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(https://www.psypost.org/new-study-sheds-light-on-the-mysterious-psychological-appeal-of-sad-art/) New study sheds light on the mysterious psychological appeal of sad art
Feb 28th 2025, 08:00

A new study published in the journal (https://doi.org/10.1111/cogs.70034) Cognitive Science helps explain why people often find themselves drawn to sad art forms like movies, music, and literature. Researchers discovered that when expressions of sadness are presented as art, people tend to appreciate them more, not because they believe the sadness is fictional, but because they connect with it on a personal level, seeing it as a reflection of their own emotions. This feeling of personal connection, or “appropriation,” appears to be a key reason why we find enjoyment in art that expresses sadness.
For many, experiencing sadness is something to be avoided in everyday life. When confronted with someone else’s unhappiness in a real-world situation, our typical reaction is often discomfort or a desire to alleviate the negativity. Yet, paradoxically, many people actively seek out and enjoy art that is explicitly sad. We listen to melancholic songs, watch tragic films, and read novels filled with sorrow, often finding these experiences deeply moving and even pleasurable.
This raises a fundamental question: why do we willingly engage with sadness in art when we generally avoid it elsewhere? Researchers have long been puzzled by this phenomenon, exploring various explanations from the cathartic release of emotions to the comfort of feeling understood. The new study aimed to examine specifically how framing something as “art” influences our appreciation of sadness expressed within it, and to test competing ideas about why this might be the case.
“I am also an opera singer. I’ve always been curious about why people are so drawn to sad music and, more generally, sad paintings, movies, etc.,” said study author Tara Venkatesan, a Honorary Research Fellow at the University of London, who conducted the research while a PhD student at Oxford University.
The researchers designed a series of experiments focused on how people react to sad texts presented in different contexts. Across four studies, they recruited nearly 2,000 participants online via Prolific Academic.
In the first study, participants were asked to read short pieces of writing that expressed sadness. Crucially, for each piece of writing, some participants were told they were reading a work of art, such as a monologue from a play, song lyrics, a short story, or a movie script. Other participants, reading the exact same text, were told it was something not considered art, like a diary entry, a tweet, a blog post, or everyday conversation.
For example, everyone might read the same passage of text expressing feelings of loneliness and despair, but some would be told it was from a play monologue, while others were told it was from a personal diary entry. After reading the text, participants were asked to rate how much they liked it, how much they enjoyed it, and how pleasurable they found the experience. This allowed the researchers to measure if simply labeling a sad text as “art” made people like it more, even when the words themselves were identical.
In the second study, the researchers wanted to explore a common explanation for why people enjoy sad art: the idea of fictionality. The thinking is that we can appreciate sadness in art because we know it’s not real. Like enjoying a scary movie knowing it’s just a film, perhaps we enjoy sad art because we recognize the sadness is not actually happening to us or anyone we know.
To test this, the researchers repeated the first study’s setup, again having participants read sad texts labeled as either art or non-art. However, this time, in addition to rating how much they liked the text, participants were also asked to what extent they believed the events and emotions described in the text were based on reality. This allowed the researchers to see if the increased liking for sad art was linked to a belief that it was fictional.
The third study shifted focus to a different explanation, rooted in philosophical ideas about art. This idea, called “appropriation,” suggests that when we experience art, especially art expressing emotion, we don’t just observe someone else’s feelings. Instead, we connect with it in a way that makes it feel like an expression of our own inner world. To investigate appropriation, the researchers once again used the same sad texts and art versus non-art labels.
This time, after reading the texts and rating their liking, participants answered questions designed to measure appropriation. They were asked to what extent they felt the text expressed their own thoughts and feelings, gave voice to their own emotions, and felt like the words were coming from themselves. This helped determine if the increased liking of sad art was associated with a stronger feeling of personal connection and appropriation.
Finally, in the fourth study, the researchers directly manipulated the perception of fictionality. This time, all participants were presented with works of art – paintings, poems, and song lyrics – that expressed sadness. However, for some participants, they provided extra information emphasizing that the sadness expressed in the artwork was rooted in the real-life experiences of the artist.
For example, when showing a painting by Francis Bacon, they explained the tragic real-life event that inspired it. Other participants, the control group, received only basic descriptive information about the artist, without any mention of the real-life basis of the sadness in the art. By comparing how much participants liked the art and how much they appropriated it in these two conditions, the researchers could see if making sad art seem more “real” or less “fictional” affected appreciation and personal connection.
The results across these four studies consistently pointed to an interesting conclusion. As predicted, the first study confirmed that people did indeed show a greater liking for sad texts when they were described as art compared to when they were described as non-art, even though the texts were exactly the same.
However, the second study challenged the fictionality hypothesis. Surprisingly, the researchers found that the increased liking for sad art was not explained by people believing it was fictional. In fact, they found the opposite trend: people actually tended to like the sad texts more when they believed the emotions and events described were real, regardless of whether it was labeled as art or not.
“Researchers have previously suggested that we enjoy sad art because the emotions are experiences are fictional,” Venkatesan told PsyPost. “And, much like scary movies or rollercoaster, we enjoy it because it’s fake. Our study found the opposite. We found that while people believe that art is more likely to be based on fictional events and experiences and people prefer real things to fictional things, people still prefer sad art! So, there has to be another explanation.”
The third and fourth studies provided support for the appropriation hypothesis. The researchers found that people experienced a stronger sense of appropriation – feeling the sadness as their own – when the text was presented as art. When researchers manipulated fictionality by making sad art seem more or less real, they found that while manipulating fictionality did influence liking, this influence was entirely explained by appropriation. In other words, whether people perceived the sad art as real or fictional didn’t directly change how much they liked it; rather, it changed how much they felt they could appropriate it, and this sense of appropriation, in turn, affected liking.
“We like sad art because we experience it as giving voice to our own feelings, not as a reflection of the artist’s emotions,” Venkatesan explained. “We enjoy a Taylor Swift breakup song because it’s not about Taylor’s sadness – it’s about our own breakups, feelings of loneliness, and grief.”
But the study, like all research, has some limitations. While the studies consistently showed the effect of art framing and the role of appropriation, they also noted that the effect wasn’t equally strong across all types of texts they used. For example, the difference in liking between a short story and a blog post, both expressing sadness, was less pronounced than for other pairs, like song lyrics and tweets.
Future research could explore why certain art forms or types of sad content might be more or less susceptible to this “art effect.” Furthermore, the study opens up exciting directions for understanding the broader appeal of sad art. Future studies could investigate how appropriation relates to other emotions.
“We specifically found that people tend to appropriate sad art,” Venkatesan noed. “But there are also instances where we might appropriate happy or positive emotions in art. Consider all the songs out there about partying, living an extravagant, lavish lifestyle etc. It’s likely that they’re enjoyable because you’re supposed to appropriate the lyrics and imagine yourself doing those things. Think about the song Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO. You’re not supposed to think about Redfoo partying. You’re supposed to appropriate it and think about yourself having a great time!”
The study, “(https://doi.org/10.1111/cogs.70034) Sad Art Gives Voice to Our Own Sadness,” was authored by Tara Venkatesan, Mario Attie-Picker, George E. Newman, and Joshua Knobe.

(https://www.psypost.org/western-diet-rapidly-damages-brain-blood-flow-but-omega-3s-offer-protection/) Western diet rapidly damages brain blood flow but omega-3s offer protection
Feb 28th 2025, 06:00

A recent study using mice has revealed that a diet high in fat and sugar, similar to a typical Western diet, can quickly and significantly reduce blood flow in the brain of adolescent mice. However, the research also found that adding omega-3 fatty acids, like those found in fish oil, to this unhealthy diet could reverse these negative effects and restore normal brain blood flow. These findings suggest that diet during adolescence may have a profound and lasting impact on brain health, and that specific dietary changes could offer a way to protect the brain from the harmful effects of unhealthy eating habits.
The research, which was published in the (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41366-025-01711-x) International Journal of Obesity, was motivated by growing concerns about the increasing rates of childhood and adolescent obesity worldwide. Obesity, often driven by diets rich in unhealthy fats and sugars, is known to harm various organs, including the heart, liver, and pancreas. Scientists have also observed that obesity can affect brain function, including thinking skills and sensory processing.
A key aspect of healthy brain function is the ability to regulate blood flow. When brain cells become more active, they require more energy and oxygen, which is delivered through increased blood flow. This process is called functional hyperemia. Problems with functional hyperemia have been linked to conditions like stroke and dementia. While previous research has examined the effects of obesity on brain blood flow in adults and older individuals, less was known about how a Western diet impacts brain blood flow specifically during adolescence, a critical period of brain development.
“Childhood and adolescent obesity is rising at an alarming rate worldwide. We became curious about how the Western diet, which is high in fat and sucrose, might affect brain function,” explained study author (https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Hirac-Gurden) Hirac Gurden, a neuroscientist currently working at French National Centre for Scientific Research and Paris Cité University. “Specifically, we focused on a critical aspect of brain health: vascular supply. To investigate this, we employed a groundbreaking functional ultrasound imaging technique to track cerebral blood flow in adolescent mice on a Western diet.”
“We found that cerebral blood flow rapidly decreases after starting the Western diet and does not recover in adulthood. However, when we altered the fat content by balancing harmful omega-6 fatty acids with protective omega-3 fatty acids (found in fatty fish, soybean oil, and nuts), cerebral blood flow was no longer impaired. In short, we discovered that nutraceutical protection of cerebral blood flow is possible.”
For their study, the researchers used young male mice, around the age of six weeks, which is considered adolescence in mice. They divided the mice into different groups and fed them various diets. One group received a standard, healthy rodent diet. Another group was given a Western diet, which was high in fat and sugar, designed to mimic the unhealthy eating patterns common in Western societies.
To examine the effects of diet over time, the researchers studied these groups of mice at different points: after one week, two weeks, three weeks, two months, and ten months on their respective diets. A separate group of mice was also fed a Western diet supplemented with docosahexaenoic acid, or DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid. This was done to see if balancing the ratio of different types of fats in the Western diet could have a protective effect.
Throughout the study, the researchers performed several measurements on the mice. They regularly monitored the body weight and body composition of the animals, specifically looking at fat and lean mass. To assess metabolic health, they measured fasting blood glucose levels, and conducted glucose tolerance tests and insulin tolerance tests. These tests help determine how well the body regulates blood sugar and responds to insulin, a hormone important for glucose control. Elevated blood sugar and insulin resistance are common problems associated with obesity and can be signs of pre-diabetes or diabetes.
To examine brain blood flow, the researchers used a sophisticated imaging technique called functional ultrasound. This technique allowed them to non-invasively measure cerebral blood volume, a measure of blood flow, in the brains of the mice while they were alive and under anesthesia. They focused on the somatosensory cortex, a brain region that processes sensory information, specifically using the part related to whisker sensation.
To stimulate this brain area, they gently vibrated the whiskers of the mice at a specific frequency. This whisker stimulation caused increased activity in the somatosensory cortex, and the researchers measured the change in blood flow in this region in response to the stimulation. This allowed them to assess functional hyperemia, the brain’s ability to increase blood flow when needed. They compared the blood flow responses in mice fed the different diets at various time points.
The researchers observed that the mice fed the Western diet quickly developed metabolic problems. After just three weeks on the Western diet, these mice showed significant weight gain, increased fat mass, elevated fasting blood glucose, glucose intolerance, and insulin resistance. These metabolic changes worsened over time, persisting into adulthood and middle age.
The Western diet also had a rapid and negative impact on brain blood flow. As early as three weeks after starting the Western diet, the adolescent mice showed a reduced blood flow response in the somatosensory cortex during whisker stimulation. This impairment in functional hyperemia was sustained over time and remained in adult and middle-aged mice that continued to eat the Western diet. This indicated that the unhealthy diet caused early and long-lasting damage to the brain’s ability to regulate blood flow.
But the researchers found that supplementing the Western diet with DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid, had a remarkable protective effect. Mice fed the DHA-supplemented Western diet did not show the same impairment in functional hyperemia as the mice on the regular Western diet. In fact, their brain blood flow responses were similar to those of mice fed a healthy regular diet. Furthermore, the DHA supplementation also improved metabolic health in the mice, restoring glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, despite the fact that these mice still gained weight and fat mass similar to those on the standard Western Diet.
“Our results were surprising in that we didn’t anticipate such a rapid, profound and sustained negative effect of the Western diet on a vital brain function like cerebral blood flow, which delivers oxygen and nutrients to neurons,” Gurden told PsyPost. “We were also pleasantly surprised by the powerful protective effects of omega-3 fatty acids on brain health.”
“The diet provided to children and teenagers should be carefully considered, with input from parents. A high intake of fast food, which is rich in omega-6 fatty acids and lacks protective omega-3s, should be avoided. This kind of diet can harm brain function in the long term, particularly by negatively affecting the brain’s vascular system.”
The researchers also observed interesting changes in brain blood flow in the mice fed a regular diet as they aged. They noted a natural decrease in functional hyperemia as the mice developed from adolescence to adulthood and middle age. However, the decline in blood flow was much more pronounced and occurred much earlier in the mice fed the Western diet, suggesting that the unhealthy diet accelerated the aging process of the brain’s blood vessels.
The researchers acknowledged some limitations to their study. One important point is that the study was conducted in mice, and while mouse models are valuable for understanding biological processes, the findings need to be confirmed in humans. While other brain imaging studies in humans have shown similar vascular impairments in teenagers with obesity, further studies in humans, particularly those that follow individuals over time, would help to confirm the results.
“Our findings should be validated by longitudinal studies in humans, particularly those beginning in adolescence,” Gurden noted.
Understanding how diet impacts brain health, particularly during critical developmental periods like adolescence, is essential for developing effective ways to promote healthy brain aging and prevent diet-related brain disorders.
“Our long-term goal is to identify protective strategies that can prevent the harmful effects of the Western diet on brain function, such as the impairment of cerebral vascular supply and memory,” Gurden explained. “Omega-3 fatty acids are one potential strategy, but incretins could also offer a promising medication whenever necessary.”
“While it may seem obvious, it’s important to remind parents to carefully monitor the quality of food they provide to their children,” he added.
The study, “(https://doi.org/10.1038/s41366-025-01711-x) Western diet since adolescence impairs brain functional hyperemia at adulthood in mice: rescue by a balanced ω-3:ω-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids ratio,” was authored by Haleh Soleimanzad, Clémentine Morisset, Mireia Montaner, Frédéric Pain, Christophe Magnan, Mickaël Tanter, and Hirac Gurden.

(https://www.psypost.org/morning-blue-light-exposure-improves-sleep-and-activity-levels-in-older-adults/) Morning blue light exposure improves sleep and activity levels in older adults
Feb 27th 2025, 18:00

Want to improve sleep and feel more active during the day? For older adults, the answer might be as simple as switching to blue-enriched light in the mornings. A recent study published in (https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-025-01506-y) GeroScience shows that this type of light can positively influence the body’s natural rhythms, resulting in better sleep and increased daytime engagement for seniors at home.
As people get older, their sleep patterns often change, and they may find it harder to get restful sleep. These changes can include sleeping less deeply, waking up more during the night, and feeling tired during the day. One reason for this is that as we age, our eyes become less effective at letting in light, which is important for regulating our body’s natural sleep-wake cycle. Think of our bodies as having an internal clock that is set by daylight. Reduced light input can weaken this clock, making it harder to maintain a consistent sleep schedule. Furthermore, older adults may spend less time outdoors in bright daylight and more time indoors under artificial light, which can also disrupt their natural rhythms.
Past research has indicated that blue light, which is a type of short-wavelength light, is particularly powerful in influencing our body’s biological clock. It is known to have a strong effect on alertness and can shift our sleep-wake cycle. Previous studies have explored the use of blue-enriched light to help older adults, especially those in care facilities or with dementia. These studies suggested that such light could boost daytime activity and improve sleep.
However, many of these studies were conducted in controlled environments like hospitals or care homes, and often for short periods. This left a gap in understanding how blue-enriched light might help generally healthy older adults living independently at home over a longer duration.
The researchers behind the new study wanted to investigate the effects of different types of light, administered in people’s own homes over several weeks, on their sleep, daily activity, and exposure to light. They aimed to see if using blue-enriched light, compared to regular white light, could improve sleep and activity patterns in older adults experiencing sleep problems in their everyday lives.
To conduct this study, the researchers recruited 36 adults aged 60 and older who lived at home and reported having sleep difficulties. Participants were not working full time and were generally healthy, without major medical conditions, and not taking medications that heavily affect sleep. The study was designed as a crossover trial, meaning each participant experienced both types of light being tested. The study lasted for 11 weeks and was conducted during the autumn and winter months, when natural daylight is typically reduced.
The study began with a week of baseline measurements to understand participants’ usual sleep and activity patterns. Then, for three weeks, participants used either a blue-enriched white light box or a standard white light box in their homes. After this, there was a two-week break period where they did not use any special lights.
Following the break, they then used the other type of light box for another three weeks, followed by a final two-week break. This design ensured that each person experienced both the blue-enriched light and the control light conditions. Participants were randomly assigned to start with either the blue-enriched light or the standard white light.
The light boxes were designed to be used for two hours each day, once in the morning and once in the evening. Participants were instructed to complete their morning light session before 11:00 AM and their evening session before 10:00 PM. They could choose the exact times within these windows and were asked to sit about two feet away from the light box while doing activities like reading or watching television. They also kept a diary to record when they used the light. The researchers used two different intensities for each light type, but the main comparison was between the blue-enriched white light and the standard white light.
Throughout the study, participants wore small activity monitors on their wrists to track their movements and sleep-wake patterns. They also wore a light sensor around their neck during the day to measure their personal light exposure levels. These devices recorded data continuously. Additionally, participants completed daily sleep diaries to record their bedtime, wake-up time, and how well they slept. At several points during the study, they also filled out questionnaires about their sleep quality.
The researchers analyzed the data collected from the activity monitors and sleep diaries to assess various aspects of sleep and daily activity. They looked at the regularity of participants’ activity patterns, how fragmented their sleep was, and their overall activity levels during the day and night. They also examined how these measures changed when participants used the blue-enriched light compared to the standard white light.
The study’s findings showed that using blue-enriched light in the morning had a positive impact on the participants. Specifically, longer morning exposure to blue-enriched light was linked to more stable daily activity patterns and less fragmented sleep. This means that their daily routines became more consistent, and their sleep was less disrupted.
However, using the same blue-enriched light in the evening did not have the same beneficial effects; in fact, it seemed to negatively affect sleep in some ways. For instance, longer evening light exposure was associated with taking longer to fall asleep and experiencing less efficient sleep overall.
“Our research shows that carefully timed light intervention can be a powerful tool for improving sleep and day-to-day activity in healthy older adults,” said Daan Van Der Veen, a senior lecturer in sleep and chronobiology at the University of Surrey. “By focusing on morning blue light and maximising daytime light exposure, we can help older adults achieve more restful sleep and maintain a healthier, more active lifestyle.”
Interestingly, the study also found that spending more time in bright outdoor light, indicated by higher light levels measured by the neck sensors, was associated with several benefits. Participants who spent more time in bright light during the day tended to have stronger daily activity rhythms, higher levels of daytime activity, and earlier bedtimes.
Débora Constantino, a postgraduate research student at the University of Surrey added: “We believe that this is one of the first studies that have looked into the effects of self-administered light therapy on healthy older adults living independently, to help aid their sleep and daily activity. It highlights the potential for accessible and affordable light-based therapies to address age-related sleep issues without the need for medication.”
The study, “(https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-025-01506-y) The bright and dark side of blue-enriched light on sleep and activity in older adults,” was authored by Débora Barroggi Constantino, Katharina A. Lederle, Benita Middleton, Victoria L. Revell, Tracey L. Sletten, Peter Williams, Debra J. Skene, and Daan R. van der Veen.

(https://www.psypost.org/caffeine-and-cognition-new-study-reveals-genetic-differences-in-mental-performance/) Caffeine and cognition: New study reveals genetic differences in mental performance
Feb 27th 2025, 16:00

A new study published in the (https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811241303601) Journal of Psychopharmacology has revealed that the way caffeine impacts your thinking skills is not just about how much coffee you drink, but also about your genes. Researchers discovered that people with genes for fast caffeine processing performed differently on cognitive tests depending on their caffeine consumption levels, particularly in tasks involving emotion recognition and complex thinking. This suggests that our genetic makeup plays a significant role in how we respond to caffeine’s effects on our brainpower.
Scientists have long been interested in understanding how different substances affect our cognitive abilities, from students trying to boost their study sessions to older adults hoping to maintain sharp minds. Caffeine, found in coffee, tea, and many other drinks, is the most commonly used stimulant in the world and is often considered a potential brain enhancer. While it’s known that caffeine can improve simple mental tasks like paying attention and reacting quickly, its effects on more complex abilities like decision-making are less clear. Some research even suggests that regular caffeine consumption might be linked to better memory and thinking skills, but this is not consistently seen across all studies.
One of the reasons for these inconsistent findings is that people are different. Some people process caffeine faster than others, and this could be due to variations in their genes. These genetic differences might explain why some individuals experience a strong boost from caffeine while others feel little effect, or even negative effects like anxiety or sleep problems. But any studies on caffeine and thinking skills haven’t taken into account the daily habits of participants, such as their usual caffeine intake, or other lifestyle factors like sleep and diet, which can also influence cognitive performance.
The researchers behind the new study wanted to investigate how an individual’s genes, specifically those related to caffeine processing, interact with their usual caffeine consumption to affect various aspects of their cognitive abilities in everyday life. They aimed to look at a broad range of thinking skills, including social and emotional understanding, memory, attention, and complex problem-solving.
To conduct their study, the researchers recruited 129 adults living in the United Kingdom. Participants were carefully selected to exclude anyone with known brain disorders or vision problems, and those taking medications that could interfere with caffeine processing. The study was conducted remotely over three days. First, participants completed an online questionnaire about their background, health, lifestyle, and typical consumption of caffeinated drinks and foods. This questionnaire included questions about their age, gender, education level, physical activity, sleep quality, and use of tobacco and alcohol. To estimate their usual caffeine intake, participants filled out a detailed food questionnaire that listed common sources of caffeine like tea, coffee, chocolate, and soft drinks.
Next, over a period of up to two weeks, participants completed a series of cognitive tests online from their own homes. They were asked to perform these tests on the same device, in a quiet environment, and at least five hours after their last caffeine or alcohol intake. This time frame was chosen to ensure that participants were not experiencing the immediate effects of caffeine or alcohol, nor were they likely to be in caffeine withdrawal. Before each testing session, participants also rated their sleepiness level. The cognitive test battery included four different tasks designed to measure specific thinking skills.
The first task assessed social and emotional understanding by showing participants images of faces displaying six basic emotions: anger, fear, sadness, happiness, disgust, and surprise. Participants had to quickly identify the emotion shown on each face. The second task evaluated memory using a letter-based test where participants had to remember letters presented one, two, or three steps back in a sequence. This tested their working memory, the ability to hold and manipulate information in mind. Attention was measured using a task that required participants to react as quickly as possible when a red dot appeared on the screen. This tested their vigilance and reaction time.
Finally, executive function, which includes skills like problem-solving and flexible thinking, was assessed using a Stroop test. In this test, participants were shown words printed in different colors and had to name the color of the ink, not read the word itself. This task creates a conflict in the brain because reading words is automatic, but naming colors requires overriding this automatic response, thus testing executive control. To get a comprehensive measure of overall cognitive ability, the researchers combined the results from all four cognitive tests into a single global cognition score.
In the final part of the study, participants provided a saliva sample, which was used to analyze their DNA. The researchers focused on specific genetic variations known as Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms, or SNPs. They looked at genes involved in caffeine metabolism (how quickly the body breaks down caffeine) and caffeine response (how sensitive someone is to caffeine’s effects). They also examined genes related to sleep quality and risk of cognitive decline, as these factors can also influence cognitive performance.
After collecting all the data, the researchers analyzed the results to see how caffeine consumption and genes interacted to affect cognitive performance. They divided participants into groups based on their usual caffeine intake: low, moderate, and high consumers, and also based on their genetic profiles for caffeine metabolism – ‘slow’ or ‘fast’ metabolisers.
The study found that, overall, neither habitual caffeine intake nor genetics alone were strongly linked to cognitive performance across the board. However, age was a factor, with older participants generally performing slightly worse on some cognitive tasks. Body mass index was also related to executive function. Importantly, when the researchers looked at the combination of genes and caffeine consumption, they found interesting interactions for emotion recognition and executive function.
For emotion recognition, they observed that among people who consumed high amounts of caffeine, those with genes for fast caffeine metabolism performed worse at recognizing emotions compared to those with genes for slow caffeine metabolism. Furthermore, among the fast metabolisers, those who consumed high caffeine levels performed worse than fast metabolisers who consumed low or moderate levels of caffeine. This suggests that for people who process caffeine quickly, high caffeine intake might actually hinder their ability to understand emotions.
In contrast, for executive function, the researchers found that among people who consumed a moderate amount of caffeine, those with genes for fast caffeine metabolism performed better on executive function tasks than those with genes for slow caffeine metabolism. This suggests that for people who process caffeine quickly, a moderate caffeine intake might be beneficial for complex thinking skills.
The researchers suggested that the poorer emotion recognition performance in fast metabolisers with high caffeine consumption could be related to caffeine withdrawal. Even though participants were asked to abstain from caffeine for at least five hours before testing, fast metabolisers might experience withdrawal symptoms more quickly, especially if they are used to high caffeine levels. This withdrawal could negatively impact their performance on cognitive tasks, particularly those related to social and emotional processing. The improved executive function in fast metabolisers with moderate caffeine intake might reflect a beneficial effect of caffeine at a dose that is well-suited to their processing speed, without causing negative side effects or withdrawal.
This study has certain limitations. The number of participants in some subgroups, especially the low-caffeine fast metabolisers, was quite small, which could affect the reliability of some findings. Also, while the study considered several factors that could influence cognitive performance, there might be other unmeasured factors at play. The cognitive tests were conducted at home, which is more representative of real-life situations but less controlled than a laboratory setting. The order in which the cognitive tests were administered might also have influenced the results, particularly for the emotion recognition task, which was always presented first.
The study, “(https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811241303601) Habitual caffeine intake, genetics and cognitive performance,” was authored by Angeliki Kapellou, Leta Pilic, and Yiannis Mavrommatis.

(https://www.psypost.org/legal-cannabis-linked-to-drop-in-anxiety-medication-prescriptions/) Legal cannabis linked to drop in anxiety medication prescriptions
Feb 27th 2025, 14:00

In states where both medical and recreational marijuana are legal, fewer patients are filling prescriptions for medications used to treat anxiety. That is (https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.32021) the key finding of my recent study, published in the journal JAMA Network Open.
I am an (https://spp.gatech.edu/people/person/ashley-bradford) applied policy researcher who studies the economics of risky behaviors and substance use within the United States. My collaborators and I wanted to understand how medical and recreational marijuana laws and marijuana dispensary openings have affected the rate at which patients fill prescriptions for anti-anxiety medications among people who have private medical insurance.
These include:

(https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/24570-benzodiazepines-benzos) Benzodiazepines, which work by increasing the level of (https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22857-gamma-aminobutyric-acid-gaba) gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA, a neurotransmitter that elicits a calming effect by reducing activity in the nervous system. This category includes the depressants Valium, Xanax and Ativan, among others.
(https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/24692-antipsychotic-medications) Antipsychotics, a class of drug that addresses psychosis symptoms in a variety of ways.
(https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/9301-antidepressants-depression-medication) Antidepressants, which relieve symptoms of depression by affecting neurotransmitters such as serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine. The most well-known example of these is selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors, or (https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/in-depth/ssris/art-20044825) SSRIs.

We also included (https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/23271-barbiturates) barbiturates, which are sedatives, and sleep medications – (https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/taking-z-drugs-insomnia-know-risks) sometimes called “Z-drugs” – both of which are used to treat insomnia. In contrast to the other three categories, we did not estimate any policy impacts for either of these types of drugs.
We find consistent evidence that increased marijuana access is associated with reductions in benzodiazepine prescription fills. “Fills” refer to the number of prescriptions being picked up by patients, rather than the number of prescriptions doctors write. This is based on calculating the rate of individual patients who filled a prescription in a state, the average days of supply per prescription fill, and average prescription fills per patient.
Notably, we found that not all state policies led to similar changes in prescription fill patterns.
Why it matters
In 2021, nearly (https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/mental-illness) 23% of the adult U.S. population reported having a diagnosable mental health disorder. Yet only 65.4% of those individuals reported receiving treatment within the past year. This lack of treatment can exacerbate current mental health disorders, leading to (https://www.cdc.gov/mental-health/about/index.html) increased risk for additional chronic conditions.
Marijuana access introduces an alternative treatment to traditional prescription medication that may provide easier access for some patients. Many state medical laws allow patients with mental health disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, to (https://www.britannica.com/procon/medical-marijuana-debate#ref395545) use medical cannabis, while recreational laws expand access to all adults.
Our findings have important implications for insurance systems, prescribers, policymakers and patients. Benzodiazepine use, like opioid use, can be dangerous for patients, especially when the two classes of drugs are used together. Given the high level of opioid poisonings that also involve benzodiazepines – in 2020, they made up (https://nida.nih.gov/research-topics/opioids/benzodiazepines-opioids) 14% of total opioid overdose deaths – our findings offer insights into potential substitution with marijuana for medications where misuse is plausible.
What still isn’t known
Our research does not clarify whether the changes in dispensing patterns led to measurable changes in patient outcomes.
There is some evidence that marijuana acts as an (https://doi.org/10.1089/can.2017.29009.dpi) effective anxiety treatment. If this is the case, moving away from benzodiazepine use – which is (https://doi.org/10.3390/neurolint13040059) associated with significant negative side effects – toward marijuana use may improve patient outcomes.
This finding is critical given that about (https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.201800321) 5% of the U.S. population is prescribed benzodiazepines. Substituting marijuana has the potential to result in fewer negative side effects nationwide, but it’s not yet clear if marijuana will be equally effective at treating anxiety.
Our study also found evidence of a slight – albeit somewhat less significant – increase in antipsychotic and antidepressant dispensing. But it’s (https://doi.org/10.1257/jel.20211635) not clear yet whether marijuana access, particularly recreational access, increases rates of psychotic disorders and depression.
While we found that, overall, marijuana access led to increased antidepressant and antipsychotic fills, some individual states saw decreases.
There is a lot of variation in the details of state marijuana laws, and it’s possible that some of those details are leading to these meaningful differences in outcomes. I believe this difference in outcomes from state to state is an important finding for policymakers who may want to tailor their laws toward specific goals.
 
This article is republished from (https://theconversation.com) The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the (https://theconversation.com/with-more-americans-able-to-access-legalized-marijuana-fewer-are-picking-up-prescriptions-for-anti-anxiety-medications-new-research-244646) original article.

(https://www.psypost.org/the-words-in-movies-are-shifting-and-its-not-good-news/) The words in movies are shifting, and it’s not good news
Feb 27th 2025, 12:00

If you think movies are getting more violent, you might be right, at least when it comes to what characters say. A large-scale study looking at the dialogue from over 166,000 films from 1970 to 2020 found a significant rise in the use of violent language, specifically words associated with killing. This increase isn’t just limited to action or crime films; it’s happening across all types of movies and involves both male and female characters speaking more violently over time. The research was published in (https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2828322) JAMA Pediatrics.
Decades of research have demonstrated a link between exposure to violent content and increased aggressive behavior and thoughts. Watching violence in movies and television can lead people to imitate aggressive actions they see, become less sensitive to real-world violence, and feel less empathy for victims. Some researchers even suggest that excessive exposure to violent media can contribute to a “mean world syndrome,” where people start to believe that the world is a much more dangerous and violent place than it actually is. Recognizing these potential harms, numerous medical and scientific organizations around the world have issued warnings about the dangers of violent media for over half a century.
Given these concerns, it is important to understand how the amount of violence portrayed in media is changing over time. Previous studies have indicated an increase in on-screen violence. For example, research from 2013 found that the depiction of gun violence in top-grossing movies had more than doubled since 1950, and more than tripled in movies rated PG-13 since that rating category was introduced in 1985.
Building upon this existing research, a team of researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and The Ohio State University wanted to investigate whether violent language in movies has also increased over time. They were particularly interested in seeing if this trend held true not only for crime movies, where violence is often a central theme, but also for movies across all genres. They also wanted to examine if the trends in violent language differed between male and female characters. To answer these questions, the researchers undertook a large-scale analysis of movie dialogue to track changes in violent speech over the past five decades.
“I have been doing violent media research for over 30 years,” noted Brad J. Bushman, a professor of communication at The Ohio State University.
To conduct their investigation, the researchers turned to a massive online database of movie subtitles called OpenSubtitles.org. This resource contains subtitles for a vast number of movies, providing a rich source of dialogue data. From this database, the team extracted subtitles for over 166,000 English-language movies released between 1970 and 2020.
Using these subtitles, they focused specifically on identifying dialogue that contained what they termed “murderous verbs.” This meant they looked for instances where characters spoke verbs related to killing or murdering, such as “kill,” “murder,” “slay,” “assassinate,” and similar words.
To accurately identify these “murderous verbs” and the characters associated with them, the researchers used sophisticated computer-based language analysis techniques. They employed a method called “dependency parsing” which helps to break down sentences and understand the grammatical relationships between words. This allowed them to identify verbs and determine who or what was performing the action described by the verb. They also used “part-of-speech tagging” to ensure they were correctly identifying verbs and not other types of words.
Importantly, they designed their analysis to be very specific and conservative. They only counted instances where characters were actively speaking about committing murder. They deliberately excluded passive constructions, such as “he was killed,” negations, like “she didn’t kill him,” and questions, for example, “Did he murder her?” By focusing only on direct statements of murderous intent or action, they aimed to get a clear and focused measure of violent language in movie dialogue.
The analysis revealed a clear trend: violent language in movies, specifically the use of “murderous verbs,” has significantly increased over the past five decades. Across all movies analyzed, nearly seven percent contained dialogue using these verbs related to killing.
When the researchers looked at the data year by year, they observed fluctuations from one year to the next, as might be expected. However, despite these yearly variations, the overall trend was unmistakably upward. Statistical analysis confirmed a significant and steady increase in the use of murderous verbs in movie dialogue from 1970 to 2020.
This increasing trend was not limited to crime movies, where violent language might be expected. Surprisingly, the researchers found a similar increase in the use of murderous verbs in movies that were not classified as crime films.
“In the past 50 years, murderous verbs in movies have increased by increased 1.7-fold, which is over 10 times more than in the English language overall,” Bushman told PsyPost. “In other words, the world depicted in movies is far more violent than the actual world.”
This trend held true for both male and female characters. While there were some minor differences in the patterns for male and female characters in crime movies specifically, the overarching finding was that violent language, as measured by “murderous verbs,” has become more prevalent in movie dialogue across genres and for characters of both genders over the last fifty years.
This finding reinforces previous research that used smaller datasets and also pointed towards an increase in movie violence over time, suggesting that the trend is robust and consistent across different ways of measuring violence in film.
“It is troubling that the use of violent verbs is increasing so much in movies, and that violence is viewed as entertainment,” Bushman said.
The researchers emphasized that by concentrating solely on “murderous verbs,” they were likely underestimating the total amount of violent language present in movies, as they were not including less extreme forms of violence or violent threats.
“Our results should be conservative. We computed the percent of murderous verbs calculated as the number of verbs from the roots ‘kill’ and ‘murder’ divided by the total number of verbs. We omitted passive constructions and negations, and questions.”
While this study provides valuable insights into trends in violent language in movies, it is important to acknowledge its limitations. The study focused solely on dialogue and specifically on dialogue. This means it did not capture other forms of violence depicted in movies, such as physical actions, visual depictions of violence, or less extreme forms of violent language.
Future research could expand upon this work by analyzing movie scripts to capture descriptions of physical violence and actions, which would provide a more comprehensive picture of violence in films. However, analyzing full scripts for such a massive number of movies is a very challenging task due to the sheer volume of data involved. Similarly, using computer algorithms to automatically detect violent actions from video data is currently very expensive and technically complex.
Looking ahead, the researchers suggest several important directions for future research. They emphasize the need to further explore the complex relationship between movies and culture. Movies can influence cultural norms and behaviors, but they also reflect existing societal trends, including violence. Understanding this two-way relationship is crucial.
The researchers also suggest that future studies could investigate the use of violent language in other forms of media to see if similar trends are present. Ultimately, the findings of this study underscore the continued need to promote media literacy and encourage mindful consumption of media, especially among children and vulnerable populations.
The study, “(https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2024.5741) Trends of Violence in Movies During the Past Half Century,” was authored by Babak Fotouhi, Amir Tohidi, Rouzbeh Touserkani, and Brad J. Bushman.

(https://www.psypost.org/men-and-women-misjudge-what-the-opposite-sex-finds-attractive-in-facial-features/) Men and women misjudge what the opposite sex finds attractive in facial features
Feb 27th 2025, 10:00

A study using interactive 3D models of human heads found that women overestimated the facial femininity that men prefer in a female romantic partner, while men overestimated the facial masculinity that women prefer in a male romantic partner. The paper was published in (https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0310835) PLOS ONE.
The ideal male and female body figures vary across cultures, time periods, and personal preferences. Traditionally, the ideal male body is described as tall, muscular, and broad-shouldered, with a V-shaped torso (wide shoulders, narrow waist) and well-defined muscles. The ideal female body is typically portrayed as curvy with an hourglass shape, meaning a defined waist, fuller hips, and a proportional bust.
However, beauty standards evolve. Historically, fuller figures were preferred in some eras, while slimmer or athletic builds have become more popular in modern times. Media, fashion, and social trends play a major role in shaping these ideals and influencing people’s perceptions of attractiveness. Health and functionality are also becoming more valued, with strong, fit bodies being seen as attractive for both men and women. Psychological research shows that self-confidence and posture can significantly enhance perceived attractiveness, regardless of body shape.
Study author David I. Perrett and his colleagues wanted to explore the perception of facial attractiveness. They aimed to determine the male face shape that women find most desirable and to compare it to the shape that men predict women will find most desirable. They did the same for female faces.
The authors hypothesized that the facial masculinity men predict women will desire would be higher than the masculinity of the face that women actually find most desirable. Similarly, the facial femininity that men find most attractive in female faces was expected to be lower than the femininity that women predicted men would desire. They also believed that the discrepancy between these predictions and real preferences would be greater when considering a short-term relationship compared to a long-term relationship. Additionally, the authors predicted that this misperception would be stronger in individuals who were less satisfied with the shape of their own face.
Study participants were 144 U.K. residents, of whom 72 were men. The average age of the participants was around 22 years.
To study facial attractiveness, the authors used a set of 3D models of male and female faces. They started with two male and two female base faces, each of which was a composite of the shape, color, and texture of four faces of the same gender. The authors then used software to morph these models, creating various degrees of masculinity for male faces and various degrees of femininity for female faces.
Participants were presented with two male and two female faces, each accompanied by a slider that allowed them to adjust the masculinity of male faces or the femininity of female faces. They were first instructed to adjust the face to match their own appearance. Then, they were asked to adjust the male face to make it the most attractive to heterosexual women and the female face to make it the most attractive to heterosexual men. For both male and female faces, participants made these adjustments for both short-term and long-term relationships.
Results showed that women preferred a lower level of masculinity in male faces compared to what men predicted women would prefer. In other words, men overestimated the level of masculinity that women desired. Similarly, men preferred a lower level of femininity in female faces compared to what women predicted.
Men also thought that women would prefer a higher level of facial masculinity for short-term relationships than for long-term relationships. This difference was absent in women’s estimates of what men preferred in female faces. In addition, men tended to predict that women would prefer a level of facial masculinity higher than that of their own face. Similarly, women believed that men preferred female faces that were more feminine than their own. Individuals who were less satisfied with their own faces tended to make larger errors in estimating the preferences of the opposite sex.
“We have demonstrated a substantial misperception of what men and women predict the opposite sex to desire in terms of sexual dimorphism of face shape. Men overestimate the masculinity women desire, and women overestimate the femininity men desire. Our study also reveals widespread dissatisfaction with facial appearance. Most men and women had an ideal level of facial dimorphism that was greater than their own facial dimorphism. The dissatisfaction and misperception are related, in that the greater the misperception of others’ desires, the greater the index of dissatisfaction,” the study authors concluded.
The study sheds light on people’s perceptions of facial attractiveness. However, the measure of facial dissatisfaction used in the study was the difference between the masculinity/femininity of participants’ own faces and what they reported as their ideal faces. The researchers did not explicitly ask participants whether they were satisfied or dissatisfied with their own appearance. Additionally, romantic attractiveness in real-world settings is much more complex than simply the masculinity or femininity of a face.
The paper, “(https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0310835) Misperception of the facial appearance that the opposite-sex desires,” was authored by David I. Perrett, Iris J. Holzleitner, and Xue Lei.

Forwarded by:
Michael Reeder LCPC
Baltimore, MD

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