sites and mobile apps altering our courtship experiences and long-term relationships? Rutgers relationship experts weigh in.

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When faced with a choice between a “fast” option that offers a greater chance of ultimate victory but also a significant chance of immediate defeat, and a “slow” option with both a lower chance of winning and a lesser chance of immediate defeat, people often opt for the “slow” option because of their aversion to sudden death.

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Women have become increasingly involved in drunk driving and fatal crashes. However, much of the research on drunk driving has been conducted using predominantly male samples. Little is known about the life context, psychiatric histories, and family backgrounds of women arrested for drunk driving. This study was based on interviews with women arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI); the study also compared women with single DUIs with those who had multiple DUI convictions.

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For decades, the conventional wisdom has been that people living in food deserts—defined as areas lacking in supermarkets with fresh produce and other nutritious items—have little choice but to buy unhealthy food at drugstores or convenience stores. But the data tell a different story.

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Korie Edwards, associate professor of sociology at The Ohio State University, talks about how race and power structures are perceived in churches, and also how religion plays a role among youth.

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New research from Florida State University highlights ways to keep love and also identifies clear predictors for failed relationships.

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Researchers at the University of Notre Dame are conducting an extensive $7.9 million, 21-month study focused on working professionals in cognitively demanding positions, such as engineers, programmers and managers in high-stress occupations.

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People who were bullied by siblings during childhood are up to three times more likely to develop psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia in early adulthood, according to new research by the University of Warwick.

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Ugeographers sought to understand the factors fueling hate across space. Their findings paint a rather grim reality of America; hate is a national phenomenon, and more complicated than they imagined. The researchers mapped the patterns of active hate groups in every U.S. county in the year 2014, and analyzed their potential socioeconomic and ideological drivers.

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As is true in humans, chimpanzees' general intelligence is correlated to their ability to exert self-control and delay gratification, according to new research at Georgia State University.

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It is well established that marketing efforts such as advertising are among the factors that can negatively affect health behaviors. Media literacy education can lessen this impact by developing an individual’s skills to critically evaluate marketing and advertising messages. Yet, media literacy education strategies and their implementation processes are relatively understudied. A new study published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior found that simple forms of media production can be a feasible activity in a behavioral intervention targeting adults.