Psychology

'Dry January' Has Benefits All Year Long

Research suggests the alcohol-free challenge reduces consumption for months afterward

Waiting on a lie

When Do Children Give Up on Santa?

A preview of a new international study explores when kids stop believing and how, after the jig is up, it impacted them psychologically

Researchers say the shift in laugh patterns doesn't appear to be linked with any major developmental milestones

Babies Share Same Laugh Patterns as Chimpanzees

Unlike adults, who tend to laugh while exhaling, infants let giggles loose while both inhaling and exhaling

Celebrate the spookiest night of the year by participating in a "game" that lets you guide a real person's actions

This Halloween, a Social Experiment Will Allow Internet Users to Control the Actions of a Real Person

MIT Media Laboratory's BeeMe is the love child of ‘Black Mirror’ and psychologist Stanley Milgram’s notorious experiments on free will and obedience

The Average Person Can Recognize 5,000 Faces

But some participants in a recent study were able to recall as many as 10,000 faces

How Scientists Can Learn About Human Behavior From Closed-Circuit TV

While researchers used to rely on interviews and experiments, raw video reveals subtle, previously hidden reactions

Blue-and-yellow macaws are capable of blushing (left).

Like Humans, Some Birds Blush to Communicate

Blue-and-yellow macaws are capable of the feathered equivalents of facial expressions, new research shows

The couch on which Freud’s patients lay became identified with psychoanalysis itself. He shipped it to London when he left Vienna.

What Drove Sigmund Freud to Write a Scandalous Biography of Woodrow Wilson?

The founder of psychoanalysis collaborated with a junior American diplomat to lambaste the former president

Child participants doubted themselves and looked to their robot counterparts for guidance

Children Are Susceptible to Robot Peer Pressure, Study Suggests

When robots provided incorrect answers in social conformity test, children tended to follow their lead

Would your pup come to your rescue?

Why the Most Helpful Dogs Keep Calm and Carry On

Dogs are willing to overcome obstacles to help people in distress—as long as they keep their cool

If you've waited this long for it, it must be good, right?

Both Mice and Men Struggle to Abandon Their Best-Laid Plans

Rodents suffer from the same sunk cost fallacy that makes it so hard for humans to call it quits

Anna Freud's signet ring.

Exhibit Reveals Rings From Freud's "Secret Committee"

The founder of psychoanalysis handed out the rings to students, colleagues and friends who supported and spread his theories

McNamara (in 2013 in Nazaré) still surfs its monster waves, despite the risks. Last year, a fall broke champion British surfer Andrew Cotton’s back.

What It Took to Set the World Record for Surfing

Brazilian surfer Rodrigo Koxa had to conquer PTSD before he was ready to break Garrett McNamara’s world record

Hangry like the wolf.

Being Hangry Is Real, But You Can Control It

Hunger elicits similar responses as emotions, but it only turns into "hanger" when people are already primed with negative feelings

Disgusting Things Fall Into Six Gross Categories

Open sores, body odors and other indicators of possible disease transmission top the list of things that gross us out

Don't you just want to squish that wittle face?

What Dogs Really Think of Your 'Puppy' Voice

Dog-directed speech may improve animals' attention skills and strengthen human-pupper bonds

Those who hold out for the second marshmallow may come from more affluent households, and their future success is based on this economic advantage rather than sheer willpower

Why Delayed Gratification in the Marshmallow Test Doesn’t Equal Success

Socioeconomic status, family background amongst factors accounting for children's varying levels of self-control

Study Looks at Why We All Spew So Much BS

The social pressure to have an opinion and a lack of accountability are what lead to the mix of truth, half-truth and outright falsehood known as bullshit

The Proliferation of Happiness

A professor of consumer culture tracks the history of positive psychology

Unraveling the Genetics Behind Why Some People "See" Sound and "Hear" Color

Researchers find several genes that regulate the wiring for synesthesia in the brain

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