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APS Announces Inaugural Issue of New Journal, Clinical Psychological Science
The Association for Psychological Science and SAGE Publications are pleased to announce the inaugural issue of Clinical Psychological Science (CPS), a unique new journal that highlights cutting-edge research in the field of clinical psychological science. Headed by Founding Editor Alan E. Kazdin, John M. Musser Professor of Psychology and Child Psychiatry at Yale University and Director of the Yale Parenting Center, and a distinguished team of associate editors — Tyrone D. Cannon of Yale University; Emily A. Holmes of MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, Cambridge; Jill M. Hooley of Harvard University; and Kenneth J.
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Reappraisal Defuses Strong Emotional Responses to Israel-Palestine Conflict
Reappraisal is a widely-used cognitive strategy that can help people to regulate their reactions to emotionally charged events. Now, new research suggests that reappraisal may even be effective in changing people’s emotional responses in the context of one of the most intractable conflicts worldwide: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “Negative intergroup emotions play a crucial role in decisions that perpetuate intractable conflicts,” observes lead researcher Eran Halperin of the New School of Psychology at the Interdisciplinary Center in Israel.
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Research Explores How Children Reason, Think About Others
Two new studies published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, explore the development of reasoning and perspective-taking in children. How to Pass the False-Belief Task Before Your Fourth Birthday As social creatures, humans must constantly monitor each other's intentions, beliefs, desires, and other mental states.
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Too Big or Just Right? Optimal Circle of Friends Depends on Socioeconomic Conditions
Some people like to have a few close friends, while others prefer a wider social circle that is perhaps less deep. Research suggests that the optimal approach may depend on socioeconomic conditions.
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A Long-Term Approach to Studying Antisocial Behavior
Some people respond to life’s pressures by engaging in criminal behavior; others don’t. Psychological scientists are trying to figure out why criminals are different, but much of the existing research that connects personal characteristics to antisocial behavior has measured personality and behavior simultaneously, making it difficult to establish a causal relationship. A longitudinal study of Estonian adolescents that was recently published in the European Journal of Personality may be an important addition to the literature on antisocial behavior.
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My, What Big Teeth You Have! Threatening Objects Appear Closer
When we're faced with things that seem threatening, whether it’s a hairy spider or an angry mob, our goal is usually to get as far away as we can. Now, new research suggests that our visual perception may actually be biased in ways that help motivate us to get out of harm’s way. Our bodies help us respond to threats by engaging our fight-or-flight response and enabling us to act quickly: Our heart rate and blood pressure ramp up, and we produce more of the stress hormone cortisol. But research suggests that the body may also demonstrate its preparedness through certain perceptual biases.