Stories indexed under: Psychology

Total: 51   RSS feed

• Facebook profiles raise users’ self-esteem and affect behavior May 31, 2013 A Facebook profile is an ideal version of self, full of photos and posts curated for the eyes of family, friends and acquaintances. A new study shows that this version of self can provide beneficial psychological effects and influence behavior.
• Passionate, student-focused psychology instructor Hendricks dies March 12, 2013 Bryan Hendricks, who became a student favorite during 12 years as an instructor in the University of Wisconsin–Madison Psychology Department, died Friday morning at age 66 following an illness that had recently forced his retirement.
• Facebook users browse their own profiles to boost egos Feb. 6, 2013 Lousy day at work or a bad grade on an exam? New research suggests people feeling deflated seek solace in their Facebook profiles to puff themselves up.
• Psychology prof studies what’s behind candidates’ smiles Oct. 22, 2012 As she was watching the first presidential debate, psychology Professor Paula Niedenthal couldn't help but notice something odd about Barack Obama's smile.
• Pacifiers may have emotional consequences for boys Sept. 18, 2012 Pacifiers may stunt the emotional development of baby boys by robbing them of the opportunity to try on facial expressions during infancy.
• Stress breaks loops that hold short-term memory together Sept. 13, 2012 Stress has long been pegged as the enemy of attention, disrupting focus and doing substantial damage to working memory - the short-term juggling of information that allows us to do all the little things that make us productive.
• Study pinpoints Ritalin’s influence Jan. 5, 2012 Millions of individuals diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are helped by methylphenidate, the stimulant better known as Ritalin. Now researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have pinpointed the area of the brain in which Ritalin does its work.
• Psychologist to explain 3-D perception to National Geographic audience Oct. 7, 2011 Bas Rokers, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will illustrate how our brains process visual motion and depth during the three-part National Geographic television series "Brain Games."
• Study: Advantages of single-sex schooling a myth Sept. 22, 2011 As Madison deals with a proposal to establish a single-sex charter school, a University of Wisconsin–Madison professor of psychology is one author of an article that calls the scientific case for single-sex schools "pseudoscience."
• Forum considers human consciousness April 20, 2011 The 10th annual International Bioethics Forum, Manifesting the Mind, will explore perspectives on human consciousness at its two-day symposium April 28-29.
• Noted primate researcher to discuss animal research March 25, 2011 On Tuesday, March 29, University of Wisconsin-Madison psychology professor Charles Snowdon will discuss his decades of research on a small new-world monkey called the cotton-top tamarin.
• New perspective diminishes racial bias in pain treatment March 7, 2011 Years of research show black patients getting less treatment in the American health care system than their white counterparts, but a new study suggests that a quick dose of empathy helps close racial gaps in pain treatment.
• Banking on predictability, the mind increases efficiency Nov. 22, 2010 Like musical compression saves space on your mp3 player, the human brain has ways of recoding sounds to save precious processing power.
• Peace of mind closes health gap for less educated Oct. 25, 2010 Psychological well-being is powerful enough to counteract the pull of socioeconomic status on the long-term health of the disadvantaged, according to a study by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
• Large study shows females are equal to males in math skills Oct. 11, 2010 The mathematical skills of boys and girls, as well as men and women, are substantially equal, according to a new examination of existing studies in the current online edition of journal Psychological Bulletin.
• For first time, monkeys recognize themselves in the mirror, indicating self-awareness Sept. 29, 2010 Typically, monkeys don't know what to make of a mirror. They may ignore it or interpret their reflection as another, invading monkey, but they don't recognize the reflection as their own image. Chimpanzees and people pass this "mark" test - they obviously recognize their own reflection and make funny faces, look at a temporary mark that the scientists have placed on their face or wonder how they got so old and grey.
• Monkey generosity: No strings attached July 13, 2010 Among monkeys that split child care responsibilities, sharing extends to dinnertime, but grudges do not, according to research published July 14 in Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
• Hormone study finds monkeys in long-term relationship look strangely human July 12, 2010 Monkeys in enduring relationships show a surprising correspondence in their levels of oxytocin, a key behavioral hormone, according to research published online June 28 in the journal Hormones and Behavior.
• Changing sounds are key to understanding speech June 22, 2010 On the printed page, c*ns*n*nts m*tt*r m*r* th*n v*w*ls.
• Recent sightings: Hands-on healthy April 21, 2010