Clinical trials are testing whether oxytocin, sometimes called the "love hormone" for its role in intimacy and social bonding, has potential as a treatment for anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. New research by behavioral neuroscientists Michael Steinman, Brian Trainor and colleagues at the University of California, Davis, suggests oxytocin may have different effects in men and women--and in certain circumstances the hormone may actually trigger anxiety. In a series of experiments at the UC Davis Department of Psychology, the team administered doses of oxytocin with a nasal >>>

University of Colorado scientist Steven Maier, who discovered a brain mechanism that not only produces resilience to trauma but aids in coping with future adversity, has won the 2016 University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award for Psychology. The award is among the most prestigious in the field of psychology and comes with a $100,000 prize. Maier, distinguished professor of psychology and neuroscience and Center for Neuroscience director at CU, has been working in that this field of research for more than 40 years and began his career at the university in 1973. Maier's award-winning work involves >>>

In December talks in Paris involving more than 200 countries may result in a new agreement aimed at reducing carbon emissions. In the months leading up to the conference, The Economist will be publishing guest columns by experts on the economic issues involved. Here, Céline Nauges, of the Toulouse School of Economics, and Sarah Ann Wheeler, of the University of Adelaide, warn governments to be conscious of unintended side effects of policies designed to encourage green behaviour.REDUCING carbon footprints will require fundamental changes in consumer, producer and government behaviour. Economists >>>

The British Psychological Society’s Division of Clinical Psychology is beginning its 50th birthday celebrations at its annual conference in London this week. The conference is taking place at the Radisson Blu Portman Hotel, London W1, from 2-4 December 2015. Around 450 psychologists and service users are expected to attend over the three days of the event. There are six keynote speakers: Jacqui Dillon, Hearing Voices Network England – ‘The psychological is political’Dr John Hall, Oxford Brookes University – ‘Understanding our past: contexts and challenges’Professor Francesca Happé, >>>

A talented multi-lingual psychology student has spoken out about how she isn't taken seriously because she loves the fake Barbie look.Ashton Clarke, 22, is currently a clinical psychology research assistant and student at The University of Tennessee, and hopes to obtain a PhD. She also speaks four languages and is an exhibited artist.However, despite her accomplishments, Ashton says her fondness for the 'fake' look means that she is often underestimated by her peers.Scroll down for video  Ashton Clarke, 22, a talented multi-lingual psychology student at Tennessee University, has spoken >>>

Many people I meet have either never heard of the world of ‘positive psychology’, or if they have, they quickly dismiss it as unrealistic positive thinking. They have a point. It has a misguided reputation for being ‘too American’ or ‘polyanna optimistic’ and one author even argued it to be the cause of 2008’s financial crisis.This is to miss a fundamental point about the field. It is not just about positive thinking and persuading people that self-belief and the right vibes will get you anywhere. There are practical ways that the science can really make a difference to every individual, >>>

BY COURTNEY MORRISION, Staff Reporter Professors at the University of Michigan-Dearborn spend a lot of time teaching classes, but that is not all they do. Research is a large part of their commitment to the university, ranging from refugee work, using art to help school children express emotions and working with research chimpanzees, just to name a few projects UM-Dearborn faculty are involved in. All professors at UM-Dearborn are required to do some type of research of their choice. “Professors are hired to teach and run classes, but that only constitutes 40 percent of their contract,” >>>

People who follow their instinct (intuition) are less likely to indulge in immoral actions, suggests a new study published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences. The author of the study, Sarah Ward, psychology doctoral candidate from the University of Missouri, examined how people following their gut instinct would behave in certain situations. The way intuition works has remained evasive. In psychology, intuition, or gut instinct, is defined as understanding something without using conscious reasoning: something that happens to us all the time. According to psychologist Dr. Joan >>>

Posted: Tuesday, December 1, 2015 7:15 pm Our View: Water officials should consider the psychology, too Appeal-Democrat Editorial Board Appealdemocrat.com State water officials might need >>>

A controversial article published this week in Psychological Inquiry by Eric Garland, Barbara Fredrickson, Philippe Goldin and Norman Farb claims to be offering a solution to what the authors maintain is a vacuum in the study of mindfulness. Their contribution, the Mindfulness-to-Meaning Theory professes to cast the net wider to redress this gap. The authors criticise what they see as a deliberately narrow and pragmatic neglect of the historically ethical context of mindfulness in order to gain "traction in clinics and communities worldwide". >>>