Feature Channels: Psychology and Psychiatry

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Can highly processed foods be addictive?

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A guided mindfulness-based stress reduction program was as effective as use of the gold-standard drug -- the common antidepressant drug escitalopram -- for patients with anxiety disorders, according to results of a first-of-its-kind, randomized clinical trial led by researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center.

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How can we have open-minded talks about guns and safety? A new podcast, launched this week by the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress (CSTS), hopes to address this question. Through a series of interviews and stories, the podcast, “Let’s Talk About Your Guns,” will offer practical and non-judgmental ways to talk about safe storage of firearms in tough situations.

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Many of us spend our lives chasing “happiness,” a state of contentment that is more difficult for some to achieve than others. Research in Psychological Science suggests that one reason happiness can seem so elusive is that our current feelings can interfere with memories of our past well-being.

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Curbing depression among caregivers improves control of asthma and lung function in children

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While the physical differences between humans and non-human primates are quite distinct, a new study reveals their brains may be remarkably similar. And yet, the smallest changes may make big differences in developmental and psychiatric disorders.

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Findings also help explain why happy people are more optimistic, how false visual memories can be perpetuated, and why feeling good often just means feeling better.

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A study suggests that exposure to violent screen content in the preschool years is associated with a heightened risk of psychological and academic difficulties in adolescence.

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Ochsner Health psychologist discusses Alzheimer's Disease during Alzheimer's Awareness Month

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Under the project, experts will work to better prepare school crisis intervention teams to prevent violence and promote a positive school atmosphere.

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Night owls may be looking forward to falling back into autumn standard time but a new study from the University of Ottawa has found Daylight Saving Time may also suit morning types just fine.

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The Endocrine Society rebukes the Florida Board of Medicine’s decision to ban gender-affirming care for transgender and gender-diverse teenagers.

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Trauma can cause dissociative symptoms—such as having an out-of-body experience, or feeling emotionally numb—that may help an individual cope in the short term but can have negative impacts if the symptoms persist for a long period of time.

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Using human brain organoids, an international team of researchers has shown how the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19 infects cortical neurons and specifically destroys their synapses — the connections between brain cells that allow them to communicate with each other.

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Recent research in Psychological Science expands on past work by indicating that experiences of deprivation and threat may influence children’s psychological development differently. That is, early deprivation experiences, such as parental neglect and financial difficulties, appear to be more closely associated with cognitive and emotional functioning in adolescence than early threat experiences, such as exposure to abuse.

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A pandemic survey found that adolescents who answered more COVID-19 test questions correctly also reported lower stress, anxiety and depression as well as lower loneliness and fear of missing out, also known as FOMO.

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The new study finds brain-wide changes in virtually all of the 11 cortical regions analyzed, regardless of whether they are higher critical association regions – those involved in functions such as reasoning, language, social cognition and mental flexibility – or primary sensory regions.

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More people in the U.S. have discovered Día de los Muertos. Unlike Halloween, it's celebrated over several days and lifts up the spirits of the dead instead of fearing them.

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November is National Family Caregivers Month

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Roughly 21% of hospitalized COVID-19 patients at the height of the pandemic required an intensive care stay and the bulk were cared for by family upon discharge. However, not much is known about how these caregivers and patients adapted.

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Physicists at McMaster University have identified a natural delivery system which can safely carry potent antibiotics throughout the body to selectively attack and kill bacteria by using red blood cells as a vehicle.

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People who feel a lack of personal control in their lives are more likely to prefer a culture that imposes order, according to research published by the American Psychological Association. These “tighter” cultures, in turn, perpetuate their existence by reducing individuals’ sense of personal control and increasing their sense of collective control.

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As a stand-up comedian, Debra Faulk is an expert at transforming the most difficult and uncomfortable moments of her life into something that lifts others. Active in the local comedy scene, the 54-year-old Lexington native uses standup as a platform to shine a light on serious health issues, with much of her routine inspired by her family’s experiences: one sister dealt with intellectual disabilities while another had breast cancer, her brother served in Desert Storm and came back with PTSD, her father had dementia, and her mother was on dialysis.

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种简单的儿童娱乐活动，现在却是保持良好心理健康的工具。近年来涂色越来越流行，尤其受到成年人的喜爱。

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Aquella actividad que solía ser simple y divertida para los niños es ahora una herramienta para practicar una buena salud mental. Pintar con colores ha ganado popularidad recientemente, sobre todo entre los adultos.

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When the world shut down in March of 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, people the world over experienced profound psychological stress to varying degrees.

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Autistic people are more vulnerable to depression and anxiety during pregnancy, according to new research from the University of Cambridge.

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That thing prickling the hair on the back of your neck? Could it actually be good for you? A Penn State Health psychologist talks about whether there’s such a thing as a good scare.

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Just like the famous lyrics suggest, if you put on a happy face you will feel a little brighter, according to a new study published in Nature Human Behaviour.

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For a long time, functional, nonepileptic seizures were not believed to involve structural changes in the brain, but a new study suggests that they are associated with structural changes that can be seen using MRI. Researchers say the findings bring potential for earlier diagnosis of functional seizures, which are often misdiagnosed as epilepsy.

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Rutgers researchers find that patients in treatment for opioid use disorder are more likely to stay in treatment if they participate in multiple outpatient visits early in their care.

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Here are some of the latest articles that have been added to the Drugs and drug abuse channel.

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Cats are often left out of university-based animal assisted interventions aimed at reducing stress, but new research shows many people, especially those with strong and highly reactive emotions, want and would benefit from feline interactions.