Category: Featured Database

For the love of reading: Recreational reading reduces psychological distress in college students and autonomous motivation is the key

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Author: Levine, S. L.; Cherrier, S.; Holding, A. C.; Koestner, R. Description: OBJECTIVE: Reading is often cited as beneficial for one’s mental health, but the research on this topic is limited. The goal of the present research was to examine whether recreational reading is beneficial for mental health during college, and to determine what motivates recreational reading. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were 231 university students from a large Canadian University. METHODS: A longitudinal design was employed and students completed online surveys on recreational reading, motivation, psychological distress and need frustration at the…

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Pausing to consider why a headline is true or false can help reduce the sharing of false news

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Author: Fazio, Lisa Description: In an online experiment, participants who paused to explain why a headline was true or false indicated that they were less likely to share false information compared to control participants. Their intention to share accurate news stories was unchanged. These results indicate that adding “friction” (i.e., pausing to think) before sharing can improve the quality of information shared on social media.  Subject headings: Disinformation; Fake news; Psychology; Social media Publication year: 2020 Journal or book title: Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review Volume: 1 Issue: 2 Find…

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The impact of digital technology, social media, and artificial intelligence on cognitive functions: a review

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Author: Shanmugasundaram, Mathura; Tamilarasu, Arunkumar Description: In our modern society, digital devices, social media platforms, and artificial intelligence (AI) tools have become integral components of our daily lives, profoundly intertwined with our daily activities. These technologies have undoubtedly brought convenience, connectivity, and speed, making our lives easier and more efficient. However, their influence on our brain function and cognitive abilities cannot be ignored. This review aims to explore both the positive and negative impacts of these technologies on crucial cognitive functions, including attention, memory, addiction, novelty-seeking and perception, decision-making, and…

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Political ideology, emotion response, and confirmation bias

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Author: Dickinson, David L. Description: Motivated reasoning can serve to help resolve emotional discomfort, which suggests emotion as a likely moderator of such reasoning. This paper addresses a gap in the literature by examining emotion and confirmation bias in the political domain. Results from two preregistered studies, which involved over 900 unique participants, document a confirmation bias across distinct dimensions of belief and preference formation. Also, ideologically dissonant information significantly worsens self-reported emotion. With some exceptions, the evidence generally supports the hypothesis that negative emotion moderates the strength of the…

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People are increasingly bored in our digital age

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Author: Tam, Katy Y. Y.; Inzlicht, Michael Description: In an era where entertainment is effortlessly at our fingertips, one would assume that people are less bored than ever. Yet, reports of boredom are higher now than compared to the past. This rising trend is concerning because chronic boredom can undermine well-being, learning, and behaviour. Understanding why this is happening is crucial to prevent further negative impacts. In this Perspective, we explore one possible reason-digital media use makes people more bored. We propose that digital media increases boredom through dividing attention,…

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Doomscrolling evokes existential anxiety and fosters pessimism about human nature? Evidence from Iran and the United States

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Author: Shabahang, Reza; Hwang, Hyeyeon; Thomas, Emma F.; Aruguete, Mara S.; McCutcheon, Lynn E.; Orosz, Gabor; Hossein Khanzadeh, Abbas Ali; Mokhtari Chirani, Benyamin; Zsila, Agnes Description: The media’s adherence to “if it bleeds, it leads” has resulted in global dominance of negative news (e.g., stories of corruption, fraud, shootings, terrorism, and war). The appetite for negative news is fueled by negativity bias, which compels people to prioritize negative over positive stories. This cross-cultural study, inspired by media effect theories such as Cultivation Theory, explored the links between problematic consumption of…

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Attitudes, Habits, and Behavior Change

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Author: Verplanken, Bas; Orbell, Sheina Description: Efforts to guide peoples’ behavior toward environmental sustainability, good health, or new products have emphasized informational and attitude change strategies. There is evidence that changing attitudes leads to changes in behavior, yet this approach takes insufficient account of the nature and operation of habits, which form boundary conditions for attitude-directed interventions. Integration of research on attitudes and habits might enable investigators to identify when and how behavior change strategies will be most effective. How might attitudinally driven behavior change be consolidated into lasting habits?…

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Judging Truth

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Author: Brashier, Nadia M.; Marsh, Elizabeth J. Description: Deceptive claims surround us, embedded in fake news, advertisements, political propaganda, and rumors. How do people know what to believe? Truth judgments reflect inferences drawn from three types of information: base rates, feelings, and consistency with information retrieved from memory. First, people exhibit a bias to accept incoming information, because most claims in our environments are true. Second, people interpret feelings, like ease of processing, as evidence of truth. And third, people can (but do not always) consider whether assertions match facts…

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Spinocerebellar ataxia 27B (SCA27B), a frequent late-onset cerebellar ataxia

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Author: Clement, G.; Puisieux, S.; Pellerin, D.; Brais, B.; Bonnet, C.; Renaud, M. Description: Genetic cerebellar ataxias are still a diagnostic challenge, and yet not all of them have been identified. Very recently, in early 2023, a new cause of late-onset cerebellar ataxia (LOCA) was identified, spinocerebellar ataxia 27B (SCA27B). This is an autosomal dominant ataxia due to a GAA expansion in intron 1 of the FGF14 gene. Thanks to the many studies carried out since its discovery, it is now possible to define the clinical phenotype, its particularities, and…

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Quality of Life Changes Following the Onset of Cerebellar Ataxia: Symptoms and Concerns Self-reported by Ataxia Patients and Informants

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Author: Joyce, Michelle R.; Nadkarni, Prianca A.; Kronemer, Sharif I.; Margron, Michael J.; Slapik, Mitchell B.; Morgan, Owen P.; Rosenthal, Liana S.; Onyike, Chiadi U.; Marvel, Cherie L. Description: Semi-structured interviews of patient accounts and caregiver, or informant, perspectives are a beneficial resource for patients suffering from diseases with complex symptomatology, such as cerebellar ataxia. The aim of this study was to identify, quantify, and compare the ways in which cerebellar ataxia patients’ and informants’ quality of life had changed as a result of living with ataxia. Using a semi-structured…

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