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The Roots of Implicit Bias
The New York Times: During the first presidential debate, Hillary Clinton argued that “implicit bias is a problem for everyone, not just police.” Her comment moved to the forefront of public conversation an issue that scientists have been studying for decades: namely, that even well-meaning people frequently harbor hidden prejudices against members of other racial groups. Studies have shown that these subtle biases are widespread and associated with discrimination in legal, economic and organizational settings. Critics of this notion, however, protest what they see as a character smear — a suggestion that everybody, deep down, is racist.
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Switching to Daylight Saving Time May Lead to Harsher Legal Sentences
Sentencing data shows that judges in the US tend to give defendants longer sentences the day after switching to daylight saving time compared with other days of the year.
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Gesturing Can Boost Children’s Creative Thinking
Two experiments suggest that encouraging children to use gestures as they think can help them come up with more creative ideas.
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The Trait That Turns Some Bosses into Micromanagers
Individuals who felt powerless, despite a high-ranking leadership position, were far less likely to share decision-making authority with their subordinates.
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Image of ‘Typical’ Welfare Recipient Linked With Racial Stereotypes
People tend to imagine the ‘typical’ welfare recipient as someone who is African American and who is lazier and less competent than someone who doesn’t receive welfare benefits, studies show.
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The Perfect Gift? It’s the One They Asked For
The New York Times: Social scientists bear glad tidings for the holiday season. After extensively observing how people respond to gifts, they have advice for shoppers: You don’t have to try so hard. You’re not obliged to spend hours finding just the right gift for each person on your list. Most would be just as happy with something quick and easy. This may sound too good to be true, but rest assured this is not a ploy by some lazy Scrooges in academia. ... As long as the gift was satisfying, they usually didn’t consider how much thought had gone into it, especially if it came from someone they didn’t know well.
