Feature Channels: Psychology and Psychiatry

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Feeling extreme loneliness can increase an older person’s chances of premature death by 14 percent, according to research by John Cacioppo, professor of psychology at the University of Chicago.

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According to Simona Manescu and Johannes Frasnelli of the University of Montreal’s Department of Psychology, an odour is judged differently depending on whether it is accompanied by a positive or negative description when it is smelled.

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John Mayer, the University of New Hampshire psychologist and internationally recognized researcher who co-developed the groundbreaking theory of emotional intelligence, now introduces another paradigm-shifting idea: in order to become our best selves, we use an even broader intelligence—personal intelligence—to understand our own personality and the personalities of the people around us.

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Understanding and properly studying fear is partly a matter of correctly defining fear itself, NYU neuroscientist Joseph LeDoux writes. His analysis points to ways research can be better geared to address a range of fear-related afflictions, such as post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) and commonly experienced phobias.

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The capacity of our working memory is better explained by the quality of memories we can store than by their number, a team of psychology researchers has concluded.

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As many American public school districts adopt single-sex classrooms and even entire schools, a new study finds scant evidence that they offer educational or social benefits. The study was the largest and most thorough effort to examine the issue to date, says Janet Hyde, a professor of psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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Single-sex education does not educate girls and boys any better than coed schools, according to research published by the American Psychological Association analyzing 184 studies of more than 1.6 million students from around the world. The findings are published online Feb. 3 in the APA journal Psychological Bulletin.

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Discussing five movies about relationships over a month could cut the three-year divorce rate for newlyweds in half, researchers report. The study, involving 174 couples, is the first long-term investigation to compare different types of early marriage intervention program

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New research finds that while a majority of adults cite the ability to compete with friends as their primary reason for playing online casual video games such as Bejeweled Blitz, they report differing perceived benefits from playing the games based upon their age.

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A new Boston University study led by postdoctoral fellow Natalie Emmons and published in the January 16, 2014 online edition of Child Development suggests that our bias toward immortality is a part of human intuition that naturally emerges early in life.

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Many individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) also experience depression. Researchers at Case Western Reserve University found that during PTSD treatments, rapid improvements in depression symptoms are associated with better outcomes.

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A University of Toronto report based on two neural imaging studies that monitored brain activity has found individuals are more satisfied to get a reward from telling the truth rather than getting the same reward through deceit. These studies were published recently in the neuroscience journals Neuropsychologia and NeuroImage.

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People feel worse when they tell only part of the truth about a transgression compared to people who come completely clean, according to new research published by the American Psychological Association.

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In studying the differences in brain interactions between religious and non-religious subjects, researchers conclude there must be a biological basis for the evolution of religion in human societies.

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The estimated 9 percent of college students who have symptoms of PTSD are likely to drink more alcohol than peers without the psychological condition. In turn, heavy alcohol consumption exacerbates their PTSD symptoms.

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Researchers at the University of Illinois and the University of Nebraska conduct meta-analysis to conclusively answer whether narcissism and leadership are linked.

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Why do some patients react to a shaming encounter with a physician by making healthful changes while others turn to lying or avoidance? Christine Harris and her co-authors find that self-condemnation is associated with negative outcomes, as does the perception that a physician was intentionally trying to provoke guilt or shame.

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A thickening of parts of the brain cortex associated with regular meditation or other spiritual or religious practice could be the reason those activities guard against depression – particularly in people who are predisposed to the disease, according to new research led by Lisa Miller, professor and director of Clinical Psychology and director of the Spirituality Mind Body Institute at Teachers College, Columbia University. Miller and colleagues studied 130 subjects and found that those who highly valued spirituality showed thicker portions of brain cortices that may protect against depression -- especially in those at high risk for the disease.

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A new study from the University of Toronto Scarborough shows that while people have a harder time controlling themselves when tired, it doesn’t mean they’ve exhausted all of their willpower. The key to boosting self-control is finding pleasure in the necessary activities of life.

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It’s been 50 years since the U.S. surgeon general’s report on smoking and health spurred one of the largest public health behavior changes success stories of the 20th century. Before and since this groundbreaking report’s release, psychology has been at the forefront of smoking cessation efforts. Research into the biological and behavioral mechanisms of addiction has led to many successful treatments for nicotine addicts. In this episode, we talk with Dr. Sherry McKee, a researcher whose work has focused on gender differences and smoking. She discusses why women have a harder time kicking the habit and what science can do to help them quit.

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Teenage boys who think they’re too skinny when they are actually a healthy weight are at greater risk of being depressed as teens and as adults when compared to other boys, even those who think they are too heavy, according to findings published by the American Psychological Association.

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Caffeine is the energy boost of choice for millions. Now, however, researchers have found another use for the stimulant: memory enhancer.

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Even before babies have language skills or much information about social structures, they can infer whether other people are likely to be friends by observing their likes and dislikes, a new study on infant cognition has found.

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Fifty years ago, the U.S. Surgeon General’s Report on Smoking and Health prompted one of the largest public health behavior change success stories of the 20th century. Before and since this groundbreaking report’s release, psychology has been at the forefront of smoking cessation efforts.

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Mindfulness meditation programs may help reduce anxiety, depression and pain in some individuals, according to a review of medical literature by Madhav Goyal, M.D., M.P.H., of The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, and colleagues.

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When inmates with severe mental illness are released from jail, their priority is finding shelter, food, money and clothes. Even needs as basic as soap and a place to bathe can be hard to come by for people leaving jail, according to a new study from Case Western Reserve University’s social work school.

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Parents and other adults heap the highest praise on children who are most likely to be hurt by the compliments, a new study finds.

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People who tell themselves to get excited rather than trying to relax can improve their performance during anxiety-inducing activities such as public speaking and math tests, according to a study published by the American Psychological Association.

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Small talk is far from "small" or trivial, says psychology professor and shyness expert Bernardo J. Carducci. It is the salve of a disconnected society -- the "cornerstone of civility." "Small talk is really, really important. It helps us connect with people, and not just at holiday gatherings," said Carducci, director of the Shyness Research Institute at Indiana University Southeast. "If you make connections with people, it makes it much more difficult for you to treat them in an uncivil way. If you think about being kind to and connecting with people, people you engage in conversation, you're going to open a door for them, you'll let them step in front of you in line. You'll engage in more acts of kindness and fewer acts of rudeness."

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Young adults who are heavy users of the Internet may also exhibit signs of addiction, say researchers at Missouri University of Science and Technology, Duke University Medical Center and the Duke Institute of Brain Sciences in a new study that compares Internet usage with measures of addiction.

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These pressures are particularly palpable during the holiday season. We often think our kids will be disappointed if we can’t measure up to their expectations at the holidays, and when we think it’s our job to keep them happy, we shudder at the thought of disappointing them. Dr. Aaron Cooper, PhD, licensed clinical psychologist at The Family Institute at Northwestern University and author of I Just Want My Kids To Be Happy (Late August Press, 2008), provides expert tips to parents as they set and manage their children’s expectations during the holidays.

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A head injury can lead immune-system brain cells to go on “high alert” and overreact to later immune challenges by becoming excessively inflammatory – a condition linked with depressive complications, a new animal study suggests.

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A UAB study shows early maturing in adolescent girls can increase aggressive and delinquent behavior.

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A new study by a movement disorder neurologist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center found that depression improved among patients with Parkinson’s disease who participated in a long-term group exercise program.

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The clinical context of the administration and dosage of antipsychotics may influence their efficacy, reported Philippe Vincent and Édouard Kouassi, from the Institut universitaire en santé mentale de Montréal and Université de Montréal.

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With evidence growing that meditation can have beneficial health effects, scientists have sought to understand how these practices physically affect the body.

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Saint Louis University nursing instructor Julie Bertram found mental health nurses lend valuable perspective in treating troubled teens in foster care.

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A new study finds that survivors of hematopoietic stem cell transplant, an aggressive treatment for blood cancers, benefited from a two-part peer support process the authors call expressive helping.

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Playing video games, including violent shooter games, may boost children’s learning, health and social skills, according to a review of research on the positive effects of video game play to be published by the American Psychological Association.

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Playing violent video games not only increases aggression, it also leads to less self-control and more cheating, a new study finds.

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Research shows companies that screen the social media accounts of job applicants alienate potential employees – making it harder for them to attract top job candidates. In some cases, social media screening even increases the likelihood that job candidates may take legal action against the offending company.

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Pacific University (Ore.) assistant professor Conor Principe is an expert in this area of research.

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Do drinking and marriage mix? That depends on who’s doing the drinking — and how much — according to a recent study by the University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions (RIA).

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UCLA researchers have shown that teenagers with anxiety disorders show increased activity in a specific part of the brain, the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), when they are interpreting a neutral situation negatively. Ultimately, the mPFC may serve as a biomarker for illness.

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Grammar and syntax have been thought for decades to be automatic and untouchable by other brain processes and that everything else — the sex of the speaker, their dialect, etc. — is stripped away as our brains process the sound signal of a word and store it as an abstract form. A University of Kansas study suggests that even higher-level processes – in this case – grammar - are affected by information about the speaker.

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Just as fragments of ancient pottery and bones offer valuable information about human history, music can also reveal clues about the past, according to new research from an international team led by McMaster University psychologist Steven Brown.