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Cultural Stereotypes May Evolve From Sharing Social Information
Millenials are narcissistic, scientists are geeky, and men like sports -- or so cultural stereotypes would have us believe. Regardless of whether we believe them to be true, we all have extensive knowledge of cultural stereotypes. But how does this information become associated with certain groups in the first place? Research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, suggests that cultural stereotypes are the unintended but inevitable consequence of sharing social information.
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Sleep Deprivation May Increase Susceptibility to False Memories
Not getting enough sleep may increase the likelihood of forming false memories, according to research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. In a study conducted by psychological scientist Steven
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Knowledgeable Consumers Are More Likely to Buy When Given Fewer Options
The degree to which consumers perceive themselves to be knowledgeable about a product influences the likelihood that they will buy a particular product, researchers find in a series of studies published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. “Together, our findings suggest that subjective knowledge may play an important role in determining ideal size for choice sets,” explains researcher Liat Hadar of the Arison School of Business at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya in Israel.
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Preschoolers Can Reflect on What They Don’t Know
Contrary to previous assumptions, researchers find that preschoolers are able to gauge the strength of their memories and make decisions based on their self-assessments. The study findings are published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. “Previously, developmental researchers assumed that preschoolers did not introspect much on their mental states, and were not able to reflect on their own uncertainty when problem solving,” says psychological scientist Emily Hembacher of the University of California, Davis, lead author of the study.
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Eye Movements May Reveal Difference Between Love and Lust
Soul singer Betty Everett once proclaimed, “If you want to know if he loves you so, it’s in his kiss.” But a study by University of Chicago researchers suggests the difference between love and lust might be in the eyes after all. Specifically, where your date looks at you could indicate whether love or lust is in the cards. The new study found that eye patterns concentrate on a stranger’s face if the viewer sees that person as a potential partner in romantic love, but the viewer gazes more at the other person’s body if he or she is feeling sexual desire. That automatic judgment can occur in as little as half a second, producing different gaze patterns.
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Seeing the Glass as Half Full: Taking a New Look at Cognition and Aging
From a cognitive perspective, aging is typically associated with decline. As we age, it may get harder to remember names and dates, and it may take us longer to come up with the right answer to a question. But the news isn’t all bad when it comes to cognitive aging, according to a set of three articles in the July 2014 issue of Perspectives in Psychological Science. Plumbing the depths of the available scientific literature, the authors of the three articles show how several factors -- including motivation and crystallized knowledge -- can play important roles in supporting and maintaining cognitive function in the decades past middle age.