news 2008

Life Sciences - Psychology - 15.05
Genes make for a life of success
Genes play a greater role in forming character traits than was previously thought, new research suggests. A study of more than 800 sets of twins found that genetics were more influential in shaping key traits than a person's home environment and surroundings.

Psychology - 4.05
High rate of victimization among gays, lesbians and bisexuals
A new analysis of hundreds of existing research studies shows that lesbians, gays and bisexuals experience high rates of victimization.

Medicine/Pharmacology - Psychology - 30.04
Effects of loneliness mimic aging process, boost heart disease risk
The social pain of loneliness produces changes in the body that mimic the aging process and increase the risk of heart disease, reports a recent Cornell study published in Psychology and Aging (27:1).

Life Sciences - Psychology - 24.04
How your eyes deceive you
Researchers at the University of Sydney have thrown new light on the tricks the brain plays as it struggles to make sense of the visual and other sensory signals it constantly receives. The research has implications for understanding how the brain interprets the world visually and how the brain itself works.

Psychology - 23.04
Even positive stereotypes can hinder performance, researchers report
CHAMPAIGN, lll. - Does hearing that you are a member of an elite group - of chess players, say, or scholars - enhance your performance on tasks related to your alleged area of expertise? Not necessarily, say researchers who tested how sweeping pronouncements about the skills or likely success of social groups can influence children's performance.

Psychology - 17.04
Babies flick anti-risk ‘switch’ in women but not men
Unlike women, men don't curb certain risk-taking behaviours when a baby is present, a new psychology study at the University of Warwick suggests. Whereas women are significantly more cautious when they are partnered with small children in a gambling game measuring their attitude to risk, men don't substantially alter their willingness to take a chance.

Psychology - 10.04
Personality, habits of thought and gender influence how we remember
CHAMPAIGN, lll. - We all have them - positive memories of personal events that are a delight to recall, and painful recollections that we would rather forget. A new study reveals that what we do with our emotional memories and how they affect us has a lot to do with our gender, personality and the methods we use (often without awareness) to regulate our feelings.

Medicine/Pharmacology - Psychology - 19.03
Pediatricians’ pain-medication judgments affected by unconscious racial bias, says UW study
Pediatricians who show an unconscious preference for European Americans tend to prescribe better pain-management for white patients than they do for African-American patients, new University of Washington research shows.

Psychology - Life Sciences - 15.03
Cell phone use in pregnancy may cause behavioral disorders in offspring
Exposure to radiation from cell phones during pregnancy affects the brain development of offspring, potentially leading to hyperactivity, Yale School of Medicine researchers have determined. The results, based on studies in mice, are published in the March 15 issue of Scientific Reports, a Nature publication.

Medicine/Pharmacology - Psychology - 15.03
The next decade of mental health drugs
The pharmaceutical industry has in part withdrawn, either because they struggled to translate research into a viable drug or because of financial pressures." —Barbara Sahakian Leading international academics are advocating for new approaches to drug development for mental health diseases.  Their comment article depression, and schizophrenia.

Psychology - 6.03
Breastfeeding less common and much shorter with unplanned pregnancy, according to new research
Breastfeeding less common and much shorter with unplanned pregnancy, according to new research Women who did not plan to get pregnant stop breastfeeding sooner than women who did and are ten times as likely to stop breastfeeding exclusively by 12 weeks, according to new research by a Durham University expert The study suggests that women w

Environmental Sciences - Psychology - 28.02
Preschools Significantly Reduce Achievement Gap Between Rich and Poor, New Twin Study Shows
AUSTIN, Texas — Parents always want the best education possible for their child, and new research from The University of Texas at Austin shows preschool enrollment is one of the best ways to ensure that disadvantaged kids start down the right academic path early on.

Psychology - 13.02
Lust makes you smarter and evidence that seven deadly sins are good for you
Good news for lovers on Valentine's Day - the seven deadly sins, including Lust, are good for you. University of Melbourne social psychologist Simon Laham uses modern research to make a compelling case for the virtues of living a sinful life in his latest book The Joy of Sin: The Psychology of the Seven Deadlies (And Why They Are So Good For You).

Life Sciences - Psychology - 1.02
Could brain size determine whether you are good at maintaining friendships?
Researchers are suggesting that there is a link between the number of friends you have and the size of the region of the brain – known as the orbital prefrontal cortex – that is found just above the eyes.

Mathematics - Psychology - 18.01
Poor self-image cannot explain maths gender gap
Studies showing that women's underachievement in maths is due to their own poor self-image are fundamentally flawed, according to psychologists Gijsbert Stoet, from the University of Leeds, and Professor David Geary from the University of Missouri.