Danilo Díaz Granados

These are the healthiest personality traits, as rated by psychologists. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

Two popular diets were pitted against each other by scientists. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

The power of the imagination to beat fear. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

By Christian Jarrett After a trauma many people have the sense it has changed them for the better, such as granting them a new appreciation for life or improving their relationships. This has given rise to the appealing notion that there is such a thing as “post-traumatic growth”. However, the majority of investigations into this phenomenon have relied on asking people whether they believe they have changed; very few have assessed people prior to a trauma and then re-assessed them afterwards to see if positive changes have actually occurred. A new study in the  Journal of Social and Personal Relationships is the first to apply this kind of “prospective design” in the context of relationship breakups in young adults, and – unfortunately for anyone who found comfort and inspiration in the principle of post-traumatic growth – the authors Meghan Owenz and Blaine Fowers say their findings are more consistent with the idea that such growth is mostly illusory, the result of a positiv...

How tidy or messy desks reflect on your personality. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

Sugary drinks are drunk by over half of US adults every day. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

By Christian Jarrett It feels selfish to fret – it’s the other person who is suffering – but agonising over what to say to a friend in need can be incredibly anxiety provoking. If you want to be supportive (and not make matters worse), what are the right words to say to someone who has  experienced a relationship break-up, for instance, or lost their job? Should you express sympathy, downplay the situation, say you know how they feel, or something else entirely? A series of studies in Basic and Applied Social Psychology will offer relief to anyone who has ever agonised over this predicament – the findings suggest that in fact there are few, if any, “magic statements that, if spoken, would provide lasting comfort to the recipient.” Shawna Tanner at Wayne State University and her colleagues propose that in all likelihood trying too hard to say the right thing could actually lead you to make “clumsy statements that do more harm than good”. They advise that as long as your friend o...

Many of the stereotypes about rich people's personalities are true, research finds. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

Many parents do the exact opposite, unfortunately. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

By Christian Jarrett A new survey of beliefs held by social psychologists (335 members of the Society of Experimental Social Psychologists) has confirmed previous reports that the field is overwhelmingly populated by researchers of a left-wing, liberal bent. What’s more, David Buss and William von Hippel – the evolutionary psychologists who conducted and analysed the survey – say their findings, published open-access in Archives of Scientific Psychology , suggest that many of these social psychologists are opposed, for ideological reasons, to insights rooted in evolutionary psychology and that this is impeding them from developing a “proper science of social psychology”. Buss and von Hippel add that compounding matters is an irony – the social psychologists’ desire to signal their ideological stance and commitment to others who share their political views, which is a manifestation of the evolved human adaptation to form coalitions. “Part of this virtue signalling entails rejecting a...

The diet could reduce the risk of dementia and related neurodegenerative diseases. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

It almost seems too simple to work. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

By Christian Jarrett For people diagnosed with what’s known as “treatment-resistant major depressive disorder” the prognosis is not good – the low mood and emotional pain for these individuals has not lifted even though they are on a combination of antidepressant medications and may also have participated in psychotherapy. However a glimmer of hope comes via a research group in Portugal who reported recently in the Journal of Psychiatric Research that adopting a pet “enhanced” the effects of anti-depressant medication for a significant minority of their participants with previously treatment-resistant depression. Jorge  Mota Pereira and  Daniela  Fonte at the Clínica Médico-Psiquiátrica da Ordem in Porto recruited 80 outpatients with severe treatment-resistant depression and invited them to adopt a pet as part of a study into the effects of pet adoption on depression. Thirty-three of them agreed to do so (20 adopted a dog or dogs, 7 a cat); another 33 who declin...

Over one thousand psychologists were asked what is the biggest barrier to weight loss. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

The personality trait linked to 'getting lucky' more often. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

The common drink that may protect the brain against memory loss. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

A straightforward sign of brain health. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

This valuable and dynamic ability is linked to higher intelligence. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

By Emma Young A picture is worth a thousand words…. When it comes to conveying a concept, this sentiment can   certainly be true. But it may also be the case for memory. At least that’s the message from Myra Fernandes and colleagues at the University of Waterloo, Canada –  writing in Current Directions in Psychological Science , they argue that their research programme shows that drawing has a “surprisingly powerful influence” on memory, and as a mnemonic technique, it could be particularly useful for older adults – and even people with dementia. Fernandes and her colleagues first established what they call the “ drawing effect ” – getting people to draw quick pictures of words in a list (such as “truck” or “pear”) led to much better recall of those words than writing them out multiple times. Creating just a four-second drawing was also superior to imagining the items or viewing pictures of the words.   This was proof of principle type work. The researchers next loo...

The skill that improves both romantic relationships and parenting skills. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

It reduced depression and PTSD risk by 50%. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

After nearly eight years educating and entertaining readers with his reports on the latest psychology research, our staff writer Dr Alex Fradera is leaving us to begin the next chapter of his career. And what a varied career it has already been: an alumnus of the Mind Hacks group of young bloggers that formed in 2004, Alex completed a PhD at UCL in 2005 in the area of autobiographical memory before entering the world of occupational psychology as a consultant and, in 2011, establishing the popular  BPS Occupational Digest (later incorporated into the main Research Digest). Alongside all this, he is an admired teacher and performer in improvised theatre . His creativity, and his diverse experiences and expertise have always shone through in his reports for the Research Digest (thank you Alex!). We wish him the very best in his new role working in the NHS in a therapeutic capacity as he begins the path towards becoming a clinical psychologist. To celebrate his writings for the ...

Introverts and extraverts react differently to sleep deprivation. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

Body dissatisfaction is linked to weight gain and psychological problems such as eating disorders. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

By Christian Jarrett In western nations, the vast majority of sexually active women take the birth control pill at some point in their lives, usually to avoid becoming pregnant. Of increasing interest to some psychologists, the hormone-stabilising effects of the pill may have other important effects, including on the psyche and personal relationships, and these are the focus of a new study  in Neurology, Psychiatry and Brain Research. Some earlier studies found that women who take the pill report more emotional stability, in terms of experiencing fewer depressive symptoms , and fewer mental health problems more generally  (of course this is not true of all women, in fact some women describe unwanted emotional effects from the pill). There also appear to be what Tenille Taggart at San Diego State University and her colleagues refer to as “downstream benefits” of taking the pill, including greater relationship stability and satisfaction . However, before now, no ...

The modern way to develop a personality disorder. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

Surprisingly, men are more sensitive than women to the effects of coffee, the study also found. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

This behaviour is a sign of higher intelligence. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

The trait is linked higher relationship satisfaction in both partners. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

People experience higher self-control using this weight loss technique. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

The study looked at compounds called phenylindanes that may help protect against dementia. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

For the study, people played a game which involved lying. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

This could be why you're still single or happily married. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

People were more engaged with the task, which explained their improved performance. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

By Christian Jarrett “ Look. You can’t plan out your life. What you have to do is first discover your passion—what you really care about .” Barack Obama, as quoted by David Gergen (cited in Jachimowicz et al, 2018 ). This Saturday Nov 17 in Newcastle is the first of two BPS careers events – “perfect for anyone looking to discover where psychology can take them in their chosen career.” A second follows in London on Dec 4. If, like many, you are searching for your calling in life – perhaps you are still unsure whether psychology is for you, or which area of the profession aligns with what you most care about – here are five digested research findings worth taking into consideration: There’s a difference between having a harmonious passion and an obsessive passion If you can find a career path or occupational goal that fires you up, you are more likely to succeed and find happiness through your work – that much we know from a deep research literature. But beware – since a seminal ...

The two strongest signals that someone is a psychopath. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

Two-thirds of Americans have this condition. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source

People use this music to 'purge' their negativity. → Enjoying these psych studies?  Support PsyBlog for just $4 per month  (includes ad-free experience and more articles). → Explore PsyBlog's ebooks, all written by Dr Jeremy Dean: NEW: Accept Yourself: How to feel a profound sense of warmth and self-compassion The Anxiety Plan: 42 Strategies For Worry, Phobias, OCD and Panic Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything Activate: How To Find Joy Again By Changing What You Do View Source