A research study into New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) – formerly referred to as ‘legal highs’ – provides new evidence about why young people were attracted to the drugs, and the health and social risks associated with taking them. The study was carried out by an interdisciplinary team of researchers from Queen’s University Belfast. The research...
Satisfaction with your home can depend on its size compared to your neighbors’ homes, according to new Iowa State University research. Daniel Kuhlmann, assistant professor of community and regional planning, found that people are more likely to be dissatisfied with their house if it is smaller than their neighbors’. His study was published last week...
Men’s empathy for other men who sexually harass women may help explain why they are more likely to blame victims, new research suggests. The research, based on two studies, compared people’s reactions after reading about an incident of sexual harassment. In the first study, men and women showed equal levels of empathy for the female...
Stone tools uncovered in Mongolia by an international team of archaeologists indicate that modern humans traveled across the Eurasian steppe about 45,000 years ago, according to a new University of California, Davis, study. The date is about 10,000 years earlier than archaeologists previously believed. The site also points to a new location for where modern...
Some research shows facts are better received when presented on their own. Other studies show facts are more accepted when interwoven with stories; stories can help bridge emotional connections. If someone is trying to persuade or influence others, should they use a story or stick to the facts? According to research from social psychologists at...
Seeking social status is a central human motivation. Whether it’s buying designer clothing, working the way up the job ladder, or making a conspicuous donation to charity, humans often seek and signal social status. Human cooperation and competition aren’t mutually exclusive, they are two sides of the same coin. Christopher von Rueden from the University...
A multi-national European study, looking at over 5,500 students, has found that a novel school intervention program can not only improve the mathematics scores of primary school children from disadvantaged areas, but can also lessen the achievement gap caused by socioeconomic status. Known as the Dynamic Approach to School Improvement (DASI), the program is based...
When it comes to challenging young minds to grow language, asking how and why during shared book reading to preschoolers can be more beneficial, according to new research at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth). An analysis of the questions preschool teachers asked during shared reading to their classes revealed that...
A new study of racial and ethnic disparities in school discipline found that black middle school students were significantly less likely than their white peers to receive verbal or written warnings from their teachers about behavioral infractions. “While at first glance, disparities in teacher warnings seem less concerning than being expelled or sent to the...
Influencer marketing is extremely widespread, yet ineffective. Eighty-six percent of companies use it as part of their social media strategy, but effectiveness remains low. For an influencer on Facebook, the average engagement rate per post is 0.37 percent; on Twitter, it is even lower at 0.05 percent. New research from the University of Notre Dame...
