-
RAND Summer Institute (RSI)
RAND is pleased to announce the 20th annual RAND Summer Institute (RSI). RSI consists of two annual conferences that address critical issues facing our aging population. The will be held on July 8–9, and the Demography, Economics, Psychology, and Epidemiology of Aging conference on July 10–11, 2013. Both conferences will convene at the RAND Corporation headquarters in Santa Monica, California. The application and supplemental materials are due by March 22, 2013. The conferences are sponsored by the National Institute on Aging and the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research.
-
New Research on Personality and Emotional Development From Psychological Science
Read about the latest research on personality and emotional development published in Psychological Science. Birth-Cohort Effects in the Association Between Personality and Fertility Markus Jokela The birth rate in many countries has been declining. To determine whether personality traits and societal expectations could be influencing these changes, the researchers collected Big Five personality traits, level of education, fertility history, and parental socioeconomic status from individuals in the Midlife Development in the United States study and the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study.
-
Fear and Driving Opportunity Motivated Changes in Driving Behavior After 9/11
A catastrophic event – such as a terrorist attack, a natural disaster, or market collapse – often strikes twice. There is the damage caused by the event itself, as lives are lost or left in ruin. But there is also the second act, catalyzed by our response to the catastrophic event. This second act has the potential to cause just as much damage as the first. In the year following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, there were approximately 1,600 more traffic fatalities in the United States than expected. This figure suggests the possibility that fear may have been a strong motivator for many people, leading them to choose driving over flying.
-
Are Independents Just Partisans In Disguise?
NPR: Independent voters have grown in recent years into a mega voting bloc. By some estimates they outnumber registered Republicans, and even registered Democrats. Every election cycle, independents generate enormous amounts of interest as candidates, pollsters and the media probe their feelings. These voters are widely considered to hold the key to most elections. Independents generally report that neither party fully represents their views. Some report being to the left of the Democratic Party or to the right of the GOP, but most report being in the middle and describe themselves as moderates.
-
Tricks From the Elderly to Stop Worrying
The Wall Street Journal: Recent research into how emotions change with age may be able to help people lead healthier and longer lives and bring about new treatments for depression in the elderly. Like people's bodies, emotions change over time. Older people for the most part have far fewer negative feelings, such as worry and stress, than do younger people, studies show. The elderly learn to disentangle themselves from feelings of negativity and seem to focus more on present situations that bring pleasure, rather than on the future, researchers say. They also tend to process negative information less deeply than positive information.
-
‘Helicopter Parenting’ Discourages Kids
"Helicopter parent" is a 21st century term for parents that “hover” over their children, monitoring and micromanaging their every move. Although parents may find this hard to do, research shows that giving kids space may better motivate them. According to APS Fellow Carol Dweck, a psychological scientist at Stanford University who researches motivation and development, helicopter parenting is more likely to hold kids back. “We’ve studied parents over-praising and we are studying parents overdoing. It makes the child feel they can’t do anything without the parent.” The bottom line, she says, is that less parenting may help kids more in the long run.
