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The Most Dangerous Way to Lose Yourself
When John F. Kennedy was 17, he was part of a prank club. At Connecticut’s elite Choate school in 1935, word spread that the group was planning to pile horse manure in the gymnasium. Before this “prank” could happen, the school’s headmaster confronted the troublesome boys. The scheme was the culmination of a list of offenses at the school, and young Kennedy was expelled. Though the sentence was eventually reduced to probation, the headmaster suggested that Kennedy see a “gland specialist” to help him “overcome this strange childishness.” The doctor Kennedy ended up seeing was Prescott Lecky, a young, mutton-chopped psychologist.
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Innovative Addiction Treatments Hold Promise for Stemming the Opioid Crisis
In a new issue of Psychological Science in the Public Interest, researchers propose novel treatment strategies, based on advances in brain science, that could help prevent abuse of opioids and other drugs.
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New Research From Psychological Science
A sample of research exploring effects of hypnotic suggestion on implicit attitudes and ways to enhance children’s understanding of scientific models.
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Touting Flavor Before Nutrition Encourages Healthy Eating
Evocative labels such as “twisted citrus glazed carrots” and “ultimate chargrilled asparagus” can get people to eat more vegetables than they otherwise would—as long as the food is prepared flavorfully, a nationwide study shows.
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Are Kids Hardwired for Revenge?
Have you ever noticed that there are some things kids seem to do reflexively—say, punching a little brother for toppling a Lego tower? Yet, other behaviors, like saying thank you or helping with chores, must be laboriously taught. If it’s instinctive to punish someone who wrongs you, doesn’t it follow that you’d reward the person who helps you? Aren’t the age-old maxims “an eye for an eye” and “one good turn deserves another” just two sides of the same coin?
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The Surprising Science Behind Why People Underestimate Their Lifespans
When it comes to planning for retirement, and choosing when to start claiming Social Security benefits, one of the key inputs into our decisions is how long we expect to live. Seniors can choose when they want to start taking Social Security payouts; wait longer, and the monthly check from the Social Security Administration is bigger. ... Your own life expectancy depends on a range of factors, most importantly, your health. The Social Security Administration provides life expectancy tables that account for the “conditional probability” of having reached a particular age, but you may find a calculator that takes into account your health status to be more accurate.