Aztec Death Whistle Was Designed to Haunt the Mind, Brain Scans Confirm
These clay instruments produce scream-like sounds, which trigger a fear response in the human brain.
Tag: psychology
Coaches encourage football players to sprint “like a jet” to run faster. And it works
Researchers found that athletes at Tottenham Hotspur's academy ran 3% faster when encouraged to run like "a jet plane taking ...
Why Legal Documents Sound Like Magic Spells: Power over Clarity
New study suggests legal language complexity serves to signal authority, akin to "magic spells."
Mental effort is universally disliked according to major study
People generally find mental exertion highly unpleasant — so props to those who still do it anyway.
‘You’re not listening!’ When someone disagrees, we tend to think they’re not listening — even when they are
When the other party doesn't agree, you may feel unheard even when they're actually listening.
Empathy is a trait that can be learned and “transmitted”
Watching others show empathy can grow on you.
The simple secret to relationship satisfaction? Feeling understood
Research shows that valuing understanding others over being understood can lead to more fulfilling relationships.
Each one of us falls into one of three information-seeking ‘personalities’
Our motivation for seeking out new information is consistent over time, the paper explains.
Our daily commute has a direct impact on our productivity and job satisfaction
Few people actually enjoy their commutes. But the ones who do have a better experience at work.
Ancient Aboriginal memory technique may be better than the ‘memory palace’ technique
Aboriginal Australians are part of the oldest living culture on Earth -- and we could learn a thing or two ...
Boys who play video games seem to have lower depression risk — but not girls
The relationship between video games and mental health is more complex than you thought.
Training our playfulness can improve life satisfaction, help with depression
I mean... If it's for my health, I guess I have to.
The Dunning-Kruger effect, or why the ignorant think they’re experts
To err is human. But, to confidently persist in erring is hilarious.
The genders kill differently — and one paper proposes it’s because of our ancient roles
I do like this theory.
If you think cats are antisocial, it’s probably you, new study concludes
It's probably your fault -- of course.
Materialism is on the rise — here’s how to avoid raising a materialistic child
There's a silver bullet to fight materialism: generosity.
People can handle the truth — more than you think
Speak your mind, but don't be a jerk.
Angry people are more likely to overestimate their intelligence — but that’s not the whole story
Results are intriguing, but psychologists are faced with a weird problem.
Egotists’ brains just don’t care about the future, affecting their choices in life
"Whether the consequences of our choices for ourselves and others are visible immediately or will only materialize in the future, ...
Video games might make you more sexist, but not as much as religion
Video games have a negative impact, but religion was three times more likely to make teens sexist.
Personality traits are “contagious among children” — especially good ones
When preschoolers hang out with each other, they tend to borrow each other's personalities, a new study has found.
Optimistic women live more, new study finds
An encouraging study conducted by Harvard researchers found that having an optimistic outlook on life may help people to live ...
Most psychology studies can’t be replicated – and this is a huge problem
Numerous academic journals often post intriguing and challenging psychological studies - but according to a new, massive review, we should take ...
Be sarcastic! It’s good for you, scientists find
Using and understanding the intricacies of sarcasm is a fine art; one does not simply "become" sarcastic - you must ...
High heels really do have power over men, study shows
Marilyn Monroe once said that if you give a woman the right shoes, she can conquer the world; that may ...
Gifted children rarely achieve their potential, 30-year study shows
Gifted children are supposed to be tomorrow's leaders, scientists, and innovators - but the exceptionally smart are often invisible in ...
Cited paper suggesting a ‘ratio for a good life’ exposed as nonsense by amateur psychologist
A 52-year-old, part-time graduate student with no previous training in psychology and little training in math aside from high-school has ...
In 1950, a researcher discovered the “pleasure center” of the brain, giving a woman a 30 minute orgasm
It's the early 1950s, and some strange experiments are going on at Tulane University in Louisiana. Well, maybe not weird, ...
Brain scan shows key differences in mental disorders
One of the biggest problem in psychiatry today, though the doctors practicing it regularly hand out medication and treatment, is ...
Be careful, kids – high grades are contagious
Highschool students whose friends have higher grades than them have a significant tendency to raise their own grades over the ...
The making of a bully – childhood trauma is key
They say that the bully is actually the victim - and studies on adolescent rats seem to support this idea; ...
Smiling facilitates stress recovery
Just grin and bear it - we've all heard it at one point or another in our lives, and we've ...
Holding a gun makes you look bigger and stronger, study finds
Part of a study which sought to see how deeply rooted is our psychological projection inherited from our ancestors when faced with a ...
Pollution linked to memory loss
It's pretty evident for anyone living in a big, crowded city what pollution looks like and to what degree our ...
Human face perception not limited only to humans
In the theoretical and absurd case of a pigeon going on a police identification line, do you think it would ...
Multitasking becomes more difficult as we age, brain scans show
It's somewhat evidently observable that the elderly have more trouble focusing or multitasking than young people, but a recent study ...
Negative thinking might not be so negative after all
A study conducted by professor Joseph Forgas at the University of New South Wales showed that bad moods can actually ...
Feeling amuck makes people see inexistant patterns
It's natural that when you are stressed out, you tend to search for an explanation for your current situation and ...
