McGill University researchers design and test computer games that enhance self-esteem
Can computer games help raise self-esteem? Absolutely. In a world-first study, researchers from McGill University’s Department of Psychology have created and tested computer games that are specifically designed to help people enhance their self-acceptance.
Available for public consultation at www.selfesteemgames.mcgill.ca, the games have catchy names such as Wham!, EyeSpy: The Matrix a
A novel method of predicting where home break-ins will occur that is 30 per cent more accurate than current crime mapping techniques has been developed by University College London crime sleuths.
Published online today in the British Journal of Criminology, researchers from UCL’s Jill Dando Institute of Crime Science show it’s possible to develop more effective crime hotspots maps by treating the spread of crime like a disease.
Previous work by the team has shown that the risk of h
In a study of dual-career couples with one child, researchers at Brown University have determined that the division of household labor affects the couple’s decision to have a second child.
Eighty-one percent of couples in which the husband does at least half of the housework will have a second child. For couples in which the wife does most or all of the housework, the figure is 74 percent. But when the wife does between 54 and 84 percent of the housework, the likelihood of the couple having
University of Central Florida researcher worries images of unattainable bodies may encourage steroid use
TV images of muscular, bare-chested men lifting weights and endorsing cologne leave men feeling depressed and unhappy with their muscularity, which may lead to steroid abuse and unhealthy, extreme exercising, University of Central Florida researchers have concluded.
While many studies have shown how images of thin, beautiful models affect women’s self-esteem, UCF psy
New research from the University of Warwick reveals that Queens and prostitutes bared their breasts in the media of the 1600s to titillate the public, and that the exposure of a single breast in portraits and prints was common in portrayals of court ladies. While Janet Jackson’s action of baring her right breast at the Super Bowl earlier this year was considered outrageous, such exposure in 17th century media wouldn’t have raised so much as an eyebrow.
In expensive portraits and c
If asked to imagine a criminal suspect, certain mental pictures come to mind for most people. According to a recent Penn State study concerning people’s memory of news photographs, images that accentuate African-American facial features would be common, and particularly if the crime is violent rather than non-violent.
“Our data suggest that when reading news about violent crime, people seem to unconsciously recall images associated with African-Americans, reflecting the influence of ste
Learning more about job applicant testing
“My approach to pre-employment personality tests has been zero tolerance vis-à-vis the obvious “crimes”–drug use and theft–but to leave a little wriggle room elsewhere, just so it doesn’t look like I’m faking out the test. My approach was wrong. When presenting yourself as a potential employee, you can never be too much of a suck-up.”
Nickel & Dimed, by Barbara Ehrenreich, page 124.
Learning if job applicants are faking and fin
A study designed to assess the usefulness of a single session of motivational interviewing in drug abuse treatment showed that the single session of the psychotherapy technique had no effect on drug use outcomes. However, results of a subsequent analysis suggest that the therapist may have pressed for change before the individual was ready.
Motivational interviewing is designed to strengthen a person’s commitment to changing their behavior by focusing on such factors as desire, self-ef
Depression is common among opiate users and may serve as a trigger for high-risk drug injection practices, continued drug use, and relapse. Research has shown that individuals with co-occurring depression and substance use are less likely to complete treatment and have poorer prognoses after traditional treatment. However, scientists at the Brown University School of Medicine demonstrated that multisession, combination antidepressant therapy successfully reduced depression in active injection drug us
Pregnant women living under stressful conditions and those who use tobacco, alcohol or illegal drugs have compromised immune system responses that threaten the health of both mother and baby, according to a study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Duke University Medical Center.
The results suggest that elevated levels of inflammatory biomarkers called cytokines – small protein molecules that transmit signals within the immune system – are an early risk factor for prem
UMHS study suggests some babies more in tune to mom’s behavior at meals
Mealtime is a nightmare, the baby won’t eat what’s on his highchair, and instead he seems to grab for whatever mom and dad have on their plates. For many parents it’s a familiar and frustrating story.
But while parents may describe their baby as a difficult eater or an overeater, it could be just a sign that the child is more tuned in to the eating habits of those around him.
A n
Some parents-to-be talk to their unborn child, read stories out loud and play classical music to bond and give the baby a head start on life. This uniquely American pregnancy practice, “belly talk,” is the subject of study by a University of Michigan anthropologist.
“It’s one of the ways expectant parents here start to think of their unborn children as persons who are part of their family,” said Sallie Han, a researcher with the Alfred P. Sloan Center for the Ethnography of Everyday Li
Baggage screeners have just seconds amid loud airport noises and the pressure of rushed airline travelers to scan X-rays of carry-on items for weapons. How good they are at finding one may depend on the specificity of their training, say researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
The findings, published in the May issue of the journal Psychological Science, suggest that initial training of federal airport screeners needs to last long enough for them to be exposed to a var
UK advice provision is fragmented, underfunded and patchy, says research
Lone parents are not getting the advice they need because advice provision is fragmented, underfunded and patchy, according to research by Cardiff University. The research, published by One Parent Families, was funded by The Nuffield Foundation.
Looking at 12 types of legal and social welfare problems faced by single parents – including debt, contact, benefits and child maintenance – depending on the pro
Women are better than men at remembering the appearance of others, a new study shows.
The gender difference in appearance memory was not great, but it shows another area where women are superior to men in interpersonal sensitivity, said Terrence Horgan, lead author of the study and research fellow in psychology at Ohio State University.
“Women have an advantage when it comes to remembering things like the physical features, clothing and postures of other people,” Horgan said.
Brothers and sisters who fight while growing up lay the groundwork for battering their dates by the time they get to college, a new University of Florida study finds.
In fact, the study found that sibling violence is a predictor of dating violence and is compounded by the experience of growing up in families where parent-to-child violence or parent-to-parent violence exists, said Virginia Noland, a UF professor of health science education.
“The findings suggest that sibling violence
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