Psychology News and Research

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

Visual perception and attention can be changed by passive stimulation

What was previously known from animal studies has thus for the first time been demonstrated for human individuals too. "The findings open new perspectives in the intervention and treatment of visual perceptual disorders, because the changes can be induced quite simply" said Dr. Christian Beste of the RUB Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience.

12 May 2011

Research provides insight into brain reorganization following sensory loss

The part of the brain that uses hearing to determine sound location is reorganized in deaf animals to locate visual targets, according to a new study by a team of researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Western Ontario in Canada.

11 May 2011

First UK study to look at dance effects on people with Parkinson's

A study that will look at the types of dance that may alleviate the symptoms of Parkinson's Disease will be carried out by University of Hertfordshire researchers next month and needs volunteers.

10 May 2011

IUPUI psychology professor to receive 2011 Young Scientist award for alcoholism research

Stephen L. Boehm II, Ph.D., associate professor of psychology in the School of Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, has been named the 2011 Young Scientist of the Year by the International Behavioural and Neural Genetics Society. The award will be presented May 13 at the society's annual meeting in Rome, Italy.

10 May 2011

More than half of all adolescents accept free rapid HIV test after risk assessment survey

Although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends routine HIV testing for everyone between the ages of 13-64 as part of their regular medical care, testing rates remain low among adolescents.

10 May 2011

Breastfeeding leads to better behaviour in kids: Study

A new study shows that just four months of breastfeeding can cut the risk of children becoming badly behaved by almost a third. It found 16 per cent of children brought up on formula milk had problems including anxiety, lying, stealing and hyperactivity – more than double the proportion breastfed for at least four months.

10 May 2011

PTSD occurs with significant frequency in civilian patients after traumatic event involving physical injury

Although most commonly associated with military combat, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can occur in civilians, too - and with consequences that are just as serious, according to a new review article in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS). PTSD is a type of anxiety disorder that occurs after a person experiences a traumatic event involving physical injury, and occurs in 20 to 51 percent of patients with an orthopaedic injury.

9 May 2011

Epigenomics presents Septin9 blood test study data in colorectal cancer at DDW 2011

Epigenomics AG, the cancer molecular diagnostics company, reports that Dr. Uri Ladabaum, Associate Professor in the Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the School of Medicine of Stanford University, has presented the results of a health economic analysis of potential future colorectal cancer screening with Septin9 blood tests at the ongoing Digestive Disease Week 2011.

9 May 2011

Research: Certain brain region may play a key role in gambling behavior

When a group of gamblers gather around a roulette table, individual players are likely to have different reasons for betting on certain numbers. Some may play a "lucky" number that has given them positive results in the past-a strategy called reinforcement learning.

6 May 2011

Health officials concerned with mental health problems after QLD floods

According to health experts Ipswich residents need to look out for the mental health of friends and family with the effects of January’s floods still weighing on many people. The Australian Medical Association of Queensland (AMAQ) launched the See the Signs awareness campaign this week to help people spot symptoms of mental health issues like depression.

5 May 2011

Researchers present evidence from first ever general population survey of autism in adulthood

Not a single person identified with autism or asperger's syndrome during a community survey in England actually knew they had the condition, research led by the University of Leicester reveals.

5 May 2011

Insights into psychiatric disorders

Social deficits are common in several psychiatric disorders, including autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia. Individuals with severe social dysfunction can experience significant difficulties with everyday functioning.

5 May 2011

Staying up late and sleeping in can increase risk for gaining weight

Staying up late every night and sleeping in is a habit that could put you at risk for gaining weight. People who go to bed late and sleep late eat more calories in the evening, more fast food, fewer fruits and vegetables and weigh more than people who go to sleep earlier and wake up earlier, according to a new Northwestern Medicine study.

5 May 2011

Research experts to speak at brain tumor educational conference

Patients, families and caregivers are invited to attend an educational conference covering many aspects of brain tumors May 14 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

5 May 2011

Amygdala predicts spontaneous behavior: Study

A pianist is playing an unknown melody freely without reading from a musical score. How does the listener's brain recognise if this melody is improvised or if it is memorized? Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig investigated jazz musicians to discover which brain areas are especially sensitive to features of improvised behaviour.

4 May 2011

Tips on how to stay safe and heal emotionally after tornado attack

Although the threat of another tornado is gone for now, other potential dangers lurk in the storm's aftermath, said several University of Alabama at Birmingham experts. They recently offered tips on how to stay safe and heal emotionally in the days after the devastating April 27 storm.

3 May 2011

Mental Illness Foundation invites Quebecers to be attentive to loved ones

As part of the 60th National Mental Health Week, which runs from May 1 to 7, 2011, the Mental Illness Foundation invites Quebecers to take action and be attentive to loved ones coping with a mental illness and underlines that the search for good mental health is one of the protective factors in preventing mental illness.

2 May 2011

New study shows that our social status influences our brain activity

Our own social status influences the way our brains respond to others of higher or lower rank, according to a new study reported online on April 28 in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication.

30 Apr 2011

New article on psychology research

Thanks in part to studies that follow subjects for a long time, psychologists are learning more about differences between people. In a new article published in Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, the author describes how psychologists can use their data to learn about the different ways that people's minds work.

29 Apr 2011

Five Loyola employees donate kidneys to complete strangers

Loyola University Medical Center is believed to be the first organization in the country, and perhaps the world, in which five employees have each donated kidneys to complete strangers with no strings attached.

28 Apr 2011