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Do Today’s Young People Really Think They Are So Extraordinary?
When asked about the state of today’s youth, former president Jimmy Carter recently mused “I’ve been a professor at Emory University for the past twenty years and I interrelate with a wide range of students…I don’t detect that this generation is any more committed to personal gain to the exclusion of benevolent causes than others have been in the past.” Now research is beginning to support this notion. An article appearing in the February issue of Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, found no evidence that today’s young people have inflated impressions of themselves compared to the youth of previous generations.
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Seeing is Believing, but Hearing Could Be Misleading
The game “spot-the-difference,” in which a player is presented with two photos and asked to pinpoint the variations, is an excellent example of the human brain’s ability to perceive detailed changes in complex images. Up until now, scientists proposed that our auditory and visual perceptions functioned through similar parts of the brain. But thanks to a study from the Université Bordeaux in France, that notion is about to change. Psychologists Laurent Demany, Wiebke Trost, Maja Serman and Catherine Semal discovered that, despite popular belief, our ability to detect auditory and visual changes appears to be controlled by separate mechanisms.
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Unanimous Union: The Mind and Body Together Lean Toward ‘Truthiness’
‘Truthiness,’ according to television satirist Stephen Colbert, represents the human preference to follow our intuition despite the presence of facts or evidence. For example, the more ambiguous an answer to a question, the more likely an individual will believe it is truthful. At least that is what psychologists Rick Dale of the University of Memphis, Michael Spivey of Cornell University and the late Chris McKinstry found when they asked college students questions that ranged in levels of vagueness and tracked their corresponding arm movements to clicking ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on a computer screen.
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The Human Brain: Detective of Auditory and Visual Change
The human brain is capable of detecting the slightest visual and auditory changes. Whether it is the flash of a student’s hand into the air or the faintest miscue of a flutist, the brain instantaneously and effortlessly perceives changes in our environment. Several studies have indicated, however, that even a small span of time in between pre- and post-change images can disturb the brain’s ability to detect visual discrepancies. “The pre-change scene must be memorized in some way,” explained psychologists Laurent Demany, Wiebke Trost, Maja Serman and Catherine Semal from the University of Bordeaux and the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS).
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Nature and Nurture are Both to Blame for Depression, Study Says.
Depression is one of the most common forms of psychopathology. According to diathesis–stress theories of depression, genetic liability interacts with negative life experiences to cause depression. Traditionally, most studies testing these theories have focused on only one component of the diathesis–stress model: either genetics or environment, but not their interaction. However, because of recent advances in genetics and genomics, researchers have begun using a new design that allows them to test the interaction of genetic and environmental liabilities – the G x E design. Studies suggest that the neurotransmitter dopamine may play a role in the risk for depression.
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Celebrating 20 Years of Advancing Psychological Science
APS was founded in 1988 to advance scientific psychology. The vision of our founders was instrumental in making APS a success story and members have guided this effort with leadership, talent, and dedication. Twenty years later, APS continues as the most effective voice for psychological science. This special area of the website celebrates the last 20 years of APS history. Features include the Observer's "Then & Now" columns, a timeline of APS history, and much more. Check back regularly for updates -- we'll be adding new material all year. Observer Then & Now Columns Happy 20th to Us!