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"You might not be surprised to hear about the harmful health consequences of a sedentary lifestyle, but perhaps less obvious is that physical inactivity is also associated with unwelcome changes in personality over time."

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/adopting-a-more-active-lifesty…/

Adopting a more active lifestyle today could have benefits for your personality decades from now
Something to ponder when you next decide whether to walk or drive to the shops. By Christian Jarrett
digest.bps.org.uk

If a person can be persuaded they did something they didn't do, does it matter whether they actually remember the event or not?

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/psychologists-clash-over-how-e…/

Psychologists clash over how easy it is to implant false memories of committing a crime
The debate raises an interesting question: if someone can be convinced that a false event is real, does it matter whether they remember it? By Simon Oxenham
digest.bps.org.uk
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Choose your friends wisely!

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/your-childhood-best-friends-in…/

Your childhood best friend’s intelligence probably rubbed off on you
Just by hanging out with a brainy buddy, you will likely have absorbed some of their knowledge and skills. By Christian Jarrett
digest.bps.org.uk

Better think twice before deploying your psych knowledge this Valentines!

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/a-cautionary-tale-about-using-…/

A cautionary tale about using psychology to boost your Valentine’s chances
By Christian Jarrett As he prepared for his blind date, Kevin was determined to leave nothing to chance. For starters, his date for Valentine’s evening thought his name was Jake. You see, Kev…
digest.bps.org.uk

US psychopaths are callous, Dutch psychopaths are parasitic. Genuine cross-cultural differences or a reflection of confusion over what exactly psychopathy is?

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/important-differences-uncovere…/

Important differences uncovered between US and Dutch psychopaths
The findings raise the question: Does the meaning of the term "psychopath" vary between cultures? By Emma Young
digest.bps.org.uk

By Christian Jarrett Any context that encourages us to focus on a person's body, more than their mind, is said to lead to objectification, such as when, in a previous era, a Formula One fan looked upon an attractive "grid girl" dressed in revealing clothes. Perhaps the most serious concern about objectification is that it can lead us to disregard the rights and experiences of the objectified person. [ 806 more words ]

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/reduced-neural-empathy-for-wom…/

Reduced neural empathy for women wearing revealing clothes
The researchers said their findings "may indicate a possible mechanism behind the motivation of gender-based violent behaviour". By Christian Jarrett
digest.bps.org.uk

By Christian Jarrett Imagining ourselves as no longer existing is, for most of us, terrifying. Buddhism may offer some reassurance. A central tenet of the religion is that all is impermanent and the self is actually an illusion. If there is no self, then why fear the end of the self? To find out if the logic of the Buddhist perspective eliminates existential fear, Shaun Nichols at the University of Arizona and his colleagues surveyed hundreds of monastic Tibetan Buddhists (monks-in-training) in exile in India, as well as lay Tibetans, Tibetan Buddhists from Bhutan, Indian Hindus and American Christians and atheists. [ 765 more words ]

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/is-death-still-frightening-if-…/

Is death still frightening if you believe the self is an illusion? An astonishing study of Tibetan Buddhists
The researchers wrote that they were astonished by their findings. By Christian Jarrett
digest.bps.org.uk

"... it would be irresponsible to draw any firm conclusions about what they might mean for function and behaviour."

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/sex-differences-in-brain-struc…/

Sex differences in human brain structure are already apparent at one month of age
Pretending these early sex differences in the brain don't exist will not help us make society fairer. By Alex Fradera
digest.bps.org.uk

Studying psychiatric symptom dimensions rather than diagnostic categories reveals some intriguing links in the general public between symptoms and metacognition - including confidence and metacognitive accuracy.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/different-psychiatric-symptom-…/

Different psychiatric symptom dimensions have opposite associations with confidence and metacognition
The researchers used a basic perceptual task to test participants' judgment accuracy, confidence, and insight into judgment accuracy. By Christian Jarrett
digest.bps.org.uk

By Emma Young Of course, there are examples of extremely intelligent individuals with strong religious convictions. But various studies have found that, on average, belief in God is associated with lower scores on IQ tests. “It is well established that religiosity correlates inversely with intelligence,” note Richard Daws and Adam Hampshire at Imperial College London, in a new paper… [ 442 more words ]

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/are-religious-people-really-le…/

Are religious people really less smart, on average, than atheists?
Past research has found that religiosity correlates with lower IQ, but this new study reveals evidence that complicates the picture. By Emma Young
digest.bps.org.uk

Compounding the difficulties they have liking themselves, people with low self-esteem also tend to have poorer relationships. This new study suggests it's not all their fault – their partners really are less responsive (though both sides contribute to this dynamic)

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/its-not-all-in-their-heads-peo…/

It’s not all in their heads: people with low self-esteem really do have less responsive partners
The researchers say their findings could have implications for how optimise couples therapy. By Christian Jarrett
digest.bps.org.uk

The "other side" is not stupid - try listening to those who disagree with you.

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/something-we-could-use-a-littl…/

Something we could use a little more of – studies link intellectual humility with openness to other viewpoints
One way to increase intellectual humility, at least in the short term, is to encourage a belief in the malleability of intelligence. By Christian Jarrett
digest.bps.org.uk

By Emma Young “Conferences on psychedelics are popping up everywhere, like mushrooms!” said Jakobien van der Weijden, of the Psychedelic Society of the Netherlands, when I met her in Amsterdam last week. Indeed, research into the use of psychedelic (mind-altering) drugs as tools in the treatment of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and end-of-life angst, is on the increase. Psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, may help to alleviate symptoms of depression by altering brain activity in key areas… [ 771 more words ]

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/psilocybin-from-magic-mushroom…/

Psilocybin (from magic mushrooms) plus meditation and spiritual training leads to lasting changes in positive traits
Further investigation of the effects of psilocybin may lead to new interventions to create positive changes in healthy people. By Emma Young
digest.bps.org.uk

By Christian Jarrett Discussion of the menopause tends be negative. Take the video introduction to "menopause week" held this week on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Radio Sheffield. The well-meaning presenters talk of "distress", the impact, the "troubling" changes, and "how to get through it". Of course the aim is to support and educate, and it's important to acknowledge the seriousness of some women's problems. [ 563 more words ]

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/not-as-bad-as-you-think-women-…/

“Not as bad as you think”: women who’ve gone through the menopause have a more positive take than those who haven’t
There's a risk that overly negative commentary about the menopause perpetuates beliefs and stereotypes that may foster unjustified dread. By Christian Jarrett
digest.bps.org.uk

The findings would appear to raise questions about the immediate use of hormonal treatments for teens diagnosed with gender dysphoria

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/most-children-and-teens-with-g…/

Most children and teens with gender dysphoria also have multiple other psychological issues
The majority of gender dysphoric kids & teens had other psych problems, raising questions about the rush to facilitate gender transitioning. By Alex Fradera
digest.bps.org.uk

It's not all bad on Blue Monday

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/10-studies-that-show-the-advan…/

10 Studies That Show The Advantages of Feeling Down
By Christian Jarrett As human beings, there’s no avoiding feeling sad – as R.E.M. put it “everybody cries, and everybody hurts sometimes”. We usually think of this as an unpleasan…
digest.bps.org.uk

By Alex Fradera “Microaggressions” are seemingly innocuous words or behaviour that supposedly communicate a bias toward minority groups, such as asking Asian Americans where they are from, implying that they are not really part of the USA. According to advocates of the usefulness of the concept, microaggressions cause real harm, even if unintended by the perpetrator. However, the theoretical and evidential support for the concept of microaggressions is far from clear, as detailed in Scott Lilienfeld’s recent… [ 759 more words ]

https://digest.bps.org.uk/…/new-findings-pose-more-problem…/

New findings pose more problems for the embattled concept of the microaggression
It seems that anyone who thinks their in-group has been slighted by an out-group member may feel as if they’ve been “microaggressed”. By Alex Fradera
digest.bps.org.uk