MetaFilter posts tagged with research and psychology

test your your brain

not_on_display — Thu, 21 May 2009 10:53:55 -0800

Test My Brain was set up by Harvard's Vision Lab and Social Neuroscience and Psychopathology Lab. There are five tests online at the time of this post; take one and maybe you'll learn something about yourself that you may not have known (other than your special ability to slack off on MetaFilter when you should be working). At the same time, you'll be helping researchers collect data from a wide range of subjects. One of the collaborators, Professor Ken Nakayama, is also responsible for creating these online tests for faceblindness. [previously] [Disclaimer: I work at Harvard, but not in the same department; I know none of the collaborators.]

Studies In Getting Smacked

Marisa Stole the Precious Thing — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 20:24:28 -0800

Three psychology experiments that raise ethics questions because of the danger they posed to the research assistants. (via) The Reaction to Rape by American Male Bystanders: "The present study simulated a rape in a realistic natural setting. The topography of the location ensured that the subjects, men walking to their adjacent parked cars, had but one of the following three options: to walk away, to intervene directly, or to intervene indirectly by summoning a police officer. Intervention was more frequent by groups of bystanders than by individual bystanders and was overwhelmingly of the direct kind." Personal space invasions in the lavatory: Suggestive evidence for arousal.: "A field experiment was conducted to test the hypothesis that personal space invasions produce arousal as measured by delay of onset and duration of men’s urination. Men using a three-urinal lavatory at a Midwestern university were subjects. According to a previously determined schedule of random assignment a confederate either, stood at the urinal directly adjacent to the subject, stood one urinal away, or was absent from the lavatory. An observer with a periscope was concealed in a toilet stall and recorded measures of urination." The stare as a stimulus to flight in human subjects: "An experimenter, reading a motor scooter, arranged to arrive first at a red traffic light. When a car drew along side, the experimenter turned to stare directly at the driver until the traffic signal turned green."

"Our whole approach is based on the idea that science matters at the FDA"

kliuless — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 08:50:34 -0800

The Economist on Drugs -- Scientists in North America, Europe and Israel are studying the use of MDMA, LSD, hallucinogenic mushrooms, marijuana and other banned psychoactive substances in treating conditions such as anxiety, cluster headaches, addiction and obsessive-compulsive disorder. They are supported by private funds from a handful of organisations: the Beckley Foundation in Britain; the Heffter Research Institute and the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) in America. [related]

Go ahead: diagnose yourself! Are you an Aspie?

grumblebee — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:38:26 -0800

Do you have Asperger's Syndrome? Answer these questions and find out. I'm skeptical about this, but I find it fascinating. For years, I've suspected I'm an Aspie, and, as it turns out, I answered the questions exactly the way the researchers predict an Aspie would answer them. My "normal" wife answers them they way "normal" people do. I am almost incapable of understanding the "normal" answer. To me, the Aspie answer is obviously correct. Here is a great discussion about the research. Here is the original research paper (MS Word file). Sorry for basically just reposting a boingboing article, but I thought many MeFites would find this interesting.

The Internet and You

lpctstr; — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 19:40:49 -0800

The Internet and our social and psychological well-being : This older study correlates Internet use with declining social relationships and isolation. A more recent study (PDF) shows that the Internet has changed and positively affects social relationships.

Coming soon to a cinema near you

Gyan — Sun, 23 Jul 2006 12:40:34 -0800

The Human Speechome Project - "A baby is to be monitored by a network of microphones and video cameras for 14 hours a day, 365 days a year, in an effort to unravel the seemingly miraculous process by which children acquire language.". Selected video clips. Paper (PDF, 750KB). To test hypotheses of how children learn, Prof Deb Roy's team at MIT will develop machine learning systems that “step into the shoes” of his son by processing the sights and sounds of three years of life at home. Total storage required: 1.4 petabytes.

Israeli researchers discover gene for altruism

Postroad — Mon, 24 Jan 2005 10:40:17 -0800

Israeli researchers discover gene for altruism Why are some people more prone to give charity or put themselves in danger in order to help others? A team of Israeli psychologists claim they have the answer - they've located the first gene linked to altruistic behavior.

Pain bites.

taz — Mon, 20 Sep 2004 06:13:29 -0800

No pain, no gain, they say, and when it comes to real pain, the inverse is true as well. "We now have research indicating there's a memory of chronic pain," said Dr. Doris K. Cope, director of chronic and cancer pain for the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. It changes the genic code sometimes, it changes the biochemistry, and it causes new proteins to be formed." Or in other words, the more pain you have, the more pain you have. (More on this.) It's no wonder, then, that more money is spent on pain relief than any other medical problem, and that there has been so much pain research and so many clinical trials revealing such painful facts as redheads feel more pain, men feel less pain, and that there's a genetic difference between tough guys and wimps. (Much more pain inside.)

You are your record collection.

eyebeam — Fri, 11 Jul 2003 06:37:37 -0800

You are your record collection. If you really want to get to know someone, try rummaging through their CD collection. "I don't think anyone who's really passionate about music just 'listens' to it. This research is positive confirmation of the fact that songs are emblematic of people's characters. I've always believed that people's musical taste says a lot about them. If you like Avril Lavigne, for example, you probably need to have your ears syringed."

Math

semmi — Fri, 25 Apr 2003 13:42:54 -0800

Every Unhappy Family Has Its Own Bilinear Influence Function.

thekorruptor — Fri, 28 Jun 2002 13:36:07 -0800

Stranger is as stranger does Lets see, the older I get, the more eccentric I become. Boy, am I in trouble.

martk — Wed, 12 Jun 2002 09:29:58 -0800

UMass Researcher Finds Most People Lie In Everyday Conversation UMass Researcher Finds Most People Lie In Everyday Conversation "Most people lie in everyday conversation when they are trying to appear likable and competent, according to a study conducted by University of Massachusetts psychologist Robert S. Feldman and published in the most recent Journal of Basic and Applied Social Psychology…The study also found that lies told by men and women differ in content, though not in quantity. Feldman said the results showed that men do not lie more than women or vice versa, but that men and women lie in different ways. "Women were more likely to lie to make the person they were talking to feel good, while men lied most often to make themselves look better," Feldman said." Are you a liar? C’mon now, tell the truth.

NortonDC — Wed, 09 Jan 2002 12:39:44 -0800

Anger plays a key role in human cooperation. And not only that, anger is altruistic! The link covers a behavioral experiment probing individual versus group benefits, freeloading, punishment and altruism.

antimarx — Tue, 04 Dec 2001 21:14:46 -0800

Racial stereotypes hurt academic performances --on standardized tests--for whites.

gluechunk — Tue, 04 Sep 2001 21:02:38 -0800

How easily can false memories be created through advertisements? Could you be convinced that Bugs Bunny was at Disneyland? Full results from a larger study will be revealed soon. "Is it OK for marketers to knowingly manipulate consumers' past?"