Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Psychology

A recent study on clutter and overeating gave a new spin to the term "Hell's Kitchen."

New Research

Messy Kitchens Could Make You Eat More

Researchers put participants in the world’s most stressful kitchen for the sake of science

Ain't no rest for the wicked … or the innocent.

New Research

Sleepy Suspects Are Way More Likely to Falsely Confess to a Crime

In a study, almost 70 percent of sleep-deprived people admitted to something they didn’t do

New Research

Women “Catch” Yawns More Easily Than Men

Researchers sneakily observed thousands of interactions to see if gender made a difference in the contagiousness of yawning

Brain Scans Could Identify Kids at Risk of Depression

Knowing who’s at risk before the disease strikes could make preventative treatments possible

A Brandeis University researcher studied paintings by Edgar Degas and other bummed-out artists to see if grief affected their sale price.

New Research

Grief May Not Make Artists Better

New research shows that bummed-out artists aren’t necessarily better ones

Dogs, like humans, use mimicry to enhance social bonds.

New Research

Dogs Mimic Each Other’s Expressions, Too

The behavioral findings hint that dogs, like humans, might be capable of their own form of empathy

New Research

These Parrots Use Pebbles as Tools to Grind up Seashells

Polly want a mineral supplement?

New Research

Finally There’s a Scientific Theory for Why Some Words are Funny

The science behind Dr. Seuss

A bomb blast engulfs a mountainside near the town of Barg-e Matal in Afghanistan.

New Research

Shock Waves May Create Dangerous Bubbles in the Brain

Lab experiments show how people who survive explosions may still carry cellular damage that can cause psychological problems

Cool Finds

The Hidden Costs of Having a Gifted Child

Exceptional talent in children can be a source of financial and emotional stress for parents who don’t feel equipped

Seasonal affective disorder can cause people to feel isolated and hopeless.

New Research

Talking Is the Latest Tool for Battling Seasonal Depression

A large-scale study suggests that talk therapy may have longer-lasting benefits than light boxes for treating wintertime blues

New Research

People Who Believe in Ghosts Are More Fearful Overall

New research finds a link between paranormal beliefs and fears of things like natural disasters

Five Things We’ve Learned About Fear Since Last Halloween

Including why screams get our brain’s attention and why a drop of “love hormone” in our nose could make us less fearful

The app uses facial expression-tracking technology.

Can an App Help Detect Autism?

Duke University researchers are using facial expression-tracking technology to screen for autism spectrum disorders

New Research

Where Do Hallucinations Come From? It May Just Be What You’ve Seen

It may be our brains overriding what is there with what it expects to see, according to new research

The Innovative Spirit

New Software Makes Cyberbullies Think Twice

Teen programmer Trisha Prabhu created a program called ReThink to make cyberbullies reconsider before posting cruel messages

Hot or not? Your answer may depend on your life experiences as much as your genes.

New Research

What’s Beautiful? It Depends on What Your Eyes Have Already Beheld

Opinions about beauty may be shaped just as much by past social interactions as by our genes

What a cute little schemer

New Research

Babies Time Their Adorable Smiles to Manipulate Adults

By timing their grins, babies can get adults to grin

Each level explores a different kind of psychological trauma.

The Innovative Spirit

Can a Video Game Teach You to Manage Stress?

“Nevermind,” a video game controlled by a player’s heart rate, aims to help people deal with trauma

New Research

Reaching the End of a Task Makes People More Likely to Cheat

A study shows that when given a repetitive task and the ability to get away with cheating, people will be sneaky

Page 12 of 24