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Neuronarrative
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- July 27, 2010
- 12:19 AM
- 613 views
Did You See the Gorilla? An Interview with Psychologist Daniel Simons
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
If you’ve spent any time on YouTube over the last few years (and you know you have), you’ve likely seen the video of the invisible gorilla experiment (if you’ve somehow missed it, catch yourself up here). The researchers who conducted that study, Dan Simons and Chris Chabris, didn’t realize that they were about to create an instant classic—a psychology study mentioned alongside the greats, and known well outside the slim confines of psych wonks. Milgram taught us about our sheepish obedience to authority; Mischel used marshmallows to teach us about delayed gratification; and Simons and Chabris used a faux gorilla to teach us that we are not the masters of attention we think we are.... Read more »
Simons, D. (2010) Monkeying around with the gorillas in our midst: familiarity with an inattentional-blindness task does not improve the detection of unexpected events. i-Perception, 1(1), 3-6. DOI: 10.1068/i0386
- March 11, 2010
- 03:30 PM
- 849 views
When You Expect Rapid Feedback, the Fire to Perform Gets Hotter
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
Let’s say that you’re preparing for an extremely important test that you and roughly 100 other classmates will be taking in a week. A few days before the test, you find out that your instructor will be going on a trip not long after the test is over and will be providing written and verbal feedback to the students within a day of the test.
This is unusual, because ordinarily the instructor waits a week or more before providing feedback. About half of the class finds out that they’ll be getting rapid feedback and the other half thinks they won’t receive feedback for several days, per usual.
Which group is more likely to perform better on the test
... Read more »
Kettle, K., & Haubl, G. (2010) Motivation by Anticipation: Expecting Rapid Feedback Enhances Performance. Psychological Science. DOI: 10.1177/0956797610363541
- February 14, 2010
- 10:00 AM
- 848 views
Getting Warmer, Getting Colder: The Chilly Paradox of Familiarity
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
For most of us, familiar surroundings are comforting. Familiar places and faces offer a sense of stability in the maelstrom of everyday life. This seems especially true when we’re going through hard times; perhaps any port in the storm will suffice, but the one you know best is doubtless the one you’d rather find.
But does familiarity hold the same value if we’re feeling on top of the world? In other words, does the warm glow of what we know always stay strong despite our mood?
... Read more »
de Vries, M., Holland, R., Chenier, T., Starr, M., & Winkielman, P. (2010) Happiness Cools the Warm Glow of Familiarity: Psychophysiological Evidence That Mood Modulates the Familiarity-Affect Link. Psychological Science. DOI: 10.1177/0956797609359878
- January 25, 2010
- 08:00 PM
- 781 views
What Zaps a High Achiever’s Performance Lights a Low Achiever’s Fire
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
High achievers do many things well, particularly when they’re convinced that excellence requires their utmost performance. Low achievers, however, have a hard time getting motivated and often find themselves coughing in the dust of the high achievers’ hustle.
But like so many generalizations, this one has a limit.
... Read more »
Hart W, & Albarracín D. (2009) The effects of chronic achievement motivation and achievement primes on the activation of achievement and fun goals. Journal of personality and social psychology, 97(6), 1129-41. PMID: 19968423
- December 17, 2009
- 08:30 PM
- 1,119 views
What’s More Potent, Testosterone or the Power of Belief?
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
When most people think of testosterone, words like “aggression,” “dominance,” and “violence” usually come to mind. Those words are memetically linked with testosterone the way “expensive” is linked with diamonds, and most of us have adopted the linkage without thinking much about it. Collectively, we’ve adopted a “folk hypothesis” about testosterone–a generalized presupposition grounded in folk wisdom assumed to be correct.
What makes folk hypotheses noteworthy is that they’re hard to challenge–not because they are fact-based, but because they are so deeply entrenched in collective thinking. So I was intrigued to come across a study in the journal Nature that takes on the testosterone folk hypothesis directly, and also manages to illustrate something important about the power of belief.
... Read more »
Abbott, A. (2009) Testosterone link to aggression may be all in the mind. Nature. DOI: 10.1038/news.2009.1131
- December 7, 2009
- 01:00 AM
- 926 views
A Photo is Worth a Thousand Ways to Change Your Memory
by David DiSslvo in Neuronarrative
Most of us realize that memory is fallible. We forget things all the time–car keys, passwords, whether we turned off the oven, etc. But how many of us would admit that our memory is susceptible to change from the outside? That’s different from simply forgetting–something everyone does on their own–because someone else changing our memory requires “getting in our heads” so to speak, right?
If you’ve read this blog for any length of time, you know I’m about to tell you that not only is it possible, it’s probable. And it doesn’t even take very much effort to accomplish–just a few images and a little time.
... Read more »
Henkel, L. (2009) Photograph-induced memory errors: When photographs make people claim they have done things they have not. Applied Cognitive Psychology. DOI: 10.1002/acp.1644
- November 16, 2009
- 04:00 PM
- 1,074 views
The Words You Choose in an Argument Can Literally Break Your Heart
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
In the middle of a fight with your significant other, word choice is usually not foremost on your mind. But it should be, particularly if you’re a man, according to a new study in the journal Health Psychology – and not just to save your partner’s feelings.
In the heat of stressful conflict, your brain is commanding the release of a stress-chemical cocktail comprised of proteins called cytokines–produced by cells in the immune system to help the body mount an immune response during infection.
Abnormally high levels of these proteins are linked to cardiovascular disease, type-2 diabetes, arthritis and some cancers. This study suggests that how rational or emotional your communication is directly corresponds with the levels of those chemicals in your body and the damage they can do.
... Read more »
Graham JE, Glaser R, Loving TJ, Malarkey WB, Stowell JR, & Kiecolt-Glaser JK. (2009) Cognitive word use during marital conflict and increases in proinflammatory cytokines. Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association, 28(5), 621-30. PMID: 19751089
- November 5, 2009
- 02:00 PM
- 1,156 views
Thinking You’re in Control Can Lead to an Impulsive Demise
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
A new study in the journal Psychological Science investigated the dynamics underlying why we repeatedly convince ourselves that we’ve overcome impulsiveness and can stop avoiding our worst temptations. This particular tendency toward self-deception is called restraint bias, and four experiments were conducted under this study to test the hypothesis that it’s rampant in our bias-prone species.... Read more »
Nordgren, L., van Harreveld, F., & van der Pligt, J. (2009) The Restraint Bias: How the Illusion of Self-Restraint Promotes Impulsive Behavior. Psychological Science. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02468.x
- October 30, 2009
- 11:00 PM
- 1,054 views
Is the First Spot Always Best in a Preference Test?
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
Does someone interviewing for a job stand a better chance of getting the position if she’s first on the list of interviewees, last, or somewhere in-between? Does someone running for public office stand a better chance of getting elected if he’s first on the ballot, last, or otherwise?
These are questions of order in choice — and depending on who you’re asking, you’ll likely get a different answer about which spot in the picking order is more advantageous. The issue is whether we can rely on a psychological standard for determining which slot in the order is typically favored by a chooser. The flip side of this coin — what traits of the chooser play into which position he or she is most likely to favor?
... Read more »
Mantonakis, A., Rodero, P., Lesschaeve, I., & Hastie, R. (2009) Order in Choice: Effects of Serial Position on Preferences. Psychological Science. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02453.x
- October 19, 2009
- 03:00 PM
- 1,206 views
Just How ‘Blind’ Are You When Talking on a Cell Phone?
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
Everyday in the news we see stories decrying the use of cell phones while driving. Research reports aplenty have been released estimating the percentage of one’s attention siphoned by mobile jabber and how little is left to focus on the highway.
This is great and I’m glad the discussion is happening, but it might be useful to ask whether cell phone use in other (non-driving) venues has a similar effect on attention. What better way to make the point that cell phone use is dangerous when driving than showing its effect on someone doing something not nearly as focus intensive — like walking, for instance.
... Read more »
Hyman, I., Boss, S., Wise, B., McKenzie, K., & Caggiano, J. (2009) Did you see the unicycling clown? Inattentional blindness while walking and talking on a cell phone. Applied Cognitive Psychology. DOI: 10.1002/acp.1638
- October 12, 2009
- 05:00 PM
- 1,065 views
When the Powerful Feel Incompetent, the Rest of Us Feel Their Wrath
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
You’re sitting at your desk when the phone rings. It’s your boss and he wants to see you in his office. You’re not sure why – nothing in particular comes to mind that would put you in his crosshairs. In fact, you’ve actually been doing a great job lately. Even your boss’s boss mentioned that you were doing outstanding work in a staff meeting the other day, right in front of everyone, including your boss. What could possibly be the problem?
You walk into his office, sit down, and are immediately awash in the most inappropriate display of yelling you’ve ever seen in the workplace. It’s hard to follow all of the criticisms he’s throwing at you, but you make out “incompetent,” “unresponsive” and “careless” amidst a caravan of expletives. The source of the criticism, you finally realize, is a small error you made in a report—something likely no one else even noticed. How could that bring on all of this?
Or…is that really the source of this reaction? Then you remember the look on your boss’s face when his boss sung your praises in the staff meeting. Suddenly this makes sense—he was threatened, and now he’s found one thing to aggressively nail you on.
... Read more »
Fast, N., & Chen, S. (2009) When the Boss Feels Inadequate: Power, Incompetence, and Aggression. Psychological Science. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02452.x
- October 5, 2009
- 12:30 PM
- 1,202 views
Once You Start Trusting a Source, Beware the Trust Trap
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
If you follow a news commentator closely, reading everything he or she writes in whatever venue it appears, you may unknowingly be in a trust trap. Studies have shown that once we invest trust in a particular source of knowledge, we’re less likely to scrutinize information from that source in the future.
Now a new study in the journal Applied Psychological Science has taken this investigation a step further, showing that the trust trap can also result in the creation of false memories — and not only in the short term.
... Read more »
Zhu, B., Chen, C., F. Loftus, E., Lin, C., & Dong, Q. (2009) Treat and trick: A new way to increase false memory. Applied Cognitive Psychology. DOI: 10.1002/acp.1637
- September 25, 2009
- 11:30 AM
- 1,248 views
Got Pain? Take Two Photos of Your Loved One and Call Me in the Morning
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
Before our first son was born, my wife and I took labor preparation classes at the hospital. The instructor suggested that when the big day arrived, husbands (or partners) should bring to the hospital a photograph of someone or something that their wives love (kids, pets, family members, etc). While in labor, the instructor said, the photo will help the soon-to-be mother cope with the pain.
This seemed like decent counsel to me, though probably more of a “good feeling” suggestion than a scientific one. I’ve just come across a new study, however, that injects some sound science into the advice.
... Read more »
Master, S., Eisenberger, N., Taylor, S., Naliboff, B., Shirinyan, D., & Lieberman, M. (2009) A Picture's Worth: Partner Photographs Reduce Experimentally Induced Pain. Psychological Science. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02444.x
- September 22, 2009
- 02:30 PM
- 1,147 views
If You Want to Catch a Liar, Make Him Draw
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
A man accused of a crime is brought into a police interrogation room and sits down at an empty table. There’s no polygraph equipment in sight, and the typical two-cop questioning team isn’t in the room either. Instead, one officer enters the room with a piece of paper and a pencil in his hands. He sets them in front of the suspect, steps back, and calmly says, “draw.”
That’s a greatly oversimplified description of what could happen in more actual interrogation rooms if the results of a recent study in the journal Applied Cognitive Psychology are widely adopted. The study is the first to investigate whether drawing is an effective lie detection technique in comparison to verbal methods.
... Read more »
Vrij, A., Leal, S., Mann, S., Warmelink, L., Granhag, P., & Fisher, R. (2009) Drawings as an innovative and successful lie detection tool. Applied Cognitive Psychology. DOI: 10.1002/acp.1627
- September 21, 2009
- 11:00 AM
- 1,225 views
When it Comes to Trusting Authority, Moral Conviction and Religiosity Part Ways
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
One of the consistent elements in political discussions is the influence of religious belief on attitudes toward government. And typically it’s assumed that a high degree of religiosity is synonymous with a high degree of moral conviction – they’re popularly thought to go hand-in-hand. So, if someone’s attitude toward governmental auhtority is influenced by his or her religiosity, it should logically follow that this attitude is further buttressed by his or her moral conviction; the influence should be the same.
But is that true?
... Read more »
Wisneski, D., Lytle, B., & Skitka, L. (2009) Gut Reactions: Moral Conviction, Religiosity, and Trust in Authority. Psychological Science, 20(9), 1059-1063. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02406.x
- September 9, 2009
- 03:00 PM
- 1,171 views
The Closer You Are, the More I Believe You
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
Let’s say that you’re watching a taped television show in which someone is being interviewed about an alleged theft she may or may not have committed. She offers a detailed explanation as to why she’s innocent, and you as one viewer among many are left to decide if she’s telling the truth.
Now let’s say that instead of watching her on broadcast television, you’re watching her live on closed circuit television. Only you can see her being interviewed about the alleged crime – it’s just you, a TV monitor and a woman in a room telling her story.
Finally, imagine that instead of watching her on any sort of television, you are sitting across the table from her, listening to her explain why she’s innocent.
Under which of those three conditions do you think you’d find the woman more believable?
... Read more »
Landström, S., & Granhag, P. (2009) In-court versus out-of-court testimonies: Children's experiences and adults' assessments. Applied Cognitive Psychology. DOI: 10.1002/acp.1606
- September 3, 2009
- 12:55 PM
- 1,244 views
If You’re Feeling Warm and Fuzzy, It Might Just be the Coffee
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
If you have a falling out with someone and they start ignoring you, they’re “giving you the cold shoulder.” If you feel emotionally close to someone, you have “warm feelings” towards that person. We’re accustomed to using metaphorical language like this to describe human relationships, but do these words also imply more literal meanings?
A new study in the journal Psychological Science investigated whether the actual experience of warmth or coldness influences our perception of social relationships. In other words, are temperature differences tied to differences in social closeness and social distance?
... Read more »
IJzerman, H., & Semin, G. (2009) The Thermometer of Social Relations: Mapping Social Proximity on Temperature. Psychological Science. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02434.x
- August 25, 2009
- 10:00 AM
- 1,163 views
I Must Be Guilty – the Video Says So
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
A minor landslide of research from the past few years points to a dismaying fact about memory — it can be manipulated, far more often and extensively than previously thought. One implication of this realization is that eyewitness testimony, a stanchion of our criminal justice system, is no longer beyond reproach. Another is that in a world dominated by endlessly plyable electronic media, you can never be 100% sure that what you’re seeing is what really happened. Two recent studies from the journal Applied Cognitive Psychology illustrate that last point nicely.... Read more »
Wade, K., Green, S., & Nash, R. (2009) Can fabricated evidence induce false eyewitness testimony?. Applied Cognitive Psychology. DOI: 10.1002/acp.1607
Nash, R., & Wade, K. (2009) Innocent but proven guilty: Eliciting internalized false confessions using doctored-video evidence. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 23(5), 624-637. DOI: 10.1002/acp.1500
- August 21, 2009
- 09:30 AM
- 1,280 views
Judgments Get Heavy When Weight is on Your Mind
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
A few years ago I was part of a group that was making a presentation to state health agencies on effective ways to educate the public about air quality. During our last practice session before the real presentation, one of the older, sly presenters brought in three massive bound documents and dropped them with a thud on the lectern. Before we started, I asked him what he was going to do with them. He replied, “You’ll see.”
When it was his turn to present, I did indeed see. Every time he made reference to research backing up his assertions, he lifted one of the documents high enough for the audience to see, and then judiciously dropped it onto the wood surface, just enough for everyone to feel the weight of it. I never asked him if the documents actually contained the research he was mentioning, but it really didn’t matter. The effect was potent.
... Read more »
Jostmann, N., Lakens, D., & Schubert, T. (2009) Weight as an Embodiment of Importance. Psychological Science. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02426.x
- August 14, 2009
- 12:30 PM
- 1,214 views
Dishonesty and Emotion have a Stronger Link than We Think
by David DiSalvo in Neuronarrative
Let’s say that you work in an office with several people, and everyone is expected to meet certain performance standards. You’re an outstanding performer, considered one of the best in the firm. A couple offices down from you is a guy named Wendel, and you feel sorry for Wendel because he’s not quite able to meet the performance standards and is always teetering on the edge of losing his job. Your sense of Wendel is that he’s a good guy who just never gets the right breaks, and if he were given more chances to succeed he could probably pull himself out of his slump.
One day, you’re working on a project team with Wendel and notice that he’s screwed up a major report bigtime—big enough that he’s sure to get fired if anyone else sees it—but so far only you have seen it and you have a brief opportunity to cover up Wendel’s mistakes. If you cover them up, in effect lying by passing off your work as Wendel’s, you’ll probably get away with it and Wendel will go on to work another day. If you don’t, he’s finished.
What will you do?
... Read more »
Gino, F., & Pierce, L. (2009) Dishonesty in the Name of Equity. Psychological Science. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02421.x
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