Psychology News and Research

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

Nostalgia helps overcome loneliness

Nostalgia, a sentimental longing for the past, has a crucial part to play in combating feelings of isolation and loneliness, claim researchers in a new study.

18 Nov 2008

New handbook helps prevent the tragedy of campus violence

A guide to help colleges and universities prevent the tragedy of campus violence has been released by a team of leading experts.

18 Nov 2008

Sleep helps the mind learn complicated tasks

Sleep helps the mind learn complicated tasks and helps people recover learning they otherwise thought they had forgotten over the course of a day, research at the University of Chicago shows.

17 Nov 2008

Intervention program boosts survival in breast cancer patients

A new study provides the best evidence to date that a psychological intervention program designed for breast cancer patients not only improves their health - it actually increases their chance of survival.

17 Nov 2008

No clear evidence that depression screening improves cardiovascular patients' health

Results of a new study call into question recent clinical guidelines issued by leading cardiovascular groups, including the American Heart Association, which recommend patients with cardiovascular disease be screened for signs of depression and treated accordingly.

16 Nov 2008

Drug-related preference in cocaine addiction extends to images

When given a choice between viewing pictures of cocaine and a variety of other images, cocaine addicted individuals, as compared to healthy, non-addicted research subjects, show a clear preference for the drug-related images.

16 Nov 2008

Children distressed by family fighting have higher levels of cortisol

Children who become very upset when their parents fight are more likely to develop psychological problems.

16 Nov 2008

Helping children and teens deal with stress in an uncertain times

As families across the country face losses of nest eggs, homes or jobs, their young children and teens need emotional support.

13 Nov 2008

Female testosterone therapy no magic bullet for sexual dysfunction

Testosterone therapy may not be the magic bullet women with low libidos are hoping for, according to seasoned sex therapist Domeena Renshaw, MD.

12 Nov 2008

New study focuses on adolescents and young adults at risk for psychosis

Emory University in Atlanta is playing a key role in the largest, most comprehensive study ever funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) of adolescents and young adults at risk for developing a psychotic disorder.

12 Nov 2008

Chronic pain makes many sufferers contemplate suicide

According to new research patients suffering chronic pain are more likely than others to consider suicide.

11 Nov 2008

Obese women more impulsive

According to the latest research obese women are more impulsive than other females but this does not apply to obese men.

11 Nov 2008

Babies who receive incubator care have lower risk of depression as adults

Babies who receive incubator care after birth are two to three times less likely to suffer depression as adults according to a new study published in the journal Pyschiatry Research.

10 Nov 2008

Racial convergence in cigarette use from adolescence to the mid-thirties

African-Americans are much less likely to smoke than whites are during their teens.

10 Nov 2008

Simple brain mechanisms explain arbitrary human visual decisions

Mark Twain, a skeptic of the idea of free will, argues in his essay "What Is Man?" that humans do not command their minds or the opinions they form.

10 Nov 2008

Bullies love to bully

The researchers from the University of Chicago used functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) scans of eight 16 to 18 year-old boys with aggressive conduct disorder and compared them to eight matched adolescents without conduct disorder.

9 Nov 2008

Brain scans show bullies may enjoy seeing others in pain

Unusually aggressive youth may actually enjoy inflicting pain on others, research using brain scans at the University of Chicago shows.

8 Nov 2008

Behavioral therapy helps overcome depression in kidney disease patients on dialysis

Depression is common among individuals on dialysis for kidney disease, but behavioral therapy can significantly improve their quality of life, according to a paper being presented at the American Society of Nephrology's 41st Annual Meeting and Scientific Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

8 Nov 2008

The interaction between genes and behavior

Our DNA determines a lot about who we are and how we play with others, but recent studies of social animals (birds and bees, among others) show that the interaction between genes and behavior is more of a two-way street than most of us realize.

7 Nov 2008

Pregnancy diabetes doubles the risk of language development problems in children

Children born to mothers with pregnancy-related diabetes run twice the risk of language development problems, according to a research team directed by Professor Ginette Dionne of Université Laval's School of Psychology.

7 Nov 2008