-
Constructing Emotion: The Fundamental Components of Fear
During a crisis, our behavior can often be unpredictable. Some people might respond with anger, others with fear and still others may show no reaction at all. The nature of emotion is so basic and automatic that we do not realize how complex experiencing emotions actually is. Previous research separates emotions into distinct categories (i.e. anger, fear, happiness, etc) and these categories are considered the building blocks of emotions. Scientists are still unsure of exactly how we experience emotions but recent work suggests that what is described as “fear” is actually more complicated than previously thought.
-
As Good as it Gets? Illusion vs. Reality: Age-Related Differences in Expectations for Future Happiness
Albert Einstein once quipped, “Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.” The famous scientist might have added that the illusion of reality shifts over time. According to a new Brandeis University study in the September issue of Psychological Science, age influences how we perceive the future. When thinking about the future, some people seem pessimistic, while others’ optimism seems to border on fantasy. Whether a person is naturally a pessimist or an optimist, the study suggests there are other factors at work in determining the way people consider how satisfying their future lives may be.
-
Un-total Recall: Amnesics Remember Grammar, but Not Meaning of New Sentences
Syntactic persistence is the tendency for speakers to produce sentences using similar grammatical patterns and rules of language as those they have used before. Although the way this occurs is not well understood, previous research has indicated that this effect may involve a specific aspect of memory function. Memory is made up of two components: declarative and procedural. Declarative memory is used in remembering events and facts. Procedural memory helps us to remember how to perform tasks, such as playing the piano or riding a bike.
-
Eureka! How Distractions Facilitate Creative Problem Solving
How many times have you spent hours slaving over an impossible problem, only to take a break and then easily solve the problem, sometimes within minutes of looking at it again? This is actually a common phenomenon, but until recently, the way that this occurs has been unclear. And surprisingly, the answer is more complex than simply having an “Aha!” moment. Previous research suggests that both unconscious thought (i.e. being distracted) and conscious thought (concentrating on solving a problem) can lead to novel solutions and new ideas, but in very different ways.
-
Television Viewing and Aggression: Some Alternative Perspectives
The effect of media violence on behavior is not only an interesting psychological question but is also a relevant public policy and public health issue. Although many studies have been conducted examining the link between violence on TV and aggressive behavior, most of these studies have overlooked several other potentially significant factors, including the dramatic context of the violence and the type of violence depicted as well as the race and ethnicity of the viewers.
-
Why Delaying Gratification is Smart: A Neural Link Between Intelligence and Self-control
If you had a choice between receiving $1,000 right now or $4,000 ten years from now, which would you pick? Psychologists use the term “delay discounting” to describe our inability to resist the temptation of a smaller immediate reward in lieu of receiving a larger reward at a later date. Discounting future rewards too much is a form of impulsivity, and an important way in which we can neglect to exert self-control. Previous research suggests that higher intelligence is related to better self-control, but the reasons for this link are unknown. Psychologists Noah A. Shamosh and Jeremy R.
