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Examining the Mechanics of Different Types of Choice
Have you ever noticed your attention gravitating toward the first or last item on a menu, or toward the centrally placed items on a grocery store shelf? Why does placement influence our choices and decisions? In a recent Perspectives on Psychological Science article, APS Fellow Maya Bar-Hillel (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel) tells the tale of how she came to better understand how position influences our choices and shares what she has learned about the circumstances under which people chose certain items. In the early 2000s, Bar-Hillel supervised a doctoral student who was examining how test takers answer multiple-choice questions.
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The Arithmetic of Compassion
The New York Times: WE all can relate to the saying “One death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic.” Our sympathy for suffering and loss declines precipitously when we are presented with increasing numbers of victims. In the 1950s, the psychiatrist Robert Jay Lifton studied survivors of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and discovered that a condition he labeled “psychic numbing” enabled them to withstand the psychological trauma of this experience. Psychologists have since extended Dr.
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Freedom from want
The Boston Globe: AMONG NON-OBESE college students who were allowed to eat as many cookies as they wanted, students who had grown up poor as children ate the same amount regardless of how hungry they were — or what their glucose levels were — even controlling for body weight and how much they liked the cookies. In contrast, consumption by students who had an affluent childhood was strongly tied to hunger. Read the whole story: The Boston Globe
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Money triggers social insensitivity … and hard work
Marketplace: The third topic of our series: Money priming. That is, how subtle exposure to the concept of money can influence our behaviors. When we're exposed to money — even fake money or reminders of money — our behavior changes. Many studies show that people become less socially sensitive when exposed to reminders of the idea of money. They also work longer and harder on difficult tasks. Kathleen Vohs teaches marketing at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management. She studies the psychology of money and tells us about some of her favorite experiments. Read the whole story: Marketplace
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Maximizing the Gains and Minimizing the Pains of Diversity
For organizations, diversity pays off. Empirical research has shown that diversity increases creativity and innovation and promotes better decision making because it spurs deeper information processing and complex thinking.
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Quick Thinkers Seem Charismatic, Even If They’re Not That Smart
The Atlantic: The rapid-fire back and forth of a witty repartee is an exhilarating thing. When the conversation is ping-ponging between you and someone else—be it on a date, or in a business meeting, or at happy hour—chances are you’ll find yourself drawn to that person. And it’s the speed that’s the key, according to a new study in Psychological Science.
