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The History of APS: A Timeline
In honor of the 20th Anniversary of APS, we have created a special area of the website devoted to celebrating the last 20 years of APS history. This section features an interactive timeline of APS history detailing the vision of our founders and the success story that is APS. 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 1988 August 12 - Following a failed attempt to reorganize the American Psychological Association to improve the status of science within the organization, members of the Assembly for Scientific and Applied Psychology (ASAP) vote to become the American Psychological Society. The vote is a resounding 419 to 13.
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Lasting Impression: Does the Face of a CEO Determine a Successful Company?
It certainly takes more than a pretty face to run a leading national corporation. But according to a recent Tufts University study, the performance levels of America’s top companies could be related to the first impressions made by their chief executive officers (CEOs). Using photographs of the highest and lowest ranked Fortune 1000 companies’ CEOs, psychologists Nicholas Rule and Nalini Ambady quizzed ordinary college students to determine which of the pictured faces were characteristic of a leader.
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Lack of Imagination in Older Adults Linked to Declining Memory
Most children are able to imagine their future selves as astronauts, politicians or even superheroes; however, many older adults find it difficult to recollect past events, let alone generate new ones. A new Harvard University study reveals that the ability of older adults to form imaginary scenarios is linked to their ability to recall detailed memories.
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New York, New York: Study Determines Difference Between Abstract and Concrete Jungle
The Big Apple, a densely populated metropolis of more than 8.2 million people in the 332 square miles of blocks, boroughs and buildings, could have been named metaphorically by outsiders as a fertile land of opportunity. New York City, in other words, can be considered concretely as a geographical location with a large population, but it also can be viewed symbolically as the gateway to America. While both of these descriptions are accurate, they are based on an individual’s perception of, and even physical distance from, the city.
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Dawes Unplugged – An Interview with Robyn Mason Dawes
Dawes Unplugged An Interview with Robyn Mason Dawes Hosted by Joachim I. Krueger This video is a companion to, "Rationality and Social Responsibility: Essays in Honor of Robyn Mason Dawes," part of the book series Modern Pioneers in Psychological Science. psychologicalscience.org/books
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Like Humans, Monkey See, Monkey Plan, Monkey Do
How many times a day do you grab objects such as a pencil or a cup? We perform these tasks without thinking, however the motor planning necessary to grasp an object is quite complex. The way human adults grasp objects is typically influenced more by their knowledge of what they intend to do with the objects than the objects' immediate appearance. Psychologists call this the “end-state comfort effect,” when we adopt initially unusual, and perhaps uncomfortable, postures to make it easier to actually use an object. For example, waiters will pick up an inverted glass with their thumb pointing down if they plan to pour water into the glass.
