Psychology News and Research

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Psychology is the study of human mental functions, behavior and processes.

Religion promotes optimism, support systems, and reduced mortality risk in older women: Study

A new study released last Thursday showed that those who attend religious services regularly are more optimistic and have a lesser tendency to be depressed, compared to those who do not attend services at all.

13 Nov 2011

Smoke-reducing chimneys prevent pneumonia among young children

Researchers at the University of Liverpool and the universities of California, Berkley and del Valle, Guatemala, have found that cases of severe pneumonia among young children are reduced by one-third in homes with smoke-reducing chimneys on cooking stoves.

11 Nov 2011

Study: Primary visual cortex is modulated only by attention

In everyday life, attention and awareness appear tightly interwoven. Attending to the scissors on the rinumber of behavioural observations have recently led scientists to postulate that attention and awareness are fundamentally different processes and not necessarily connected.ght side of your desk, you become aware of their attributes, for example the red handles. Vice versa, the red handles could attract your attention to the scissors.

11 Nov 2011

A woman’s brain can get damaged faster with alcohol abuse: Study

A latest study has shown that female alcoholics suffer damage to the part of their brain that controls moods, impulses and sleep three times faster than their male counterparts.

10 Nov 2011

MA State Legislature, Governor's Administration authorize Train Vets to Treat Vets program into law

The Massachusetts State Legislature and Governor's Administration recently authorized into law a "Train Vets to Treat Vets" program for the Massachusetts School of Professional Psychology (MSPP)—in conjunction with the Massachusetts Department of Veterans Services—to establish a behavioral health career development program for returning veterans.

10 Nov 2011

'Social Norms and Alcohol Prevention' to address problem drinking in college students

Perceptions of peer drinking of alcohol may be the strongest predictor of excessive alcohol use among college students according to new research by Clayton Neighbors, a professor and director of the social psychology program in the department of psychology at the University of Houston.

10 Nov 2011

Sleep paralysis more frequent among students and psychiatric patients

What do Moby Dick, the Salem witch trials and alien abductions all have in common? They all circle back to sleep paralysis.

9 Nov 2011

Study explores how telework may impact work exhaustion

If you work from home part of the week as a teleworker, does it help reduce work exhaustion caused by juggling work and family commitments? The answer may depend on the level of conflict you have between work and home and your ability to recharge your batteries adequately, according to Professor Timothy Golden, from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, NY.

9 Nov 2011

UCSB researchers study how genotypes can express themselves differently as a function of culture

Two psychologists at UC Santa Barbara have provided a new twist on the old adage that people are products of both nature and nurture, in introducing a framework for understanding how these influences interact.

9 Nov 2011

Study examines psychological factors related to diabetes management

Genetics play a critical role in developing diabetes. So do eating properly, exercising and not smoking. According to a new study by an Ithaca College psychology professor and her two colleagues, people with diabetes who see themselves as responsible for their disease onset blame themselves for making poor lifestyle choices and are significantly less likely to monitor their glucose levels, properly inject themselves and make lifestyle choices that would benefit their condition.

9 Nov 2011

Psychology graduate students face gap in training opportunities

The New York Times reports on a lack of internships available to students graduating in clinical psychology.

9 Nov 2011

First Edition: November 8, 2011

Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including stories on malpractice reforms and previews of voting in Ohio on two ballot questions affecting health care issues and a Mississippi abortion issue.

8 Nov 2011

Study looks at influence of father's depression on his children

There have been numerous studies that looked at the effect of mother's depression upon her children. But there have been no studies that explore the influence a father's depression on his children.

8 Nov 2011

Study examines how men's crime, tobacco and alcohol use change over time

After men become fathers for the first time, they show significant decreases in crime, tobacco and alcohol use, according to a new, 19-year study.

8 Nov 2011

Finger nails on chalkboard - why so disturbing

The frequency of the screechy, scratchy sound ranges between 2000 and 4000 Hz, a frequency most sensitive to the human ear. “Some frequencies are amplified due to the anatomy of the ear canal,” write musicologists Christoph Reuter, of the University of Vienna, and Michael Oehler, of the Macromedia University for Media and Communication in Cologne, Germany.

7 Nov 2011

Forbes Consulting announces availability of MindSight technology

Forbes Consulting Group today announced the availability of MindSight, an innovative research technology that identifies and explains the specific subconscious emotions motivating consumers and professionals to buy.

5 Nov 2011

Pioneering neuroscientist receives Rockefeller's Pearl Meister Greengard Prize

Brenda Milner, Ph.D., a pioneer in the field of cognitive neuroscience whose discoveries revolutionized the understanding of memory, was awarded the 2011 Pearl Meister Greengard Prize from The Rockefeller University yesterday.

5 Nov 2011

Dampening of emotions linked to high blood pressure

Your ability to recognize emotional content in faces and texts is linked to your blood pressure, according to a Clemson University researcher.

4 Nov 2011

Amphetamine use in adolescence can affect brain chemistry and behaviour

Amphetamine use in adolescence can cause neurobiological imbalances and increase risk-taking behaviour, and these effects can persist into adulthood, even when subjects are drug free. These are the conclusions of a new study using animal models conducted by McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) researcher Dr. Gabriella Gobbi and her colleagues.

4 Nov 2011

Marital status, income level and age affect likelihood of depression in breast cancer survivors

This year, more than 230,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and nearly 40,000 women will not survive their battle with cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. New research from the University of Missouri shows that certain factors, including marital status, having children in the home, income level and age, affect the likelihood of depression in breast cancer survivors.

3 Nov 2011