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Racism in the Kindergarten Classroom
Pacific Standard: If the current election cycle hasn't convinced you that racism has yet to be eradicated, consider this: The mere image of a black man is enough to stimulate an automatic threat response in whites. Research has found faces of African-American males are more likely to be perceived as angry, and can trigger neural activity associated with rapid detection of danger. While even pre-teens can stimulate this reaction (which helps explain the tragic shooting of a 12 year old holding a pellet gun in Cleveland two years ago), it presumably doesn't apply to very young black boys. It's hard to believe they are perceived as dangerous as they emerge from the womb.
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Milk, Bread, and Eggs: The Trinity of Winter-Storm Panic-Shopping
The Atlantic: Lines of frantic shoppers have mobbed grocery stores in Washington, D.C., after the National Weather Service gently advised residents on Wednesday that an intense weekend storm will pose “a threat to life and property” and impact “you, your family, and your community.” Which led me to wonder: After people hear a message so ominous, and after reminders of their employers’ inclement-weather policies hit inboxes, what do they buy to prepare for spending a good deal of time indoors? I called up the managers of some grocery stores in D.C. to find out, and they all had more or less the same answer: bread, milk, and eggs.
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In Iowa, Voting Science at Work
The New York Times: OF the two winners of the Iowa caucuses, who’s the better behavioral scientist, Ted Cruz or Hillary Clinton? To judge from their campaigns’ respective “get out the vote” efforts, both politicians seem to have studied up on recent research in the field. Let’s start with Mr. Cruz. His campaign sent a mailer to the homes of Iowans pressuring them to show up to their caucus locations. The mailer noted “low expected voter turnout” in their area, gave them a grade for their past voting participation and disclosed the grades that the campaign had assigned to the recipients’ neighbors. Read the whole story: The New York Times
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Near Wins, And Not Quites: How Almost Winning Can Be Motivating
NPR: Monica Wadhwa had a thing for lottery tickets. As a teenager in India she was obsessed with winning a fortune. Until one day, when she actually came very close to winning, and inadvertently learned that a "near victory" can be incredibly motivating. We'll hear her story on this week's episode of the podcast. Then, Daniel Pink is back for another round of Stopwatch Science! He and Shankar share a bunch of interesting research about the science of what motivates us to reach our goals. ... In a study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Thomas Gilovich and his colleagues looked at videotape of silver and bronze medalists from the 1992 Summer Olympics.
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When your football team wins, you eat healthier food
The Washington Post: By the time the Super Bowl is over Sunday night, you may have munched on a few too many nachos and chicken wings, and you might be almost as sick of cheap beer as you are of expensive TV ads. But if you’re a fan of the Denver Broncos or the Carolina Panthers, the game’s effect on what you eat could linger into Monday, too. Our research has found that people eat worse than they normally do on the day after their football team loses, and better than usual on the day after their team wins. They eat even more junk food if their team loses a close game. ...
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How high-fives boost team performance
Sports Illustrated: Can the number of high-fives, hugs and chest-bumps a team exchanges impact its win-loss record? Michael Kraus, a professor of organizational behavior at the Yale School of Management, joins the show to discuss his study on the correlation between physical touch and performance among NBA teams, and how lessons from those findings can be taken off the court and into our business and personal relationships. Read the whole story: Sports Illustrated
