Tagged: social psychology

Health
3:21 pm
Wed January 2, 2013

Stateside: Keeping our New Year's resolutions

Credit normanack / flickr

University of Michigan psychologist Michelle Segar talks about what it takes to keep a New Year's resolution.

New Year’s resolutions.

We may groan about them, we may proclaim that we are “above” making them, but it does seem that the New Year brings about a collective longing for a fresh start.

So, how do you keep going strong as the year goes on? And is it possible to turn a good intention into a lifelong, good habit?

University of Michigan psychologist Michelle Segar says the key to success is the ability to see something like exercise as a way to enhance our lives immediately, instead of the means to achieve a long-term goal.

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Internet
5:16 pm
Tue September 18, 2012

Why are you so mean online?

Social scientists believe anonymity may be the cause of what they call the "online disinhibition effect."
Credit X2N / flickr
Social scientists believe anonymity may be the cause of what they call the "online disinhibition effect."

People are mean on the internet.

This should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with chat rooms or the comments sections of blogs. But why do people say things online that they would never say out loud?

A recent article in the Detroit Free Press asked a few experts what they thought.

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Technology
1:17 pm
Sun October 9, 2011

Smart phone app helps kids with autism

Credit Mark Bowers
Sosh focuses on what its creators call "the five R's."

Two Michigan psychologists have created a smart phone app to help kids with autism develop better social skills. Kelly Bowers and her husband Mark are both psychologists who work with kids. They watched their patients learn social skills in workshop settings, but noticed the kids had a harder time applying those skills to real-life situations.

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Psychology
9:02 pm
Fri January 14, 2011

Study: self-esteem trumps sex and sweets

Michigan Radio news intern Bridget Bodnar filed a report on a new study published in the Journal of Personality.

The study found that young people prefer praise over things like sex, favorite foods, seeing a best friend, getting a paycheck, or drinking alcohol.

Ohio State University put out a press release on the new research. From the release:

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