Psychology

Bad Mother? It May Be Part Biology

In mice, child neglect is a product of both nature and nurture, according to a new study. Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison describe a strain of mice that exhibit unusually high rates of maternal neglect, with approximately one out of ev ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 8 2008 - 7:32pm

Disease Mongering- Are Panic Attacks An Invention Of The Pharmaceutical Industry?

True agoraphobia is an invalidating disease but a paper by Giovanni A. Fava and associates of the University of Bologna, published in Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, questions the excessive emphasis on panic which has been attributed in the past decade a ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 16 2008 - 10:55am

Compulsive Gambling- Where Positive Thinking Distorts Negative Reality

Looking on the bright side can lead to irresponsible financial behavior, says Elizabeth Cowley from the University of Sydney. In a series of studies, Cowley examined repeated gambling in the face of loss. She finds that people often engage in too much posi ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 21 2008 - 10:25am

Negotiations: Get Perspective But Limit Your Empathy

From the war room to the board room, negotiations are a part of everyday life. Successful negotiations demand a clear understanding of one’s opponent. But what approach should one take to achieve such an understanding of one’s opponent in everyday negotiat ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 22 2008 - 9:42am

Fibromyalgia- Whatever It Is, Women Get It More Than Men

Are you exhausted? Do you have pain all over but can’t figure out what’s wrong? If so, you may be suffering from fibromyalgia, a chronic condition that causes exhaustion, sleep disturbances and diffuse pain in your muscles, tendons, and ligaments. Fibromya ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 27 2008 - 11:41am

Autism In Kids And Mental Disorders In Parents Linked

Parents of children with autism were roughly twice as likely to have been hospitalized for a mental disorder, such as schizophrenia, than parents of other children, according to an analysis of Swedish birth and hospital records by a University of North Car ...

Article - News Staff - May 4 2008 - 11:52pm

Buried Treasure, Black Swans, And Outliers

Not long ago, Howard Wainer, a statistician I mentioned recently, learned that his blood sugar was too high. His doctor told him to lose weight or risk losing his sight. He quickly lost about 50 pounds, which put him below 200 pounds. He also started maki ...

Article - Seth Roberts - May 7 2008 - 10:05am

Vitamin D Linked To Depression In Older Americans

Older adults with low blood levels of vitamin D and high blood levels of a hormone secreted by the parathyroid glands may have a higher risk of depression, according to a report in Archives of General Psychiatry. About 13 percent of older individuals have ...

Article - News Staff - May 5 2008 - 4:35pm

Why Do We Start Counting With Our Left Hand?

Martin Fischer, University of Dundee, Scotland, recently reported results showing that the majority of adults prefer to start counting on their left hand, regardless of whether they are left- or right-handed. In a subsequent odd-even task, the left-starter ...

Article - News Staff - May 9 2008 - 9:04am

Anxiety Disorders- The Dopamine Connection And Why It Actually Is All In Your Head

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, social anxiety disorder affects approximately 15 million American adults and is the third most common mental disorder in the United States, after depression and alcohol dependence. The essential feature ...

Article - News Staff - May 12 2008 - 10:22am