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Scales of Justice: Guilt and Pain
If guilt is tearing you up inside, try inflicting some pain on yourself. It sounds weird, but research suggests it’ll make you feel better. A study published in Psychological Science found that people’s feelings of guilt are reduced after they experience pain. Volunteers were either asked to write about a time they had ostracized someone, to prime their feelings of guilt, or a routine event in their lives. They were then asked to stick their hand in a bucket of water and to keep it there as long as they could; the bucket contained ice water for some and soothing warm water for others. Afterwards, all volunteers rated their experienced pain and feelings of guilt.
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Formula for a Truly Funny April Fools
Want the recipe for pranks that will have guaranteed laughs on April fool’s day? A study published in Psychological Science found jokes that involve moral or norm violations are funnier but only when the moral violation seems benign, so the audience has psychological distance from it. Check out this video by the Pocket Scientist, George Zaidan, summarizing the study: In one experiment, volunteers were asked read pairs of situations, one of which had a moral violation (e.g. a rabbi promoting pork) while the other did not. The situation with the moral violation was more likely to make the reader laugh.
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A Full Bladder Makes You More Responsible
It's not an April fool's joke, we swear! An upcoming study in Psychological Science found that when we’re controlling our bladder, we’re better at controlling ourselves when making decisions about the future. In one experiment, volunteers were asked to either drink a large or small amount of water. Once enough time had passed for the water to reach their bladder, volunteers were asked to choose between receiving a small, but immediate, reward or a larger, but delayed, reward, as a way to assess their self-control. Volunteers who had a full bladder were better at holding out for the larger reward later.
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When Do You Owe an Apology? Depends on Gender
Both men and women may be pulling pranks this April fool’s but you can bet more women than men will be apologizing after. A study published in Psychological Science found that men apologize less frequently than women because they have a higher threshold for what they find as offensive behavior. In the first study, volunteers were asked to keep daily diaries of all offenses committed and whether an apology was given. Women reported offering more apologies than men but they also reported committing more offenses. A second study tested whether this was because men may have a higher threshold for what is considered offensive by having volunteers rate imaginary and recalled offenses.
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Something Old, Something New, And Some Rose-Colored Glasses to Make It Through
Looking at your marriage through rose colored glasses may be more beneficial than being realistic. A study published in Psychological Science found that people who unrealistically viewed their partner as ideal when they got married were more satisfied with their marriage three years later than people who were less idealistic in their judgments. Volunteers were asked to complete surveys on themselves, their partner, and their marriage every six months for the first three years of their marriage.
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Return Migration and Identity: Nan Sussman
Check out APS Member Nan Sussman of the College of Staten Island, The City University of New York in this WNYC segment: The Leonard Lopate Show: Return Migrations and Identity from March 16, 2011. Nearly a million residents of Hong Kong migrated to North America, Europe, and Australia in the 1990s; recently many of these immigrants have returned to their homeland. In Return Migrations and Identity, psychology professor Nan Sussman chronicles this global trend and explains why there is a unique relevance for Hong Kong. She’s joined by Byron Shen, a Chinese immigrant who came to the United States for his Ph.D.
