Psychology News and Research

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

After primates evolved the ability to see red, they began to develop red and orange skin and hair

Humans, apes and Old World monkeys, such as macaques and leaf monkeys, all have trichromatic vision, which allows these primates to distinguish between blue, green and red colors.

28 May 2007

Smokers who have a say in how they quit are more likely to try kicking the habit

Rochester researcher Dr. Geoffrey Williams associate professor of medicine at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, will unveil new findings at a Toronto conference this month that demonstrate patient involvement in a quit plan leads to smokers who are more motivated to quit because they genuinely want to, not because they are being nagged or bullied.

28 May 2007

Binge drinking can lead to poor decision making among college students

Researchers know that alcoholics tend to have poorer neurocognitive functioning, including decision making, than non-alcoholics do.

28 May 2007

Watch your language! babies know the difference between French and English

Canadian researchers say that babies as young as 4 months of age know the difference between English and French by looking for visual cues.

28 May 2007

Study shows that a cause and effect relationship does not exist between job satisfaction and performanc

Job satisfaction has traditionally been thought of by most business managers to be key in determining job performance.

24 May 2007

Check and balance for neuron activity provides insight into schizophrenia, seizures

Two genes important for human development and implicated in cancer and schizophrenia also help keep a healthy balance between excitation and inhibition of brain cells, researchers say.

24 May 2007

University of Alabama at Birmingham opens adult Down Syndrome clinic

UAB (University of Alabama at Birmingham) has opened one of the few clinics in the nation dedicated to providing services to adult patients with Down Syndrome.

24 May 2007

Am I exercising too much?

You run in the morning, train for your next marathon at night despite a nagging injury, and head to the gym to weight train in your free time. Missing a workout is not an option.

24 May 2007

In some species estrogen plays a key role in aggressiveness

Imagine if a naturally occurring chemical in your body could help make you feel more calm and relaxed ? but it would only work during the long days of summer.

22 May 2007

Study looks at parents' use of mediation to resolve sibling conflicts

Children whose parents were trained in mediation skills had better conflict-resolution skills than those whose parents did not receive training.

18 May 2007

Origins and mechanisms of morality

How much money would it take to get you to stick a pin into your palm?

18 May 2007

Self-confidence pays dividends

Believing in yourself may be good for the soul, but it can also be good for the bank account, according to a new University of Florida study that finds self-confidence can translate into earning hundreds of thousands of dollars more over a lifetime.

18 May 2007

Children who are hyperactive tend to do worse academically

Although the relationship between such behaviors as overactivity, impulsivity, and inattentiveness in children and poor achievement in math, reading, language, and other areas has been well documented, little is known about the reasons for this link.

18 May 2007

Teaching decision-making skills

People who do well on a series of decision-making tasks involving hypothetical situations tend to have more positive decision outcomes in their lives, according to a study by decision scientists at Carnegie Mellon University and the RAND Corp.

18 May 2007

Virtual Iraq provides better understanding of post-traumatic stress disorder

Weill Cornell Medical College researchers are using a virtual reality simulation called "Virtual Iraq" to better understand how symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) develop.

17 May 2007

Alzheimer's patients who gain weight show improved intellectual abilities

Swedish researchers have found a way to increase the weight of people with Alzheimer's, by improving communication and patient involvement, altering meal routines and providing a more homely eating environment.

16 May 2007

Group based cognitive behavioural therapy helps overcome major CPAP problem

For the first time, a group based cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) intervention has been demonstrated to markedly increase acceptance and adherence to CPAP treatment for sufferers of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

16 May 2007

The Phi Complex as a neuromarker of human social coordination

Researchers from Florida Atlantic University (FAU) have been able to identify neural signatures of effective, real-time coordination between people in one of the first studies in the field of social neuroscience to actually record, measure and analyze both behavior and brain activity simultaneously in two interacting humans.

16 May 2007

Researchers tackle traumatic brain injury

Researchers from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) are pursuing efforts to find new ways to prevent and to treat the increasing numbers of combat troops who are suffering from injuries due to traumatic brain injury (TBI).

11 May 2007

Counseling helps arthritis sufferers

Arthritis sufferers who undergo psychological counseling and learn skills for coping with pain have less disability and better quality of life, according to a new systematic review.

11 May 2007