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Psychological Scientists Address the Challenges of an Aging Workforce
Older adults are a growing proportion of the American workforce in unprecedented numbers. For the first time since 1948, American employees over age 65 outnumber teenage workers, according to a report from AARP. Yet, older workers are still beset by discriminatory hiring and negative stereotypes about their capabilities and competence. Last week, psychological scientists from the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP) hosted a congressional briefing in the Senate demonstrating how evidence-based strategies can help organizations and policymakers successfully manage the emerging challenges of the world’s aging workforce.
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Speaking a Mile in Someone Else’s Shoes
Pacific Standard: In the midst of a debate over the potential cognitive benefits of learning a second language, new research suggests it may have social value as well. Actually, even being around people who speak different languages may help children learn to take others' perspectives, making communication more effective for everyone. "[E]xposure to multiple languages is, and has been for millennia, an integral part of human development," writes a team led by University of Chicago psychology graduate student Samantha Fan in Psychological Science.
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Writing and speaking come from different parts of the brain, study shows
Los Angeles Times: Written and spoken language can exist separately in the brain, a new study from Johns Hopkins shows. The study looked at stroke victims with aphasia that impaired their communication capabilities in one way but not the other. Researchers at Johns Hopkins, Rice and Columbia universities studied five stroke patients with aphasia, difficulty communicating after their strokes. Four could speak but not write sentences that took a certain form -- the study focused on affixes, such as the "-ing" in "jumping" -- while the last could write those sentences but not speak them. ...
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HOW TO PULL YOURSELF OUT OF A CAREER RUT
Fast Company: It’s human nature to feel overcome with doubt during periods of change. Sometimes an event in your personal life can derail positive momentum in your professional career. These disruptions have a tendency to propel you into a state of unrest and uncertainty, where the decisions you make in the moment might not be the best in the long term. ... An April 2015 study published in Psychological Science, found that measuring time in days instead of months, or months instead of years, makes future events seem closer. The study’s authors concluded people work harder toward reaching their goals when their perception of time has been altered. We tend to get ahead of ourselves in life.
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Braggers Gonna Brag, But It Usually Backfires
Live Science: People who brag may think it makes them look good, but it often backfires, new research suggests. Self-promoters may continue to brag because they fundamentally misjudge how other people perceive them, according to a study published online May 7 in the journal Psychological Science. "Most people realize that they experience emotions other than pure joy when they are on the receiving end of other people's self-promotion," said study co-author Irene Scopelliti, a behavioral scientist at the City University London in England.
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Children Who Speak Multiple Languages May Be More Empathetic
Science Magazine: A new study suggests that children who speak or hear multiple languages may be better at placing themselves in others’ shoes, Pacific Standard reports. The research, published in Psychological Science, describes how children who had at least some exposure to foreign languages better understood how to follow directions that required them to take the perspective of the speaker. That ability to see the world from someone else’s point of view could lead to more effective communication, the researchers say. Read the whole story: Science Magazine
