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Science, Trust And Psychology In Crisis
NPR: When I attended my first scientific conference at the tender age of 20, one of my mentors surprised me with the following bit of advice. Transcribed directly from memory: "You should be sure to attend the talk by so-and-so. You can always trust his results." This casual remark made a deep impression on me. What did trust have to do with anything? This was supposed to be science! Based on evidence! It shouldn't have mattered who performed the experiment, who delivered the talk or whose name was on the ensuing publication. As my training in experimental psychology advanced, I encountered the same idea in various forms.
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Living on Purpose
The New York Times: My late father had a longtime friend, a retired kosher butcher, who lived down the hall in their South Jersey apartment building. Past 90, Manny was older and frailer than my father; he leaned on a cane and could barely see well enough to recognize faces. But every morning, and again in late afternoon, he walked through my dad’s unlocked front door to be sure he was all right and to kibitz a bit. Manny made the rounds, also looking in on several other aged residents in their so-called N.O.R.C. (naturally occurring retirement community). Unless he was ill himself, he never missed a day. Read the whole story: The New York Times
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Does Your Personality Drive You to Express Lanes?
At least 12 US cities now have priced managed lanes on their highways. Also known as “express lanes” or “high-occupancy lanes,” these roadways are designed to manage traffic volume by offering priced, premium access. In some cases, drivers with multiple passengers can travel the roads for free, while single drivers pay a toll. The tolls to these roads generally vary by time of day, increasing as traffic increases (e.g. morning rush hour). Travelers often have to make spur of the moment decisions on whether to pay for a relatively free-flowing trip or a free-but-congested commute. And new research reveals that extent to which our basic personality traits drive those decisions (pun intended).
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The Benefits of Belonging
Julie L. Martin, Duke University, presented her research on "The Benefits of Belonging: State Belonging and Motivation for Social Reconnection Following Rejection" at the 2014 APS Annual Convention in San Francisco. Martin received a 2014 APSSC Student Research Award for this work. According to the Social Reconnection Hypothesis, social exclusion increases the motivation to forge new social bonds in an effort to restore belonging.
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Where Do Eureka Moments Come From?
The New Yorker: A man in a town married twenty women. There have been no divorces or annulments, and everyone in question is still alive and well. The man is not a bigamist, and he has broken no laws. How is this possible? This is the so-called marrying-man problem, which psychologists often use to study creative insight: the process by which we suddenly figure out the answer to something that had previously stumped us. A problem makes no sense at first. But then we turn it around in our minds and, presto, the answer comes.
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Want a Better Deal? Put on Your ‘Angry Face’
TODAY: Skip the poker face. If you’re hoping to get a good deal on a car, or get people to do what you want, you should put on your best angry expression, a new study suggests. “If you come in with a scowl on your face, they’re going to take your threat more seriously,” said study co-author Lawrence Ian Reed, a researcher at Harvard University. “You might think a poker face would be better in a negotiation. But in a bargaining situation when you make threats, your facial expression could add credibility to what you are saying.” Read the whole story: TODAY
