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157 news posts in Psychology

Psychology

07 Oct 2016

Enjoying your workout is the best motivation

By K.E.D. Coan Emotions may help build the foundation of a sustainable exercise routine, suggests a new study in Frontiers in Psychology. It’s an all too familiar story: Despite resolutions to lose weight, get in shape, or simply stay fit, it’s all too easy to fall off the exercise band wagon. Studies estimate that up to 50% of gym members drop out within the first six months of a new exercise program. But why is it so hard to stay motivated? “Training plans are based on sport science, rather than psychological factors, and we thought that there must be a different way to analyze this behavior,” says Benjamin Wienke, the first author of the study published in Frontiers in Psychology and a doctoral student at Humboldt University in Berlin. “So we decided to look at whether there could be an emotional explanation.” Wienke and his collaborator, Darko Jekauc, interviewed a group of 24 men and women about their exercise habits, lifestyle, and their preferred activities. Unsurprisingly, their results quickly showed that enjoyment was a common factor amongst those who kept a regular exercise routine. But the next question was, exactly what factors trigger this enjoyment? Further analysis of the interview […]

Psychology

05 Oct 2016

Study shows infants pay more attention to native speakers

By Marcus Banks, Frontiers Science Writer Almost from the moment of birth, human beings are able to distinguish between speakers of their native language and speakers of all other languages. We have a hard-wired preference for our own language patterns, so much so that the cries of very young infants reflect the melodies of their native language. The connection between language and social preferences is well-established. New research, recently published in Frontiers in Psychology, demonstrates that infants also pay attention to language cues in deciding where to place their attention. Dr. Hanna Marno (Department of Cognitive Science at the Central European University, Hungary and International School for Advanced Studies, Italy) conducted a study to determine whether young babies would selectively pay attention to different speakers in their environment, even when they do not understand the meanings of the words. In the experiment, forty 12-month-old infants first listened to two adult female speakers — one in their native language of Italian, the other in Slovenian – for two minutes. The infants then observed movies of both women — the native and non-native speaker separately — gazing at two colorful objects. At this stage the infants attended equally to both objects for […]

Psychology

20 Sep 2016

Emotional Intelligence can enhance quality of life

by Srividya Sundaresan, Frontiers Science Writer Research indicates emotional intelligence correlates with a greater sense of personal well-being, a study in Frontiers in Psychology found. People feel a sense of well-being when their work and their lives are meaningful. Psychologists measure two indices of personal well-being – our need to seek pleasure and avoid pain – hedonic well-being, and our need for personal fulfillment and self realization – eudaimonic well-being. If a sense of well-being is important for an individual, what are certain factors or traits that contribute to well-being? Can these traits be enhanced to give people more resources to deal with their challenges? Emotional intelligence, or EI, could play an important role, according to a recent study reported in the online journal, Frontiers in Psychology. But, what is EI? EI is often described as the ability of a person to identify emotions in themselves and others, and manage these emotions. Two aspects of EI are trait EI and ability-based EI. Trait EI includes the perceptions of features such as self control, self awareness, and adaptability, to name a few, whereas ability-based EI refers to objective skills in coping with emotions. Evidence from other studies show EI improves with targeted training and […]

Psychology

13 Sep 2016

Touchscreens may boost motor skills in toddlers

  by Conn Hastings, Frontiers Science Writer Younger use of touchscreens by toddlers correlates with increased fine motor control. Does your toddler use a touchscreen tablet? A recent study published in Frontiers in Psychology has shown that early touchscreen use, and in particular actively scrolling the screen, correlates with increased fine motor control in toddlers. Smartphones and tablets are now commonplace at work and in the home. If you are reading this on your morning commute on public transport, it is likely to be on a touchscreen device, while surrounded by people who are completely absorbed by their own touchscreens. There has been a dramatic increase in the ownership and use of tablets and smartphones in recent years. In the UK, family ownership of touchscreen devices increased from 7% in 2011 to 71% in 2014. It is therefore not surprising that children are using touchscreens from a very early age, but is this a good thing or not? The effects of using touchscreens on young children are a concern for some parents and policymakers. Popular opinion holds that using touchscreens at an early age is likely to delay the cognitive development of children. The American Academy of Pediatrics advises that […]

Psychology

08 Sep 2016

How can we get into the zone?

by Emily Barker, Frontiersin.org We’ve all heard the term getting in the zone – that moment when everything just clicks. Often the idea of the zone has been associated with elites athletes, such as Olympiads, but what about ordinary people – can we get in the zone? That is what Kath Woodward, Frontiers Specialty Chief Editor for Gender, Sex and Sexuality Studies, and her team are trying to work out by looking at different areas such as sport, computer gaming and music. Rather than see the zone as one thing, she explained it is actually a set of phenomena. The zone is when musicians, athletes, creative workers and others do certain actions with an unexpected and extremely high level of competence, often beyond the competence the individual thought they were capable of. It is linked to high-state performance. Previously, the idea of the zone has been mainly been studied in relation to psychology and has been linked to the idea of flow. However, Prof. Woodward thinks there are other factors in play such as the environment, temporality and of course confidence in your abilities, which can include factors such as gendered expectations. “You need a level of confidence in what […]

Psychology

02 Sep 2016

“Gambling” wolves take more risks than dogs

Wolves pursue a high-risk, all-or-nothing strategy when gambling for food, while dogs are more cautious, shows a new study. This difference is likely innate and adaptive, reflecting the hunter versus scavenger lifestyle of wolves and dogs. Would you rather get 100 euros for certain, or have a fifty-fifty chance of receiving either 200 euros or nothing? Most choose the first, as humans tend to be “risk-averse”, preferring a guaranteed pay-off over the possibility of a greater reward. It is thought that this human preference for “playing it safe” has evolved through natural selection: when you live precariously like our remote ancestors, losing all your food reserves might be catastrophic, while adding to them might makes less difference to your chances of survival. Here, in one of the first studies on risk preferences in non-primates, scientists show through a series of controlled experiments that wolves are consistently more prone to take risks when gambling for food than dogs. When faced with the choice between an insipid food pellet and a fifty-fifty chance of either tasty meat or an inedible stone, wolves nearly always prefer the risky option, whereas dogs are more cautious. “We compared the propensity to take risks in a […]

Psychology

12 Aug 2016

Burnout is caused by mismatch between unconscious needs and job demands

New research shows that burnout is caused by a mismatch between a person’s subconscious needs and the opportunities and demands at the workplace. These results have implications for the prevention of job burnout. Imagine an accountant who is outgoing and seeks closeness in her social relationships, but whose job offers little scope for contact with colleagues or clients. Now imagine a manager, required to take responsibility for a team, but who does not enjoy taking center-stage or being in a leadership role. For both, there is a mismatch between their individual needs and the opportunities and demands at the workplace. A new study in the open-access journal Frontiers in Psychology shows that such mismatches put employees at risk of burnout. Burnout is a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion from work, which results in a lack of motivation, low efficiency, and a helpless feeling. Its health effects include anxiety, cardiovascular disease, immune disorders, insomnia, and depression. The financial burden from absenteeism, employee turnover, reduced productivity, and medical, legal, and insurance expenses due to burnout and general work-related stress is staggering: for example, the American Institute of Stress estimates the total cost to American enterprises at 300 billion US$ per […]

Psychology

03 Aug 2016

Smartphone Exercises for a Better Mood

Brief, directed smartphone exercises can help quickly improve our mood. This is the latest finding from psychologists at the University of Basel and their international colleagues, reported in the journal Frontiers in Psychology. Participants in the international study felt more alert, calmer and uplifted after – using five-minute video tutorials on their smartphones as a guide – they had, for example, practiced concentrating on their bodies. The subjects could choose between various established or more modern psychotherapeutic exercise modules known as micro-interventions. Some of the participants, for example, recalled emotional experiences during the exercise, while other test subjects repeated short sentences or number sequences in a contemplative manner, or played with their facial gestures. The subjects recorded their mood on their smartphones, answering short questions by marking a six-step scale both before and after the exercise. Those who succeeded in immediately improving their mood through the brief exercises benefited over the longer term as well: Their mood improved overall during the two-week study phase. The study, conducted by researchers in associate professor Marion Tegethoff’s team at the University of Basel’s Faculty of Psychology, included 27 healthy young men as part of a larger research program. The use of modern communication […]

Psychology

28 Jul 2016

Music makes beer taste better

The music played in a bar can impact how much you enjoy your drink. by Samantha Bradey, Frontiersin.org Music can influence how much you like the taste of beer, according to a study published in Frontiers in Psychology. Their findings suggest that a range of multisensory information, such as sound, sensation, shape and color, can influence the way we perceive taste.   The Brussels Beer Project collaborated with UK band The Editors to produce a porter-style beer that took inspiration from the musical and visual identity of the band. The ale had a medium body and used an Earl Grey infusion that produced citrus notes, contrasting with the malty, chocolate flavors from the mix of grains used in production. This taste profile was designed to broadly correspond to The Editors latest album, ‘In Dreams’. Then, a team of researchers led by Dr. Felipe Reinoso Cavalho, from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and KU Leuven, designed an experiment to see if the influence of music and packaging design would result in a more positive tasting experience. They invited 231 drinkers to experience the beer in three different conditions. The first served as a control group and drank the beer along with a bottle […]

Psychology

25 Jul 2016

Pain of rejection makes us more likely to commit fraud

by Abigail Pattenden, Frontiersin.org People commit fraud because they are unhappy about being rejected, a new study in Frontiers in Psychology has found. Many of us might not be professional criminals, however when an insurance company rejects our claims, we are more likely to inflate the claims. Insurance companies take note: we are more likely to submit false insurance claims if our original submissions are rejected. Regardless of whether that rejection is fair or unfair, or if there is a financial reward at stake, being rejected makes us feel unhappy and we react by behaving dishonestly. In this study, which used a mock insurance claim scenario, people whose claims were initially rejected were quick to fudge their stories to get their claims settled. Whilst the odd small claim inflation in the real world may seem harmless enough to the perpetrator, insurance fraud is a very expensive crime. According to the FBI, insurance fraud amounts to around $40bn per year, or $400-$700 per family per year in the US. Dr Sophie Van Der Zee explained “Fraud is a widespread issue that is costing society and thereby each individual large sums of money. The problem with fraud is that it benefits a few […]

Psychology

19 Jul 2016

Electric brain stimulation can improve mood and relieve stress

Feeling down? How about an electric pick-me-up for your brain? by K.E.D. Coan Electrical brain stimulation can improve the mood of healthy people as well as those suffering from depression, says study published in Frontiers in Psychology. More than 10% of American adults take antidepressants, according to the CDC’s last survey, but these drugs can come with a variety of unpleasant side effects. As an alternative, a team at Swansea University is developing an approach using electrical brain stimulation to alleviate stress and depression. Past studies have shown this method can relieve depression, but their most recent study presents the first evidence that it can also give healthy people a little boost when they’re feeling down. “We’ve shown that weak electric stimulation is effective to improve the mood of those who are not depressed, but are still affected by the consequences of a stressful, restless, and demanding lifestyle,” said Dr. Frederic Boy, Head of Translational and Consumer Neuroscience at Swansea. Although the idea of electric brain stimulation may give you pause for thought, researchers have safely used transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) for over a decade. Last year, the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) also approved tDCS for the treatment […]

Psychology

14 Jul 2016

Opposites attract – unless you’re in a relationship

by Alice Rolandini Jensen, Frontiersin.org If we are in a relationship we are more likely to be attracted to faces resembling our own, but for single people, opposites attract. Relationship status affects who and what we find attractive, found a study published in Frontiers in Psychology. Dr Jitka Lindová of Charles University in the Czech Republic and her team showed a series of photographs of faces to university students and asked them to rate their attractiveness. The photographs were digitally manipulated so that the resemblance to the student was modified. Images were of an individual of the opposite sex, whose face had been manipulated to look either more or less similar to the student. They were also presented with images of a same-sex individual manipulated in the same way. “We found that single participants, those not in relationships, rate dissimilar faces as more attractive and sexy than self-resembling faces;” stated Lindová. This was observed when participants rated both same-sex and opposite-sex faces. “For the first time, we have observed how our partnership status affects who we find attractive;” she added. “Our interpretation is that attractiveness perception mechanisms that give us a preference for a genetically suitable partner may be suppressed […]

Psychology

30 Jun 2016

Thinking ‘I can do better’ really can improve performance

by Susan Haas, Frontiersin.org Online training really can help to improve performance, a study published in Frontiers in Psychology has found. Over 44,000 people took part in an experiment to discover what motivational techniques really worked. In conjunction with BBC Lab UK, Professor Andrew Lane and his colleagues tested which physiological skills would help people improve their scores in an online game. This complex study examined if one motivational method would be more effective for any specific aspect of a task. The methods tested were self-talk, imagery, and if-then planning. Each of these psychological skills was applied to one of four parts of a competitive task: process, outcome, arousal-control, and instruction. People using self-talk, for example telling yourself “I can do better next time” – performed better than the control group in every portion of the task. The greatest improvements were seen in self-talk-outcome (telling yourself, “I can beat my best score”), self-talk-process (telling yourself, “I can react quicker this time”), imagery-outcome (imagining yourself playing the game and beating your best score), and imagery-process (imagining yourself playing and reacting quicker than last time). They also found a short motivational video could improve performance. Participants watched a short video before playing the […]