Given its huge impact, it's amazing that this is the first time Mischel's iconic test of children's self-control has been used in a traditional non-Western setting. The fascinating results – the Cameroonian kids behaved very differently and aced the test compared to their German peers – show how important it is that psychology looks beyond it's usual Western focus. If we're not careful too many of our most cherished theories will turn out to have foundations of (Western) sand.
https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/rural-cameroonian-pre-schooler…/
Why not try this now? Make one of your colleagues a cup of tea, write them a thank you note, or maybe just ask them how they're doing ... small acts of kindness like this spread through an organisation like a happy meme.
https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/small-acts-of-kindness-at-work…/
For six months after giving birth, mothers showed a self-esteem boost. But after that, the typical pattern was for their self-esteem to take a dive for a least three years (the final data collection point in this study). There are so many expectations placed on mums, perhaps these results shouldn't come as a surprise.
https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/soon-after-giving-birth-mother…/
Self-control is widely considered a virtue – the ability to resist short-term temptations in pursuit of longer term aims is arguably part of what makes us human and the foundation of many meaningful achievements. But can you have too much self-control? In excess, can it make you miserable and unable to enjoy life? These researchers conducted 6 studies with thousands of participants and they found no evidence that high self-control has a downside.
https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/if-high-self-control-has-a-dow…/
The murder of Kitty Genovese has become one of psychology's foundational myths, inspiring deep questions about human altruism and research into "Bystander Apathy". Controversy persists over exactly what happened that fateful night in 1964. One thing is for sure, psychology owes Kitty Genovese a huge amount. In this new paper, we hear how her sad story speaks to another important psychological phenomenon: the power of false confessions. Also, we learn of a deep irony: her killer was apprehended thanks to the willingness of bystanders to intervene.
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/more-than-50-years-on-the-murde…/
By guest blogger Dan Carney Our autobiographical memory is fundamental to the development of our sense of self. However, according to past research, it may be compromised in autism, together with other skills that are also vital for self understanding, such as introspection and the ability to attribute mental states to others (known as mentalising). For example, experiments involving autistic children have highlighted retrieval difficulties, “impoverished narratives”, and a greater need for prompting, while also suggesting that semantic recall (facts from the past) may be impaired in younger individuals. [ 853 more words ]
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/researchers-are-figuring-out-ho…/
From issues like climate change to gun control and vaccine uptake, we could surely do with a lot more scientifically literate thinking in the world right now. Unfortunately thinking like a scientist is darn hard, even for scientists.
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/5-reasons-its-so-hard-to-think-…/
Textbooks and years of Western psychology research all tell us that using self control leaves us drained – psychologists here call it "Ego-depletion". A new study in India, where mental effort is considered energizing, reports the exact opposite: the harder an initial mental task, the better participants did at the next one. This is the first demonstration of "Reverse Ego-depletion" and it seems to show how important our beliefs are to the psychology of willpower.
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/reverse-ego-depletion-people-in…/
Low-intensity CBT (guided self-help and internet exercises with a well-being coach rather than a qualified therapist) has been heralded as a revolution in mental health care - it's cheaper and quicker than full CBT with a therapist. But is it false economising? A new study finds that over 50% of low-intensity CBT clients had relapsed within a year (compared with reported relapse rates of less than 30% for full CBT).
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/false-economy-half-of-low-inten…/
Next time you need someone to do you a favour, try this really simple trick: make your request as detailed and specific as possible. It's called the "pique technique" (it piques interest in what you're up to) and a new study suggests it's pretty effective.
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/the-pique-persuasion-technique-…/
We all do it, even though we know we shouldn't –judge people's work by their appearance. In this study, the effects of appearance weren't straightforward. Participants were more interested in the work of good-looking scientists, but they expected it to be lower quality. The level of bias uncovered could have significant real-world implications.
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/scientists-facial-appearance-af…/
Cognitive Psychology findings related to basic processes of perception, memory and learning seem to be particularly robust - in this new study, 9 out of 9 replicated. Good news for psychology!
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/these-nine-cognitive-psychology…/
Researchers found that the terrorists had a "deviant" form of moral judgment that places unusual emphasis on outcomes and fails to consider intentions. When so many psychology studies involve students, this is stand-out research on a unique sample.
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/on-psychological-tests-comparin…/
This is inspiring research for anyone trying to learn a new creative skill, such as playing a musical instrument. The findings suggest that simply making a concerted effort to be more creative can improve your performance. However, the result was different for more experienced participants.
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/can-you-will-yourself-to-be-mor…/
It's hoped the training might have wider benefits for language learning and development more generally. Whether the same approach could work for 70-year-old leaders of the free world awaits further study #covfefe
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/psychologists-have-shown-that-i…/
By Christian Jarrett Openness to Experience is one of the so-called Big Five personality traits and, among other things, it's associated with being more creative, curious and appreciative of the arts. Like all the traits, where you score has important implications – for instance, there's recent evidence that being more Open is associated with having more "cognitive reserve", which gives you protection from the harmful effects of dementia. [ 468 more words ]
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/having-an-open-minded-personali…/
By Alex Fradera A new paper in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology has taken a hard look at psychology’s crisis of replication and research quality and we’re covering its findings in two parts. In Part One, published yesterday, we reported the views of active research psychologists on the state of their field, as surveyed by Matt Motyl and his colleagues at the University of Illinois at Chicago. [ 1,098 more word ]
http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/is-something-rotten-in-the-stat…/
