Oct 14 How to combat racial bias: Start in childhood By Gail Heyman, The Conversation Racial bias is associated with dehumanizing social groups different from your own. Psychologists trained kids to differentiate individuals of another race – with lasting effects on their biases. Continue reading
Sep 27 Watch 8:22 How to fight extremist psychology with social media By Travis Daub The internet and interconnectedness of the world has aided the spread of extremist ideologies like white supremacy. But researchers are seeking ways to turn social media into a megaphone for facts and alternative narratives as a way to turn people… Continue watching
Aug 04 Watch 2:55 Why Google is like truth serum for our most personal thoughts By PBS News Hour Seth Stephens-Davidowitz spent five years studying Google search data that revealed people's darkest and weirdest thoughts. It actually made him feel better. It also changed what he thought he knew about how the world works. Stephens-Davidowitz offers his humble opinion… Continue watching
Jun 05 Police respect whites more than blacks during traffic stops, language analysis finds By Nsikan Akpan By relying on computer analysis of body camera footage, a new study provides an impartial take on policing during traffic stops as well as an automated method for assessing the behavior of police officers based on the language they use. Continue reading
May 24 Why is the teenage brain so unpredictable? A neurobiologist explains By Julia Scott, KQED Neurobiologist Frances Jensen explores the biochemical imperatives that make teenagers and young adults so emotional and unpredictable, as well as leaving them more vulnerable to addiction and mental disorders. Continue reading
Mar 21 Quiz: Are you a sucker or an influence master? By Robert Cialdini Optimal persuasion is achieved through optimal pre-suasion: the practice of arranging for people to agree with a message before they know what’s in it. Continue reading
Jan 30 Why an LSD high lasts for so long By Angus Chen, Scientific American A new discovery of how LSD changes a protein’s structure may explain why the drug is so powerful, and why its trips are so long and strange. Continue reading
Jan 16 Can Instagram’s new tool really help users who self-harm? By Emily Wishingrad Is social media reporting the future of mental health treatment?… Continue reading
Jan 05 Column: What I learned about motivation from being a teenage burn victim By Dan Ariely When behavioral psychologist Dan Ariely was asked to share his experience as a teenage burn victim, he couldn't say no. But he wondered: What could possibly motivate him to revisit the suffering he had endured?… Continue reading
Dec 30 How the shock of a lost loved one might cause serious illness By Megan Thielking, Leah Samuel, and Karen Weintraub, STAT Why did Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds die one day apart? Here’s what science can tell us. Continue reading