These new findings build on previous research that suggests successfully resisting temptation is more about avoiding it in the first place rather than having amazing powers of self restraint.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/whether-you-snack-or-not-is-mo…/

This may be the scientific excuse for laziness that you've been looking for! More seriously, the results have important practical implications for encouraging people to take up more exercise – those with genes that make physical exertion feel unpleasant may especially benefit from tailored exercise programmes.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/hate-sport-maybe-its-because-y…/

There is increasing recognition that effective psychotherapy depends at least in part on bringing about beneficial personality change. A new study finds that MDMA/Ecstasy can enhance therapy for people with previously treatment-resistant PTSD because it facilitates increased trait Openness to Experience and lower Neuroticism.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/mdmaecstasy-may-boost-psychoth…/

“Figures such as Princess Diana, Oprah Winfrey, Mahatma Gandhi, Ronald Reagan, and Adolf Hitler share this triumphant, mysterious, and fascinating descriptor”, write the authors of a new paper on charisma. And yet, they add, “the empirical study of charisma is relatively young and sparse, and no unifying conceptualization of charisma currently exists”.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/psychologists-have-developed-t…/

Do you know the difference between a mediator and a moderator? What about between obsessions and compulsions? A new paper lists 50 of these confusing term pairs in psychology. I've highlighted 10 to get you started (and I confess I stumbled on a few too) ...

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/punishment-vs-negative-reinfor…/

"Erroneous anti-profit beliefs may lead to systematically worse economic policies for society, even as they help people satisfy their social and expressive needs on an individual level” the researchers said.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/we-have-an-ingrained-anti-prof…/

Somebody tell John McEnroe

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/elite-female-tennis-players-le…/

Perfectionism is associated with “intense psychological pain” the researchers said. Perfectionists have a “harsh way of relating to a self they find deficient”. Their lives are typically stressful and they often have a “prickly, conflictual style of relating to others,” leaving them isolated and lacking support. “Amid such pain,” Smith and his colleagues conclude,”perfectionists may think about, or engage in, suicide as a means of escaping a life they find unbearable.”

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/perfectionism-as-a-risk-factor…/

By Alex Fradera What can we tell about someone from their face? Their favoured facial expressions can hint at their temperament, the weathering of their skin at their life history, their facial hair and makeup at their aesthetic taste. But now, new research in the journal Attitudes and Social Cognition suggests that we can also intuit their names, because a person’s given name influences their facial appearance in adult life. [ 1,191 more word ]

http://digest.bps.org.uk/…/your-face-gives-clues-to-your-n…/

You can probably think of some high-IQ boffins who make consistently foolish decisions in their everyday lives. This research suggests it's because, despite their high intellect, they have poor critical thinking skills. Book smart doesn't necessarily make you life smart.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/why-some-smart-people-make-foo…/

There's a lot of neurobunk out there. You'd think taking university courses in neuroscience would be an antidote to falling for these misconceptions. However a new US survey found that even people who'd taken multiple courses in neuroscience fell for about half the myths in the survey, often including the learning styles myths and the left-brain, right-brain myth! How well would you fare I wonder?

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/oh-dear-even-people-with-neuro…/

A new paper looks at the reasons why we are such inept "self-presenters" – in other words, why we're not very good at trying to impress other people. Pretty handy if you want to avoid coming across as a buffoon.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/new-paper-provides-evidence-ba…/

Studying people who have brain damage or illness has been hugely important to progress in psychology. The approach is akin to reverse engineering: study how things go wrong when particular regions of the brain are compromised and it provides useful clues as to how those regions usually contribute to healthy mental function. These 8 neuropsychological syndromes are so rare they usually don't appear in textbooks, but they're still very important for our understanding of the brain.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/eight-important-neuropsycholog…/

Generally speaking, autistic people are less sensitive to context – lots of studies have shown how this affects their visual perception. This new research shows how it applies to their decision making too, apparently making them less susceptible to "decoy" items used by marketing people to influence our choices.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/why-autistic-people-may-be-les…/

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…/