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Think Fast to Stay ‘Up’
You wake up. Your phone blinks. You touch the screen, slide your finger, and chills shiver down your spine. “See me tomorrow,” says the email your boss sent at midnight. Your thoughts accelerate. “What does she want? Why did she write so late? Am I in trouble? The company is in trouble. This down economy! I’m getting fired. Why me? Where will I work? I have skills. There are other companies. I have no skills. Where will I apply? Can we move? How will the kids react to changing schools? I can do this. We can do this. No matter what.” We think. It helps us. Errands, plans, and goals require thought. Synapses fire. Action potentials race down axons.
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Testosterone Promotes Reciprocity in the Absence of Competition
Boosting testosterone can promote generosity, but only when there is no threat of competition, according to new research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. The findings show that testosterone is implicated in behaviors that help to foster and maintain social relationships, indicating that its effects are more nuanced than previously thought. “Testosterone may mediate competitive and potentially antisocial behavior when social challenges or threats need to be confronted and handled,” explains lead researcher Maarten Boksem of Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University (RSM) in the Netherlands.
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Rethinking the Poker Face and Plans for a Cat in Space
The New York Times: In a classic work by Lady Gaga, she boasts, “No, he can’t read my poker face.” But according to a paper in the journal Psychological Science, she should be more worried about her arm and hand movements, at least when playing poker. “Even though professional players may be able to regulate their facial expressions, their motor actions could betray the quality of their poker hand,” the authors wrote. In three studies, psychologists asked undergraduates to watch clips of professional poker players placing bets; it turned out that smooth and confident arm motions while pushing the chips were the surest signal of a good hand. Read the story at: The New York Times
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Studies Explore Interplay Between Self-Control, Reward Processing, and Diet
Two new studies investigate the relationship between self-control and reward processing for chronic dieters and people who would like to control their food intake. The Future Is Now: Reducing Impulsivity and Energy Intake Using Episodic Future Thinking Tinuke Oluyomi Daniel, Christina M. Stanton, and Leonard H. Epstein Past studies have shown that thinking about a future event reduces delay discounting -- when people forgo large future rewards for immediate smaller rewards.
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Uncovering the Intricacies of Unethical Behavior
Various factors — including values and beliefs about what is correct, patterns of social orientation, and cost-benefit expectations — interact to produce unethical behavior.
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Your Choice of Friends Can Help You Improve Your Focus
Having trouble disciplining yourself to hit the gym rather than joining colleagues for happy hour? Unable to stop chatting with your friend in the next cubicle even though a deadline is looming? Many of us struggle to resist temptations—even fighting to keep from checking Facebook when we’re trying to finish a report to the boss. The remedy may be developing close working relationships with people who exhibit a high degree of self-discipline, according to a recent study.