- Showing:
- All Topics
Personality | Psychology
Psychology | Personality
Survey: Average Person Forms A First Impression In Just 27 Seconds! - Study Finds
You better have your introduction down to a speedy art on that next blind date or job interview. A recent survey finds you only have about 27 seconds to make a good first impression on someone new.
Psychology | Personality
“My-side bias” makes it hard to see the logic in arguments we disagree with – Research Digest
By Christian Jarrett. The results help explain why debating controversial issues can feel futile.
Psychology | Personality
Shame may feel awful but it is fundamental to survival
By Emma Young. Shame functions like pain – as a warning not to repeat a behaviour that threatens our wellbeing.
Psychology | Personality
What Are Ego Blind Spots?
An essay encourages people to consider their “ego blind spots”: hidden drives and assumptions that prompt us to keep repeating destructive knee-jerk reactions and behaviors. Is it possible to find these blind spots and reconsider (or eliminate) them?
Psychology | Personality
10 Things Mentally Strong People Give Up to Gain Inner Peace | Psychology Today
Letting go of certain things can open the door to true contentment in life.
Psychology | Personality
The Bias of Thinking You Can Nonverbally Decode | Psychology Today
It’s easy to read people’s nonverbal cues, tell what they’re feeling, and know if they’re flirting, right? Not really. Verbal communication is a better choice.
Psychology | Personality
Coping Styles That Will Ease Your Worries
If you are feeling stressed or overwhelmed, here are two coping styles that will help ease your worries. Because when you're stressed it's important to have a plan.
Psychology | Personality
When Complex Trauma Is Misdiagnosed as Anxiety | The Mighty
A woman shares the difference between anxiety from complex trauma and generalized anxiety.
Psychology | Personality
Repeatedly watching a video of themselves touching a filthy bedpan reduced people’s OCD symptoms – Research Digest
By Emma Young. "My hands [felt] clean after using the app" said one participant.
Psychology | Personality
How lights and sounds encourage risky behavior
A new study investigates how visual and auditory cues increase risk-taking behavior. The findings provide a much-needed insight into gambling addiction.
Psychology | Personality
A new "intelligence" test has been developed by psychologists — Quartz
But many have argued that evaluating something as complex as intelligence using just one measure is bound to be wrong.
Psychology | Personality
Your native language affects what you can and can’t see – Research Digest
By Emma Young. This is the first demonstration that language affects whether we consciously perceive a stimulus or not.
Psychology | Personality
5 Ways to Stop Yourself From Jumping to Conclusions | Psychology Today
Coming to a conclusion before you have all the facts is a common problem that can hurt yourself and your relationships. Follow these steps to slow yourself down.
Psychology | Personality
Desiring to alter personality not enough unless you take concrete action to change –
By Christian Jarrett. Active behavioural change is required to achieve shifts in personality.
Psychology | Personality
The Science Behind Why We Procrastinate — Breather Insights
Procrastination is a near-universal experience. Who hasn’t felt the impulse to briefly shrink away from our responsibilities to check our feeds, gossip with coworkers or just stare off into space?
Psychology | Personality
The 3 Qualities of a Successful Leader - Mindful
Based on extensive research, Rasmus Hougaard and Jacqueline Carter reveal the three qualities present in the minds of great leaders.
Psychology | Personality
Understanding Reality: What Hallucinations Reveal - The Atlantic
Experiences like hearing voices are leading psychologists to question how all people perceive reality.
Psychology | Personality
New personality type identified. Chances are you’ve had it | Science | AAAS
Study finds that personality changes over the life span
Psychology | Personality
12 signs of a depression relapse
After experiencing one period of depression, many people experience a relapse. This can happen either before recovery is complete, or some time later, as a separate episode. Learn more about the early signs of relapses and recurrence and possible trigger
Psychology | Personality
Fight Back Against Imposter Syndrome | Psychology Today
How to reclaim confidence.
Psychology | Personality
A Nerve Pathway Links the Gut to the Brain's Pleasure Centers
A newly discovered neural circuit in mice may one day help modify food preferences and eating behavior
Psychology | Personality
Your Personality Doesn't Change Much When You're Drunk, Study Finds
If you think you've got an alter ego when you're drunk, think again. A new study finds your personality actually isn't all that different while intoxicated.
Psychology | Personality
Brain scans could distinguish bipolar from depression: Looking inside the brain to distinguish bipolar from depression -
New research has found that neurons deep inside the brain could hold the key to accurately diagnosing bipolar disorder and depression.
Psychology | Personality
Teens Face Lifelong Health Effects After Sexual Assault | Thrive Global
All survivors grapple with lifelong consequences, but teens are particularly vulnerable to certain brain changes.
Psychology | Personality
Your Fear of Confrontation Is Probably Unnecessary
New research from the University of Chicago finds that most people react better to honesty than we expect them to, suggesting that the common fear of confrontation is unhelpful and unfounded.
Psychology | Personality
Why Children From Abusive Families Analyze Every Single Detail
It is a well-known fact our families are one of the guiding factors that shape our personalities while we're growing up. Parents raise us to the best of their
Psychology | Personality
This Is the Age When Your Self-Esteem Is Highest, Study Says | Time
A new study looks at how self-esteem changes with age, beginning from childhood to old age. Here's when self-esteem is highest.
Psychology | Personality
What do gut decisions reveal about us?
A new study compares the psychological effects of intuitive decisions based on the proverbial gut feeling with decisions made after careful deliberation.
Psychology | Personality
Who to trust: Study shows guilt-prone people are more trustworthy — Quartz at Work
New research from the University of Chicago suggests trustworthiness is actually linked to guilt.
Psychology | Personality
Moral Outrage Can Backfire When It Goes Viral - Pacific Standard
As negative comments accumulate, they start to come across as bullying—even if they're justified.
Psychology | Personality
ADHD numbers are rising, and scientists are trying to understand why - The Washington Post
More than 10 percent of children now have the diagnosis, according to a study.
Psychology | Personality
Five myths about anger - The Washington Post
No, venting and breaking things won’t really calm your rage.
Psychology | Personality
Study: 1 In 4 College Students Diagnosed With Mental Health Condition - Study Finds
College brings about new experiences and challenges for young adults that can be difficult to adapt to and overcome, so perhaps it's no surprise that a new study reports high rates of stress and mental health conditions among students.
Psychology | Personality
How to Stop Taking Everything Personally | Psychology Today
When you engage in this type of thinking, you see yourself as the cause of things you're not responsible for. For this reason, personalization is also a major source of self-blame.
Psychology | Personality
Smile! Happiness After 60 Key To Living Longer, Study Claims
Happiness could be the key to a longer life, a new study finds. Researchers from the Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore found that the happier a person is, the more likely they'll enjoy a greater lifespan.
Psychology | Personality
Seven Ways to Help Someone with Anxiety
Simple tools to better support your loved ones without trying to fix them.
Psychology | Personality
10 Studies That Show The Advantages of Feeling Down – Research Digest
By Christian Jarrett As human beings, there's no avoiding feeling sad – as R.E.M. put it "everybody cries, and everybody hurts sometimes". We usually think of this as an unpleasant state, and for those of us who want to minimise our miserable
Psychology | Personality
What is synesthesia?
People with synesthesia experience unique perceptual cross-overs, such as associating letters or sounds to colors. Learn more about it in this Spotlight.
Psychology | Personality
Morning depression: Causes, symptoms, and how to cope
Diurnal variations are types of depression that cause symptoms to get worse at certain times of the day. Morning depression is a common diurnal variation. In this article, learn about the symptoms and risk factors for morning depression, as well as the tr
Psychology | Personality
Does receiving favors make you uncomfortable? Maybe it's reciprocity anxiety
Researchers have devised a new reciprocity anxiety scale. By Christian Jarrett
Psychology | Personality
Treating Teens' Depression May Make Parents Happier, Too - The Atlantic
Early evidence suggests that treatment has a ripple effect in families.
Psychology | Personality
What it Really Means to Hold Space for Someone
Do you want to be there for a loved one, but don't know how? Here are some techniques to help you 'hold space' for people in need.
Psychology | Personality
The Key Role of Body Image in Happy Relationships | Psychology Today
Feeling comfortable in your own skin would seem to be an important contributor to happiness. New research shows body image also affects relationship quality.
Psychology | Personality
Surprising Facts About Body Language and Your Emotions | Psychology Today
You are undoubtedly aware that your face communicates your emotional state, but new research shows the surprising ways that your entire body language contributes to the process.
Psychology | Personality
Study: High-Empathy People Process Music Differently In The Brain - Study Finds
People who more deeply feel the happiness or sadness of others process music differently in the brain than people who do not possess such high levels empathy, a new study finds.
Psychology | Personality
Why Is Seeing Your Own Reflection So Important?
Four research findings from neuroscience that you need to know
Psychology | Personality
Simply Fearing The Day Will Be Stressful Worsens Memory, Focus, Productivity - Study Finds
Just believing your day will be stressful worsens your working memory and cause you to be less productive and make a day at the office even harder, a new study finds.
Psychology | Personality
What Does it Mean to Be a Man? | The On Being Project
What would it mean to rethink our definition of masculinity? Jonathan P. Higgins calls for an unlearning of our warped understanding of what it means to be a man, and a new definition that makes space for wholeness.
Psychology | Personality
Flat Minds | Psychology Today
Almost everything we think we know about our own minds is wrong. Perhaps that's progress.
Psychology | Personality
The Middle Child Is Going Extinct
Middle children are empaths, peacemakers, negotiators. And as more American families choose to have only one or two children, they’re becoming an endangered species.
Psychology | Personality
New Study: The Genetics of Staying in School - The Atlantic
Researchers have found 1,271 gene variants associated with years of formal education. That’s important, but not for the obvious reasons.
Psychology | Personality
Reducing trait anxiety by implanting false positive memories – Research Digest
The results suggest it may be possible to exploit the known malleability of memory to edit people's very sense of self. By Christian Jarrett
Psychology | Personality
Stress affects people with schizophrenia differently: Strategies for coping with stress and building resilience may prov
Stressful situations affect the brain and body differently in people with schizophrenia compared to people without the mental illness or individuals at high risk for developing psychosis, a new study shows. The relationship between two chemicals released
Psychology | Personality
The Edge Effect: People Who Have Deep Relationships with Foreigners are More Creative
There is great comfort in the familiar. It's one reason humans often flock to other people who share the same interests, laugh at the same jokes, hold the same political views. But familiar ground may not be the best place to cultivate creativity. From sc
Psychology | Personality
The surreal, sad story behind the acclaimed new doc 'Three Identical Strangers'
The incredible true story of triplets separated at birth and reunited years later unfolds in the documentary 'Three Identical Strangers'
Psychology | Personality
Do You Like ‘Dogs Playing Poker’? Science Would Like to Know Why - The New York Times
A growing number of psychologists are focusing their studies on aesthetics and the question of why we like what we like.
Psychology | Personality
The Key To Success Could Be Your Attitude – Not Your Intelligence | Thrive Global
According to new research from Stanford University, it may be time to change your mindset.
Psychology | Personality
This Is Your Brain on Fatherhood | Science | Smithsonian
What clownfish stepfathers and Dad-of-the-Year foxes teach us about paternal neurochemistry in the animal kingdom
Psychology | Personality
What is love– An inventory of the meaningful life.
An inventory of cross-disciplinary interestingness, spanning art, science, design, history, philosophy, and more.
Psychology | Personality
Is There Scientific Proof of Psychic Ability?
New research argues that legitimate, statistically significant evidence for psi, or psychic ability, does exist, despite the predominance of criticism and mockery of such studies in the psychology field.
Psychology | Personality
Are Male and Female Brains Biologically Different? - The Atlantic
The scientific debate around this question keeps raging, but one neuroscientist says we’re more alike than we think.
Psychology | Personality
Tuning in to Our Amazing Auditory System
Welcome to the Monitor on Psychology digital edition! This interactive format allows you to easily read, share with friends, and click on web links to get further resources.
Psychology | Personality
With RNA, Researchers Transfer Memories Between Sea Slugs - D-brief
It hints that memories might not be totally stored in synapses as we thought.
Psychology | Personality
If You Think a Friend Might Be Suicidal, Ask
Don’t let your anxiety or worries about triggering someone hold you back.
Psychology | Personality
Beneath the Mask of Toughness: What I Lost on the Wrestling Mat
“For a long time, I thought wrestling had changed me. Yet wrestling did not erase my fear — it only made my body stronger, more the equal of my heart.” A former wrestler reflects on the strength the sport was able to give him — and the courage he
Psychology | Personality
The 2 Lessons About Happiness That Completely Changed My Mindset
Don't avoid the negative thoughts you may be having. Instead, draw from these ideas to help change your mindset.
Psychology | Personality
What Are Sunday Scaries? And How Can You Handle Them?
We sat down with Megan Murk, a National Board Certified Health and Wellness Coach, to learn simple ways to manage the Sunday Scaries at home.
Psychology | Personality
Inherited Variations in Noncoding Sections of DNA Associated with Autism
A new study has identified an association between paternally-inherited rare structural variants in noncoding segments of genes and the development of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The study adds to a growing body of research describing genetic contribut
Psychology | Personality
Americans Are More Socially Isolated, but Less Lonely
What's the difference between social isolation and loneliness? And why is one rising while the other one is declining over time?
Psychology | Personality
Positive Self-Talk: 7 Things Mentally Healthy People Tell Themselves
The messages we give to ourselves every day have enormous power. Anything that is repeated and repeated and repeated can become "truth" -- even when it isn't. Any coach will tell you that practice doesn't necessarily make perfect but it certainl
Psychology | Personality
12 Signs You May Have an Anxiety Disorder
Anxiety comes in many forms—panic attacks, anxiety attacks, phobia, and social anxiety—and the distinction between a disorder and "normal"
Psychology | Personality
Loneliness Rivals Obesity, Smoking as Health Risk
A new survey finds nearly half of Americans reporting they feel alone, isolated, or left out at least some of the time.
Psychology | Personality
How Useful Is Fear? - The Atlantic
Evolution has installed phobias in humans that are proving hard to shake.
Psychology | Personality
What Is Anxiety Contagion?
Research shows that the human brain can pick up on and experience stress felt by our partners and friends.
Psychology | Personality
The 7 Thought-Habits of Highly Self-Confident People
Do you wish you had more self-esteem? These 7 thinking habits will help you become more confident and mentally strong.
Psychology | Personality
Why You Need to Be Good at Reading Your Emotions | Psychology Today
Being able to read other people’s emotions is important for your relationships, but according to new research, it’s just as important to read your own with clarity.
Psychology | Personality
How Exactly Does Autism Muddy Communication?
The root of the problem could be social or linguistic.
Psychology | Personality
Rewiring Your Avoidant, Anxious, or Fearful Attachment Style
Sometimes it's less about figuring things out and more about practicing behaviors that will help rewire your emotional system and give you the freedom to change.
Psychology | Personality
What Makes Complex Trauma So Complex?
"Complex trauma" is a term increasingly used to describe multiple instances of trauma, the effects of which are cumulative and experienced over time.
Psychology | Personality
I Belong, Therefore I Am? | The Immeasurable
What does group behavior tell us about the inner life of individuals? The perils of identity and why we want to belong to groups. I Belong, Therefore I Am?
Psychology | Personality
A New Prime Suspect for Depression
How ketamine tipped off the depression detectives
Psychology | Personality
The Fascinating Science Behind Why We See 'Faces' In Objects
Test your knowledge with amazing and interesting facts, trivia, quizzes, and brain teaser games on MentalFloss.com.
Psychology | Personality
Study Finds 44 Genetic Variants Linked to Depression
Test your knowledge with amazing and interesting facts, trivia, quizzes, and brain teaser games on MentalFloss.com.
Psychology | Personality
Stop Giving Toxic People Your Time
Do you ever get upset about the nasty behavior of your co-workers, friends, or even family? Well, if you let others upset you, it’s not their fault. Toxic people have only one goal: To cause mayhem. My advice? Avoid all toxic people!
Psychology | Personality
Why 11 A.M. Is the Sweet Spot for Deep and Focused Work
How to find your sweet spot for deep and focused work.
Psychology | Personality
Four Ways to Feel Happier and Enjoy Your Happiness
We think of happiness as a desirable state — unless you fear that your happiness will be fleeting. The latest research shows 4 ways to become, and stay, happy and enjoy the moment.
Psychology | Personality
A New Approach to Understanding Social Anxiety
There’s more to social anxiety disorder than just its symptoms says new research
Psychology | Personality
The Science of How Your Diet Affects Your Mental Health
The emerging field of “nutritional psychiatry” is exploring how the food you eat can affect your risk of depression.
Psychology | Personality
How to Be Better at Uncertainty
The benefits of uncertainty include better decision-making, increased empathy, and increased creativity.
Psychology | Personality
(Just)ification
Funny thing about this word… We use it to imply “merely” when what we really mean is just the opposite. “Can you just tweak this design?” “Can you just re-write this page?” “Can you just tell us wh…
Psychology | Personality
The Ultimate Guide to Embracing Change
The Ultimate Guide to Embracing Change
Psychology | Personality
Getting to the Root of the Problem: Stem Cells Are Revealing New Secrets about Mental Illness
A fresh wave of research involves reprogramming ordinary skin cells into those found in the brain
Psychology | Personality
What Is Consciousness? What Happens in the Brain During Anesthesia
Three new studies probe this mysterious state.
Psychology | Personality
There Is Always Another Part: An Origin Story
How one author's words led me to an insight which continues to shape both my personal and professional lives.
Psychology | Personality
The Shape of Bipolarity
Much of what is communicated about bipolar disorder doesn’t come close to conveying its complexities or subtleties.
Psychology | Personality
Finding Your Purpose in 3 Ways: The Only Questions You Should Ask
Finding your purpose in life, discovering your passion
Psychology | Personality
The Shy Person’s Guide to Being the Center of Attention
For situations where all eyes are going to be on you — your birthday, your wedding, even a work presentation — there are ways to make the spotlight a little less uncomfortable.
Psychology | Personality
How to Stop Walking on Eggshells
It’s hard to fully be yourself in any meaningful relationship when you have to be too careful – when there is even the slightest sensation of eggshells underfoot. Filtering oneself, whatever …
Psychology | Personality
7 Women on Realizing They Were in an Abusive Relationship
Women explain how they learned to recognize the signs of physical and emotional abuse from their partners, whether on their own or through interventions from friends and family.
Psychology | Personality
Thinking Beyond the ‘Chemical Imbalance’ Theory of Depression
The truth is more complicated than many people realize.
Psychology | Personality
Why it’s time to invest in yourself
Leaving the corporate 9 to 5 to invest in your health and wellbeing, in your skills and career capital, and, ultimately, in your future
Psychology | Personality
Fear Is Nothing to Be Feared
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself,” FDR once famously declared. But was he right?
Psychology | Personality
6 New Things Researchers Learned About Single People in 2017
The studies say it’s a pretty great time to be flying solo – more people than ever are living alone, opting not to marry, and leading fulfilling single lives (with lots of sex).
Psychology | Personality
6 New Things Researchers Learned About Single People in 2017
The studies say it’s a pretty great time to be flying solo – more people than ever are living alone, opting not to marry, and leading fulfilling single lives (with lots of sex).
Psychology | Personality
What It’s Like To Be A Single Woman Alone For Christmas
A single woman’s secret to surviving the holiday season alone.
Psychology | Personality
How Depression Places a Lens Between You and the World Around You
It changes the way you perceive things.
Psychology | Personality
Stress and How Emotions Affect Susceptibility to Burnout and Disease
How your memories impact your immune system, why moving is one of the most stressful life-events, and what your parents have to do with your predisposition to