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Psychology & Psychiatry news

Psychology & Psychiatry

Neural signatures commonly observed when humans make choices can also reflect choice-independent processes

Past neuroscience research has identified patterns in neural activity typically observed when humans are engaged in value-based decision-making. This is the process through which humans choose between options that could be ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Are auditory magic tricks possible for a blind audience?

Magic tricks make the impossible seem possible. Magicians have long captivated audiences with visual tricks, such as pulling a bunny from a hat or sawing someone in half, but tricks that rely on sound are scarce.

Psychology & Psychiatry

Research reveals gene expression's role in depression and immunity

A new study, conducted in a shared effort between U.K. and Italian researchers offers novel insights about the biological mechanisms behind major depressive disorder (MDD), and especially on the role of the immune system.

Psychology & Psychiatry

Trauma takes its toll at the end of life, study reveals

Repeating a school year, experiencing parental abuse or engaging in armed combat have far-reaching effects on the mind and body that may extend to a person's last months. These traumatic experiences can worsen the pain, depression ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Dementia diagnostic markers shown to change with time of day

The time of day when blood is taken can affect the results of tests for diagnosing dementia, according to new research led by the University of Surrey. The study has been published in Translational Psychiatry.

Psychology & Psychiatry

Eyes on the fries: How vision creates a food trend

Research at the University of Sydney has revealed that we don't judge food simply on its merits but are influenced by what we have seen beforehand, a cascading phenomenon known as "serial dependence."

Psychology & Psychiatry

Online insomnia treatment aids caregivers in need of rest

Providing care for a family member with a disabling illness can be a demanding job that leaves many people unable to sleep, but an online insomnia treatment developed at the University of Virginia School of Medicine can help, ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Anti-LGBTQ+ policies linked to depression in Black and Latinx youth

Black and Latinx LGBTQ+ youth living in U.S. states with discriminatory policies, such as "Don't Say Gay" laws, are more likely to be depressed than their peers in the most LGBTQ+-affirming states, according to new research ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Spouses sharing friends may live longer after widowhood

The "widowhood effect"—the tendency for married people to die in close succession—is accelerated when spouses don't know each other's friends well, new Cornell University sociology research finds.

Psychology & Psychiatry

Brain imaging-based biomarker of depression identified

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is not only among the most common mental illnesses, affecting more than 8% of Americans, but it is also extremely variable from one person to another. Researchers have recently begun making ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

How music therapy can help rebuild the lives of refugees

Over the past 20 years, the number of people forcibly displaced from their homes worldwide due to conflict has reached a figure in excess of 90 million. This has more than doubled since the early 1990s, a time period labelled ...

Genetics

Do children inherit parents' stressful experiences?

Most of us learned in high school that people get half their genes from their father and half from their mother. That's true, but it turns out the way parents contribute to their offspring's genetics is more complicated—and ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Fighting loneliness by finding purpose

A new study published in Psychology and Aging co-authored by Patrick Hill, associate professor of psychological and brain sciences, offers an important message for our times: A sense of purpose in life—whether it's a high-minded ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Can parents give their children too much attention?

Parents today spend more time with their children than ever before. Yet, at the same time, they worry more than previous generations about doing enough—believing a lack of engagement may harm their child's future success ...