Psychology News and Research

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

Marriage may no longer be the healthier option

According to researchers at Michigan State University, marriage may no longer offer the health benefits it did in the past and being married does not improve a person's health as much as it used to.

12 Aug 2008

Encouraging marriage in order to promote health may be misguided

The health of people who never marry is improving, narrowing the gap with their wedded counterparts, according to new research that suggests the practice of encouraging marriage to promote health may be misguided.

11 Aug 2008

Odds of experiencing sexual aggression vastly greater when college women binge drink

According to researchers at the University at Buffalo's Research Institute on Addictions (RIA), the odds of 18- and 19-year-old college women experiencing sexual aggression are 19 times greater when they binge drink than when they don't drink.

6 Aug 2008

Chronic exposure to estrogen impairs some cognitive functions

University of Illinois researchers report this week that chronic exposure to estradiol, the main estrogen in the body, diminishes some cognitive functions. Rats exposed to a steady dose of estradiol were impaired on tasks involving working memory and response inhibition, the researchers found.

3 Aug 2008

Researchers discover novel kind of learning gene

Scientists at the Freie Universität Berlin have come one step closer to unraveling the molecular basis of learning. A team led by neurobiologist Bjorn Brembs has discovered the first gene for operant conditioning in the fruit fly Drosophila.

3 Aug 2008

Living with someone reduces risk of developing Alzheimer's

Living with a spouse or a partner decreases the risk of developing Alzheimer's and other dementia diseases. This according to a study by Krister Hakansson, researcher in psychology at Vaxjo University and Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.

31 Jul 2008

Veterans' hotline averted more than 1,200 suicides in first year

More than 22,000 veterans have called a veterans suicide hotline since its launch in July 2007, and 1,221 suicides have been averted, according to government data to be released on Monday, the AP/Baltimore Sun reports.

29 Jul 2008

Hormone deprivation therapy - used for prostate cancer - may cause recall and concentration problems

A recent review of the literature has found that hormone deprivation therapy, a commonly used treatment for prostate cancer, may have subtle adverse effects on cognition in patients--such as in the ability to recall and concentrate.

28 Jul 2008

Hypnosis slows impacts of dementia and improves quality of life

A scientist at the University of Liverpool has found that hypnosis can slow down the impacts of dementia and improve quality of life for those living with the condition.

28 Jul 2008

Patient liaison is the focus of a new medical centre

"I was completely stunned. Nearly everything he was saying to me was going right over the top of my head. I could see his lips moving but I could not process or absorb his words"- a patient on hearing her doctor diagnose breast cancer.

28 Jul 2008

Research sheds light on neural mechanisms responsible for social difficulties in autism

Picking up on innuendo and social cues is a central component of engaging in conversation, but people with autism often struggle to determine another person's intentions in a social interaction.

23 Jul 2008

Science of magic - understanding human cognition and perception

Magic tricks, like those by Derren Brown and David Blaine, should be studied more closely to gain a deeper knowledge of the way human beings think and act, according to research by British and Canadian psychologists.

22 Jul 2008

Scare factor may lead to mistaken identification

Researchers at Goldsmiths, University of London have conducted a study that highlights the fragility of eyewitness identification used within the criminal justice system. The study shows that stress and fear reduce the likelihood of successful identification, bringing into question a victim's ability to identify the perpetrator of a crime.

17 Jul 2008

Researchers finds further evidence for genetic contribution to autism

Some parents of children with autism evaluate facial expressions differently than the rest of us--and in a way that is strikingly similar to autistic patients themselves, according to new research by neuroscientist Ralph Adolphs of the California Institute of Technology and psychiatrist Joe Piven at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

15 Jul 2008

Men and women react differently to temptation

Temptation may be everywhere, but it's how the different sexes react to flirtation that determines the effect it will have on their relationships. In a new study, psychologists determined men tend to look at their partners in a more negative light after meeting a single, attractive woman. On the other hand, women are likelier to work to strengthen their current relationships after meeting an available, attractive man.

15 Jul 2008

Variations in the serotonin transporter gene may determine who responds best to antidepressant

A new Mayo Clinic study shows that variations in the serotonin transporter gene could explain why some people with depression respond better than others to treatment with citalopram (Celexa), an antidepressant medication.

14 Jul 2008

Does this make me look fat?

The peer groups teenage girls identify with determine how they decide to control their own figure. So reports a new study by Dr. Eleanor Mackey from the Children's National Medical Center in Washington DC, and her colleague Dr. Annette La Greca from the University of Miami.

13 Jul 2008

Surrogacy still stigmatised, though attitudes changing among younger women

Although younger people are becoming more positive towards surrogate mothers, current day attitudes to surrogacy are still broadly negative, a scientist will tell the 24th annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology.

6 Jul 2008

Canadian case of foreign-accent syndrome after stroke

A woman in southern Ontario is one of the first cases in Canada of a rare neurological syndrome in which a person starts speaking with a different accent, McMaster University researchers report in the July issue of the Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences.

3 Jul 2008

Study uncovers how Ritalin works in brain to boost cognition, focus attention

Stimulant medications such as Ritalin have been prescribed for decades to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and their popularity as "cognition enhancers" has recently surged among the healthy, as well.

24 Jun 2008