news 2017

How dangerous does the general public consider mentally ill people to be? Scientists at the University of Basel and the University Psychiatric Clinics Basel have investigated the factors that influence social stigma.

Young people with autism spectrum conditions (ASC) have difficulties recognising and distinguishing between different facial expressions, according to research from one of the largest studies to look at emotion recognition in children and adolescents with ASC. The University of Bristol findings are published today [31 Mar 2017] in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

Look into my eyes: why those who experience hypnosis are unlikely to be faking it New research from scientists at the University of Sussex has taken a major step towards unlocking the secrets of hypnosis and gathering evidence that suggests that subjects aren't faking the effects of it. Researchers at the Sackler Centre for Consciousness Science at the University of Sussex have utilised a simple trick of the mind to further investigate the idea that subjects under the spell of hypnosis are in fact experiencing hypnotic action as involuntary.

ANN ARBOR?Monogamy is considered by many to kindle commitment, trust and love, but a new University of Michigan study finds that those in nonmonogamous relationships are just as happy. Despite the stigma, heterosexuals in consensual open relationships report high levels of satisfaction and trust, as well as low levels of jealousy.

Reproducibility is the idea that an experiment can be repeated by another scientist and they will get the same result. It is important to show that the claims of any experiment are true and for them to be useful for any further research. However, science appears to have an issue with reproducibility.

Research has revealed that the more often people eat with others the more likely they are to feel happy and satisfied with their lives. New research from the University of Oxford has revealed that the more often people eat with others, the more likely they are to feel happy and satisfied with their lives.

Improving your sleep makes you feel as good as a lottery winner - leading to high levels of health and wellbeing over time - say University of Warwick psychologists Quality of sleep more important than quantity for optimal health and happiness Study analysed link between sleep and mental & physical wellbeing in households across the UK Working on better sleep could be an effective, cheap and simple public health strategy Improving your sleep quality is as beneficial to health and happiness as winning the lottery, according to research by the University of Warwick.

UCL and language learning app Memrise have announced the winner of the first 'Memprize', a competition to find the world's most efficient and effective vocabulary learning technique. A team from Radboud University in the Netherlands won the prize after over a year of in-depth real-life empirical experiments involving more than 10,000 Memrise users as volunteers.

A review of research into the therapeutic potential of Cannabidiol (CBD) - a major nonpsychoactive compound found in cannabis - has shown there is a growing body of evidence to suggest that it could help in the treatment of anxiety-related and substance abuse disorders. However, more studies are needed to determine the psychological, pharmacological and brain mechanisms involved.

Prime Minister Theresa May recently announced measures to improve mental health support at every stage of a person's life, with an emphasis on early intervention for children and young people. Writing in The Conversation, Professor Ian Goodyer from the Department of Psychiatry looks at the options for helping teenagers.

Stanford psychologist Michael Frank and other researchers used a novel statistical approach to analyze children's early speech and found evidence that toddlers develop knowledge of grammar with time and practice. Children's ability to understand basic grammar early in language development has long puzzled scientists, creating a debate over whether that skill is innate or learned with time and practice.

New UCL research has found no link between cat ownership and psychotic symptoms, casting doubt on previous suggestions that people who grew up with cats are at higher risk of mental illness. Recent research has suggested that cat ownership might contribute to some mental disorders, because cats are the primary host of the common parasite Toxoplasma Gondii (T.

ANN ARBOR'The crowds, competition for fewer resources and high cost of living can cause some people to think twice about residing in densely populated areas. But a new study by researchers at the University of Michigan and Arizona State University indicates these areas can lead people to take a slower approach resulting in benefits later in life.

Some people who responded to the survey have experienced high levels of psychological distress and health concerns. The ANU has released the third report of its ACT Asbestos Health Study which examined the health concerns of people who have lived in a house with loose-fill asbestos insulation. The report found one in three people had seen a health professional to manage their mental or physical health specifically related to living in a house with loose-fill asbestos.

By Shilo Rea Studies have suggested that married people are healthier than those who are single, divorced or widowed. A new Carnegie Mellon University study provides the first biological evidence to support that claim. Published in Psychoneuroendocrinology , the researchers found that married individuals had lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol than those who never married or were previously married.

New University of Liverpool research - published today in The Lancet Public Health  – shows that children who move into poverty are more likely to suffer from social, emotional and behavioural problems than children who remain out of poverty. The UK Government has recently questioned whether the relative measure of income poverty used in this research (a household income that is less than 60% of the national average) is a good indicator of children's life chances.

'Say it with chocolate,' goes the ad - but what are you really saying? We imbue objects with all sorts of meanings, especially around the holidays. A new study by Cornell psychology researchers finds that the closer to Valentine's Day we get, the more chocolates - and red roses - spell out 'l-o-v-e.' 'Most people like chocolates and roses,' said Vivian Zayas, associate professor of psychology, 'but as Valentine's Day approaches, people like them a lot more, and we think this increase in positivity occurs because these objects are strongly associated with love in U.S. culture.

Since 2007, the Texas Combat PTSD Risk Project has sought to identify the mechanisms that underly PTSD. Image by Marines from Arlington, VA, United States AUSTIN, Texas - Up to 20 percent of U.S. veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan developed symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder from trauma experienced during wartime, but new neuroscience research from The University of Texas at Austin suggests some soldiers might have a hormonal predisposition to experience such stress-related disorders.

New research from Penn State's College of Education looks at the pinning behaviors of school psychologists to determine if they are sharing evidence-based practices. UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. With more than 110 million monthly users, Pinterest is in the top five of most-used social media sites. Its popularity has even led to the creation of the hashtag #pinterestfail for users to showcase their unsuccessful attempts of recipes or arts-and-crafts projects.

Children get more satisfaction from relationships with their pets than with their brothers or sisters, according to new research from the University of Cambridge. Children also appear to get on even better with their animal companions than with siblings. The fact that pets cannot understand or talk back may even be a benefit as it means they are completely non-judgmental Matt Cassells The research adds to increasing evidence that household pets may have a major influence on child development, and could have a positive impact on children's social skills and emotional well-being.