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A Captive African Elephant Calf Exhibits Precocious Social Relationships
African elephants (Loxodonta africana) in their native habitats live in groups of 2 to 50 elephants called family units, usually containing genetically related adult females and calves and juveniles of both sexes. A calf spends most of its time near its mother. Older calves increase the time they spend with other members of the family unit. “Allomothers,” usually young female relatives, assist in rearing a calf by providing comfort and safety. The dominant animal in the group (the “matriarch”) plays a critical role in group dynamics and survival.
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Social Networks May Guide Parents to Particular Autism Interventions
A study at Michigan State University shows that parents of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder are more likely to access evidence-based interventions if they have large social networks.
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Everyday Aggression: We Hurt Those Closest to Us
When we think of aggression, we might think of road rage or a bar fight, situations in which people are violent toward strangers. But research suggests that aggression is actually most often expressed toward the people we encounter in our day-to-day lives, such as romantic partners, friends, family, and coworkers. In an article published in Current Directions in Psychological Science, psychological scientist Deborah South Richardson of Georgia Regents University presents an overview of scientific research exploring this “everyday” aggression. As Richardson explains, only a behavior that is intended to harm someone qualifies as aggression.
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APS Fellow James Jackson Appointed to National Science Board
James S. Jackson, an APS James McKeen Cattell Fellow, Daniel Katz Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Director of the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan, has been appointed by President Barack Obama to the National Science Board (NSB), the policymaking body of the National Science Foundation. Jackson’s 6-year term on the board will begin in August. As a member of the NSB, he will work with 23 other board members to advise Congress and the President on science and engineering policy. Jackson is known for his research on race, racism, and culture — and on how these factors influence health, attitudes, and social support across the lifespan and around the world.
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The Right Methods for the Right Questions
When psychology emerged as a “modern” science near the end of the 19th century, it developed a methodological orientation that was heavily influenced by other natural sciences, such as physics. As the field of psychology matured, however, researchers became interested in a “complex systems view”; one where many different components interact over time to shape development. In some ways, research design, measurements, and methods of analysis have failed to keep up with this changing view, leading to a mismatch between the methods psychologists use and the problems they study.
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People Sensitive to Criticism May Be Biased Toward Focusing on the Negative
Being on the receiving end of criticism from loved ones is unpleasant for anybody, but for some people, it may go so far as to affect their mental health. Research has shown that people who rate their loved ones as being highly critical of them are more likely to suffer relapses and face poorer outcomes when dealing with illnesses such as depression, substance abuse, OCD, agoraphobia, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. Researchers believe that high sensitivity to criticism may be caused in part by cognitive biases toward interpreting ambiguous information negatively.
