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Saw It Coming? Research Reveals Why Some Breakups Feel Eerily Predictable
Relationships can be complex and unpredictable, and sometimes the ending of one can catch us completely off guard. Shedding light on this phenomenon, a study, conducted by researchers at the University of Wisconsin—Eau Claire, reveals the impact of hindsight bias on our perception of relationships. Hindsight bias refers to our tendency to believe that we “knew all along” that a particular event was bound to happen, but only after it has already occurred. For the study, published in Social Psychological Bulletin, the researchers recruited 515 adults and presented them with a story about a fictional couple.
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How Susceptible Are You to Misinformation? There’s a Test You Can Take
Many Americans seem to worry that their parents or grandparents will fall for fake news online. But as it turns out, we may be collectively concerned about the wrong generation. Contrary to popular belief, Gen Zers and millennials could be more susceptible to online misinformation than older adults, according to a poll published online on June 29 by the research agency YouGov. What’s more, people who spend more time online had more difficulty distinguishing between real and fake news headlines.
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The New Promise of Psychedelics
Recently there has been a remarkable renaissance of medical research into psychedelic drugs, which were widely banned a half-century ago. The risks and dangers of these drugs still need to be better understood, but it’s becoming clear that they may have important potential benefits. New studies suggest that psychedelics, carefully administered in controlled settings with trained therapists, can help treat mental illnesses like depression, addiction and PTSD. But just how do psychedelics achieve these therapeutic effects? A new study in the journal Nature by the neuroscientist Gul Dolen at Johns Hopkins and colleagues tackles this question.
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New Research From Clinical Psychological Science
A sample of research on suicidal ideation, sex-related substance use among gay and bisexual men, the importance of collaborative decision-making, and much more.
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Can Tracking Your Moods Make You Happier?
Tracking daily steps can motivate us to walk more. Tracking sleep can reveal problems such as sleep apnea. Can tracking our moods make us happier? There are now many tech ways to log where you fall on the happy-sad spectrum each day. Fitbit offers mood logging in its stress-management tool. Period-tracking apps, such as Clue and Flo allow women to see how their moods fluctuate with their cycles. Apps like Daylio focus on mood. The latest big player to enter the arena is Apple. Its latest software updates—iOS 17, iPadOS 17 and WatchOS 10, due this fall and already out in public beta—include a way to log your state of mind.
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The Barbie-Taylor-Beyoncé Summer Offers a Release of Pandemic Emotions
... The summer’s major cultural phenomena — which also include Taylor Swift’s Eras concert tour and the “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” movies — have attracted audiences ready to go all-out. Thanks to a wide range of social, cultural and economic factors, it’s a season of hype as well as dress-up, fun and freedom. For some, it is also tied up with the pandemic, perhaps another chance to check off a post-covid “first,” feel like they’re living life to the fullest or celebrate that they’re okay with screaming song lyrics in a crowd of 70,000 people again.
