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Social Sciences - Career - 15.09.2022

The power of weak ties in gaining new employment
An experiment using data from 20 million LinkedIn profiles shows how much we rely on people we know less well to land new jobs. If you have a LinkedIn account, your connections probably consist of a core group of people you know well, and a larger set of people you know less well. The latter are what experts call -weak ties.

Social Sciences - History / Archeology - 15.09.2022

Beads show European trade in African interior used Indigenous routes
Tiny glass beads discovered in mountain caves about 25 miles from the shores of Lake Malawi in eastern-central Africa provide evidence that European trade in the continent's hinterland was built on Indigenous trade routes from the coast to the interior that had existed for centuries, according to a study co-authored by Yale anthropologist Jessica Thompson.

History / Archeology - Social Sciences - 15.09.2022

Beads from African interior reveal traces of European exploitation
Tiny glass beads discovered in mountain caves about 25 miles from the shores of Lake Malawi in eastern-central Africa provide evidence that European trade in the continent's hinterland was built on Indigenous trade routes from the coast to the interior that had existed for centuries, according to a study co-authored by Yale anthropologist Jessica Thompson.

Social Sciences - 12.09.2022

Money can increase willingness to help - but only if empathy is low
People who help others do not necessarily want to be rewarded for this. However, a reward can motivate low-empathic individuals to provide help. This is shown by a new study. A classic finding of social psychology research is that people donate less blood if they are paid to do so. If there is no payment, which means that they act simply out of a desire to help their fellow human beings, they give significantly more blood.

Environment - Social Sciences - 12.09.2022

Battle of the bins
In Australia, cockatoos and humans are in an arms race over garbage access Residents of southern Sydney, Australia have been in a long-term battle over garbage - humans want to throw it out, and cockatoos want to eat it. The sulphur-crested cockatoos that call the area home have a knack for getting into garbage bins, and people have been using inventive devices to keep them out.

Social Sciences - 09.09.2022

Who flirts to get ahead at work? Usually men in subordinate roles
The stereotype of the female secretary who hikes up her skirt to get a promotion is as pervasive as the powerful male boss who makes passes at his underlings. But a new study upends both tropes with evidence that it's actually men in subordinate positions who are most likely to flirt, use sexual innuendo, and even harass female bosses as a way to demonstrate their masculinity and power for personal gain at work.

Social Sciences - 08.09.2022

Inadequate post-release support drives up reincarceration rates: study
New research shows that people released from prison who sought help for their mental health or substance use problems were more likely to end up back in prison, prompting calls for an overhaul of the system to allow quicker and more consistent support. The study, published in the Journal PLOS ONE, examined the link between contact with mental health and substance use treatment services and reincarceration rates among 1,115 adults released from prisons in Queensland, Australia.

Social Sciences - 07.09.2022

Research into our relationship with social media is flawed
Social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and Twitter encourage their users to scroll endlessly through content. But this doesn't automatically imply that there is evidence of 'doom scrolling', in which the user's endless scrolling has a negative effect on their well-being. That's what Nastasia Griffioen argues, who has conducted research into smartphone use among young people; she will receive her PhD from Radboud University on 12 September.

Social Sciences - Health - 07.09.2022

Starting kindergarten: Normal stress for the vast majority of children
Measures of morning salivary cortisol show that children experience stress when starting kindergarten. It's normal. The transition to kindergarten causes a generalized and normal increase in the stress hormone cortisol in children during the first two weeks of school. Cortisol levels then decrease in some children but not others.

Life Sciences - Social Sciences - 06.09.2022

What attitudes towards outgroups improves
A realistic assessment of our own social group can help improve our attitude towards other groups. This is shown by a new study by the University Hospital of Würzburg. We are us, and others are exactly that - other. The feeling of belonging to a particular group that is clearly different from other groups is probably a human trait that we all share.

Social Sciences - Health - 05.09.2022

’Children younger than six years old do not belong in bunk beds’
Study by Leipzig University Medical Center: Forearm fractures most common after falls from bunk beds They are in vogue with many families: bunk beds in all shapes and colors, with stairs, ladders or even slides. A study by Leipzig University Medical Center has shown that accidents involving such beds frequently lead to bone fractures in children.

Social Sciences - 02.09.2022

New Study Highlights What Helped Families in the Corona Crisis
What factors determined how well families mastered the challenges of the corona pandemic? And what impact did social inequality have? A new study at Universität Hamburg has some answers. -We already know that individual factors, for example resources such as housing, income, or education, affect people during the pandemic,- explains sociologist Manderscheid from Universität Hamburg.

Health - Social Sciences - 01.09.2022

Limited research has been done on the occupational hazards faced by Indigenous peoples 
National data has consistently shown that Indigenous people in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand are two to three times more likely to die from injury than non-Indigenous people. However, very little research has been done by the public or private sectors on the occupational hazards Indigenous people face, according to a new University of Illinois Chicago study published in the British Medical Journal of Occupational Health and Medicine.

Life Sciences - Social Sciences - 01.09.2022

Cannabis users no less likely to be motivated or able to enjoy life’s pleasure
Adult and adolescent cannabis users are no more likely than non-users to lack motivation or be unable to enjoy life's pleasure, new research has shown, suggesting there is no scientific basis for the stereotype often portrayed in the media. We are so used to seeing -lazy stoners- on our screens that we don't stop to ask whether they-re an accurate representation of cannabis users.

Health - Social Sciences - 01.09.2022

Newborns of women with disabilities more likely to experience health complications
Babies of women with disabilities have a greater chance of experiencing rare health complications and requiring intensive care - though many of the health issues are preventable, according to a new study. "There's good evidence that, especially for preterm birth and low-birth-weight babies, better access to prenatal care can make a big difference," says  Hilary Brown , co-author of the paper and assistant professor in the department of health and society at the University of Toronto Scarborough.

Social Sciences - 31.08.2022

Positive neighbor involvement important if teens don’t develop mother-child bond
Abstract: The moderating role of neighborhood social cohesion on the relationship between early mother-child attachment security and adolescent social skills Teens who live in neighborhoods with trusted, engaged adults can still develop critical social skills that were not nurtured early in life, according to a new University of Michigan study.

Social Sciences - 25.08.2022

Much more hope than hate in posts sent to England’s women at Euro 2022
The vast majority of social media posts directed towards England's winning Euro 2022 football players across the tournament were positive, an analysis by Cardiff University's HateLab has found. The study of 78,141 posts on Twitter, Reddit and 4Chan identified more than 50,000 positive posts - roughly one "hate" post for every 125 "hope" posts - while 380 were classed as sexist or homophobic.

Psychology - Social Sciences - 24.08.2022

Using digital media to relax is related to lower-quality parenting
Negative parenting behaviours more likely when technology interrupts family interactions Caregivers who consume digital media for relaxation are more likely to engage in negative parenting practices, according to a new multinational study. The new study led by the University of Waterloo aimed to investigate the relationship between caregivers' use of digital media, mental health, and parenting practices at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Health - Social Sciences - 24.08.2022

Variants in BRCA1/2 and MMR genes in children with cancer
Genetic testing not recommended in healthy children Pathogenic variants in BRCA1/2 genes are associated with an increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer in adults and variants in mismatch repair (MMR) genes increase the risk of gastrointestinal and other cancers. Until now, the role of such variants in children and adolescents with cancer was unclear.

Health - Social Sciences - 24.08.2022

Gene therapy for completely colourblind children partly restores cone function
Gene therapy has partly restored the function of the retina's cone receptors in two children who were born completely colourblind, reports a new study led by UCL researchers. The findings, published in Brain , provide hope that the treatment is effectively activating previously dormant communication pathways between the retina and the brain, drawing on the plastic nature of the developing adolescent brain.