Feature Channels: Behavioral Science

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Using information gleaned from social media, researchers from the Georgia Institute of Technology have created a mental health index for the nation’s highest-ranked colleges and universities. Their study looked at five years of data on Reddit, scanning it for comments about issues that included depression, financial and academic anxiety and thoughts of suicide. Schools were given a score based on the frequency of those threads and robustness of the conversations.

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The first ever longitudinal study of U.S. Chinese older adults in the greater Chicago area found the cognitive and physical function of U.S. Chinese immigrants may be greatly impacted by their social and cultural context more than non-immigrant populations.

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For people with multiple sclerosis (MS), an impaired ability to understand how others feel and think may be linked to subtle brain changes, according to a study published in the May 31, 2017, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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Yuridia Nava, Cal State University, San Bernardino alumna and nationally recognized counselor at Riverside Polytechnic High School, shares her best advice on how high school students can prepare to get into college and do well once they’re there.

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Assistant Professor Seth Tomchik of the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) has received $2 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). The new five-year grant funding will support the study of neurofibromatosis type I, an inherited disorder that results from genetic mutations affecting a protein called neurofibromin (Nf1).

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They have what most would want – affluent upwardly mobile parents, living in comfortable homes in the suburbs, going to an elite high school and being groomed for the nation’s best colleges. But these “privileged” American high schoolers can be at high risk for problematic substance abuse across early adulthood, according to new research from Arizona State University.

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A survey from the University of Iowa shows that many companies have significant gaps in how they prepare for the potential for workplace violence, even though more businesses are taking the possibility for such a threat seriously.

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Analyzing millions of internet searches tied to major societal events offers a new way to understand public reaction to those events, according to new research from the Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.

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New research from the University of Warwick documents modern international evidence of a midlife peak in suicide risk.

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An international research network, led by the Centre for Evidence and Social Innovation (CESI) at Queen’s University Belfast, in partnership with UNICEF, Yale, Harvard and New York University (NYU), has been launched today (Wednesday 31 May) to support the development and evaluation of early childhood development (ECD) services in low and middle income countries.

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Summer vacations don't have to break the bank, according to Kansas State University's Kristin Malek, assistant professor of hospitality management, who shares some easy ways to save on airfare, lodging, activities and food.

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How important is charisma in a leader? While at least a moderate level is important, too much may hinder a leader’s effectiveness, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.

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Fathers with toddler daughters are more attentive and responsive to those daughters’ needs than fathers with toddler sons are to the needs of those sons, according to brain scans and recordings of the parents’ daily interactions with their kids.

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Vets4Warriors, operated by Rutgers University Behavioral Health Care, receives prestigious Pro Patria Award

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At a time of change and uncertainty across the country, American adults who have been affected by change at work are more likely to report chronic work stress, less likely to trust their employer and more likely to say they plan to leave the organization within the next year compared with those who haven’t been affected by organizational change, according to a survey released by the American Psychological Association.

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Study looks at whether behaviors like whining and tantrums could be related to parents spending too much time on their phones or tablets.

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U.S.-born Latino male middle school students who had familiarity with a controversial Arizona immigration enforcement bill had more difficulty exhibiting proper behavior in the classroom, such as following instructions and staying quiet, according to a new study that includes a University of Kansas researcher.

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UVA Darden Professor Manel Baucells discusses his research that shows quantitatively how valuable breaks and rest are to productivity.

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A recent analysis of research into how so-called “sexting” may affect sexual behavior finds that it has little impact on sexual activity – but highlights significant shortcomings in the research itself.

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In Greek mythology, Narcissus was a gorgeous hunter, born of a river god and a nymph. However, he was prideful and too caught up in his looks. One day while hunting, a nymph named Echo was enamored with him and approached him, but Narcissus rudely pushed her away.

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University of Chicago researchers in a new paper look to resolve a 15-year-old scientific dispute about how rats process odors. What they found not only settles that argument, it suggests an explanation for the much written-about replication crisis.

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Little consensus exists when it comes to the certification of “emotional support animals” (ESAs). These animals usually have little or no specific training, which poses a challenge for mental health professionals who are asked to certify them. Now, researchers at the University of Missouri have conducted a survey to examine what techniques and instruments mental health professionals are using to aid in their determinations of whether certification of an ESA is appropriate.

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People who struggle to cope with uncertainty or the ambiguity of potential future threats may have an unusually large striatum, an area of the brain already associated with general anxiety disorder, according to research published by the American Psychological Association.

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week long interdisciplinary conference on all aspects of the nature of conscious experience, awareness, feelings and existence.

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Sleep is important, but if there is something more important or interesting to do—for example, taking care of a baby, finishing a grant proposal before a deadline, or reading a fascinating book—we may stay up late. Sleep in fruit flies is a lot like human sleep, and like humans, flies can keep themselves awake if there is something important to do. In research published on May 16th in eLife, researchers report discovery of neurons that allow male fruit flies to suppress sleep so they can court female flies.

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While “empty nest syndrome” is not a formal clinical diagnosis, most psychiatrists agree it’s a legitimate emotional moment when a young adult leaves home and the parents are faced with an empty bedroom—and silence.

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A recent study finds that “moral enhancement technologies” – which are discussed as ways of improving human behavior – are neither feasible nor wise, based on an assessment of existing research into these technologies.

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A new Baylor University study shows that interruptions during work and family time come with consequences and benefits. Researchers offer strategies to build on the benefits.

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Neighborhoods with greater poverty and disorganization may play a greater role in problem drinking than the availability of bars and stores that sell hard liquor, a University of Washington-led study has found.

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Robin Parks Ennis, Ph.D., assistant professor and behavioral interventions and supports researcher, explains how a popular toy can be beneficial with proper management.

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When it comes to empathy, the idiom that suggests “walking a mile in their shoes” turns out to be problematic advice, according to new research published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology.

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Research has shown that African-American boys face higher rates of school discipline than other students. But a study co-authored by an Indiana University sociologist finds that racial disparities in school discipline are even greater for African-American girls.

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Experiencing beauty requires thought, a team of neuroscientists finds, in a new study that confirms an 18th-century claim by the philosopher Immanuel Kant.

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A new study has examined for the first time whether fathering can moderate the negative effects of maternal depression on family-level functioning. The results of the study are the first to describe the family process by using direct observations of mothering, fathering, and family patterns in homes where mothers suffer clinical depression during the child's first years of life.

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The issue of youth suicide is much in the news these days. Middle school students are just as likely to die from suicide as from traffic accidents, states the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Pet dogs provide valuable social support for kids when they’re stressed, according to a study by researchers from the University of Florida, who were among the first to document stress-buffering effects of pets for children.

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Making that Mother’s Day phone call isn’t as big a deal as it used to be. According to a study from the University of California, Irvine, adult children are in touch with their moms more frequently than were earlier generations, thanks to the proliferation of cellphones.

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Our taste in movies is notably idiosyncratic, and not linked to the demographic traits that studios target, finds new study on film preferences. The work also shows that moviegoers’ ratings are not necessarily in line with those of critics.

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If you show up at work tired, you may want to focus strictly on your own tasks. New research suggests helping coworkers in the morning can lead to mental exhaustion and self-serving behavior in the afternoon that ultimately can create a toxic work environment.

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Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) could be a powerful tool to help elite sportspeople improve their performance by handling stress more effectively, new research has found.

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In “Functional Intimacy: Needing—But Not Wanting—the Touch of a Stranger,” University of Chicago Booth School of Business Professor Ayelet Fishbach explores the discomfort felt in a situation that requires functional intimacy. The study presents a novel point of view for both service providers and service recipients.

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We know that power can corrupt, making people act in ways that harm others. But new research from the University of Florida shows that when the powerful misbehave, they hurt themselves, too.

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An international collaborative study led by researchers at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute (SBP), with major participation from Yokohama School of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, and UC San Diego, has identified the molecular mechanism behind lithium’s effectiveness in treating bipolar disorder patients. The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), utilized human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPS cells) to map lithium’s response pathway, enabling the larger pathogenesis of bipolar disorder to be identified.

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A Kansas State University expert on military families says most military spouses experience a lifestyle of constant adjustment.

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Taxpayers benefit most when job satisfaction among federal employees is high, according to a recent study conducted by a team of 14 researchers. The team identified specific strategies policymakers can implement in order to improve agency efficiency and effectiveness and increase the return on tax dollars.

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A University of Arkansas at Little Rock professor advised members of NATO about the danger of false information distributed online through botnets, a network of computer programs that act autonomously on social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook.