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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/asking-for-help-as-a-flirting-strategy-psychology-study-uncovers-how-reliance-can-attract-mates/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Asking for help as a flirting strategy: Psychology study uncovers how reliance can attract mates</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jan 25th 2025, 08:00</div>
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<p><p>Dependency-oriented help-seeking can communicate romantic interest and serve as a strategy to attract mates, according to a study published in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/pspi0000458"><em>Journal of Personality & Social Psychology</em></a>.</p>
<p>Help-seeking behaviors can be categorized as autonomy-oriented, which fosters independence, or dependency-oriented, which creates reliance. While dependency-oriented help is often seen negatively, as it reinforces power imbalances and portrays seekers as dependent, Fei Teng and colleagues proposed that it could have a positive role in intimate relationships.</p>
<p>Specifically, they hypothesized that seeking dependency-oriented help could signal romantic interest, aligning with evolutionary theories that emphasize mutual dependency as key to close bonds. Building on prior research that links interdependence with attraction and commitment, the research team explored whether dependency-oriented help-seeking could actively promote relationship formation, particularly when romantic motivations are present.</p>
<p>The researchers conducted nine studies, involving a total of 2,535 participants. These studies utilized both hypothetical scenarios and real-world interactions, combining controlled experimental designs with behavior-based tasks. Participants were recruited primarily through online platforms like Amazon Mechanical Turk, and additional samples were drawn from a university setting in China.</p>
<p>The studies were designed to examine dependency-oriented help-seeking from three perspectives: help-seekers, help-providers, and romantic competitors. In studies focused on help-seekers, participants were presented with everyday challenges (e.g., planning a travel itinerary, buying a bottle of wine, or fixing a malfunctioning device) and asked to choose between requesting autonomy-oriented help, which provided guidance to solve the problem independently, or dependency-oriented help, which involved the helper solving the issue directly.</p>
<p>Mating motivations were activated in some studies by having participants imagine romantic scenarios (e.g., spending a romantic afternoon with someone desirable) or exposing them to romantic advertisements. Control groups, by contrast, engaged with neutral or professional scenarios, such as imagining a business interaction or viewing exercise-themed advertisements.</p>
<p>For studies on help-providers, participants evaluated scenarios where a potential mate requested either dependency-oriented or autonomy-oriented help. Romantic motivations were manipulated in similar ways, and help-providers’ interest in the help-seekers was assessed afterward.</p>
<p>Additionally, one study examined how romantic competitors perceived dependency-oriented help-seeking. Participants in relationships evaluated hypothetical scenarios where a third party sought dependency-oriented help from their partner, allowing researchers to explore whether such behavior was perceived as a threat. In some studies, hypothetical situations were replaced with actual interactions, such as participants engaging with a confederate or being paired with a partner to complete tasks.</p>
<p>The findings consistently demonstrated that dependency-oriented help-seeking could serve as a strategic signal of romantic interest, influencing attraction in mating contexts. Across multiple studies, participants with heightened mating motivations were significantly more likely to prefer dependency-oriented help over autonomy-oriented help. This pattern was evident in hypothetical scenarios as well as real tasks.</p>
<p>For example, when participants were exposed to romantic cues, such as imagining spending time with a desirable person or watching a romantic advertisement, they were more likely to request dependency-oriented help in subsequent tasks. This effect was mediated by increased romantic interest in the help-provider, suggesting that dependency-oriented help-seeking signaled romantic intentions effectively.</p>
<p>Help-providers also responded positively to dependency-oriented help requests. When approached with such requests in scenarios where mating motivations were activated, help-providers expressed greater romantic interest in the help-seeker compared to when autonomy-oriented help was sought. This pattern indicates that being relied upon in a way that fosters interdependence can enhance attraction, aligning with theories of reciprocal liking.</p>
<p>Additionally, the study examining romantic competitors revealed that individuals in relationships viewed dependency-oriented help-seekers as potential mate-poachers. This finding highlights the dual nature of dependency-oriented help-seeking as both a mating strategy and a potential threat to existing relationships.</p>
<p>Overall, the results provided robust support for the hypothesis that dependency-oriented help-seeking is a functional and proactive strategy for signaling romantic interest and fostering attraction.</p>
<p>A limitation noted by the authors is the reliance on hypothetical scenarios in some studies, which may not fully capture real-life dynamics.</p>
<p>The research, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/pspi0000458">Love me, because I rely on you: Dependency-oriented help-seeking as a strategy for human mating</a>,” was authored by Fei Teng, Xijing Wang, Qiao Lei, and Kai-Tak Poon.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/fascinating-study-links-depression-symptoms-to-effort-based-decision-making-patterns/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Fascinating study links depression symptoms to effort-based decision-making patterns</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jan 25th 2025, 06:00</div>
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<p><p>A new study published in <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/psychological-medicine/article/major-depression-symptom-severity-associations-with-willingness-to-exert-effort-and-patch-foraging-strategy/154BA781A25E9DFB9BC515786D2E3006"><em>Psychological Medicine</em></a> sheds light on how specific depression symptoms are related to decisions about how much effort people are willing to put into tasks. Higher anxiety was linked to a greater willingness to exert cognitive effort, while anhedonia and apathy increased physical effort avoidance. Those with more severe depression were less likely to leave tasks for better opportunities, potentially reflecting altered perceptions of the value of time.</p>
<p>The researchers aimed to better understand how depression affects decision-making about effort. Individuals with depression often struggle with goal-directed behavior due to symptoms like apathy, anergia (low energy), and anhedonia (reduced pleasure), as well as cognitive difficulties. These symptoms can make it harder to pursue and achieve goals, which often involves weighing the rewards of an action against the effort it requires.</p>
<p>“I identify as neurodivergent and once experienced pronounced cognitive function changes (e.g., slowed thinking) during a period of low mood. Ever since that experience, I puzzled over what drove these changes,” said study author <a href="https://www.lauraanabustamante.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Laura Ana Bustamante</a>, a postdoctoral fellow at Washington University in St. Louis.</p>
<p>“As a neuroscientist, I was in a position to try and find out, but I felt hesitant about learning ‘too much’ about my own mental health. I knew reduced cognitive function was reported in many mental health conditions, and the common explanation was a decrease in cognitive ‘ability’ or ‘capacity.’ As a senior graduate student at the Princeton Neuroscience Institute, I was inspired when I read a theoretical paper on cognitive function in major depressive disorder (Grahek et al., 2021). It suggested that reduced cognitive function, experienced by some individuals with depression, might stem from a reduced ‘willingness’ to exert cognitive control. This idea excited me because motivation is dynamic and, I reasoned, more changeable than ability.”</p>
<p>“I was in the perfect position to test this account,” Bustamante explained. “At the Princeton Neuroscience Institute, I had developed the Effort Foraging Task—a tool to measure the willingness to exert effort, grounded in robust theoretical and computational foundations. Then the Rutgers-Princeton Center for Neuropsychiatry, was established as a hub for clinical collaborations. Furthermore, I had enough distance to be comfortable with the research topic, having not experienced major depression firsthand.”</p>
<p>“So, I embarked on my first ever clinical research project. I assembled a team of collaborators, and we applied for a grant from the New Jersey Alliance for Clinical and Translational Science. I was absolutely thrilled when we were awarded the grant. Working on this project ignited a passion for computational psychiatry and spurred me to complete a clinically oriented postdoctoral position at Washington University in St. Louis, where I carried out data analysis and manuscript preparation. All of this to say, it’s very special to see it in print.”</p>
<p>The study included 97 participants, 67 of whom were diagnosed with major depressive disorder. The remaining 30 participants served as a comparison group with no psychiatric diagnoses. Participants completed the Effort Foraging Task, a decision-making exercise that evaluates how people balance effort and reward. The task required participants to “harvest” rewards from patches that provided diminishing returns or decide to leave the patch and move to a new one. Moving to a new patch required time and effort, with both cognitive and physical effort manipulated across conditions.</p>
<p>In the cognitive effort condition, participants performed a working memory task of varying difficulty (simple versus demanding). In the physical effort condition, they had to press keys repeatedly, with the number of presses required adjusted for difficulty. The researchers used computational models to analyze participants’ decisions, including the threshold at which they stopped harvesting rewards and moved to a new patch. These thresholds revealed participants’ tolerance for effort and their perceptions of the opportunity cost of time.</p>
<p>Symptom severity was measured using clinical interviews and self-reported questionnaires. Participants’ depression symptoms were analyzed across dimensions such as anhedonia, anxiety, behavioral apathy, and overall depression severity. By linking these symptom profiles to participants’ performance on the Effort Foraging Task, the researchers aimed to identify how different symptoms influence effort-based decisions.</p>
<p>The researchers found that participants with higher anxiety symptoms were more willing to exert cognitive effort. This finding challenges traditional assumptions that depression universally reduces cognitive motivation. The researchers suggested that anxiety might act as a compensatory mechanism, motivating individuals to engage in effortful tasks as a way to manage worry or maintain performance in the face of perceived threats.</p>
<p>“Our analyses allowed us to see that anxiety symptom severity was selectively related to increased willingness to exert effort,” Bustamante told <em>PsyPost</em>. “Although this was unexpected, it does make some sense, since anxiety can involve engaging cognitive effort to avoid potential threats (i.e., worrying). So it may be that being more willing to exert cognitive effort is a mechanism underlying anxiety. This could potentially be leveraged as a strength, embracing the tendency to exert cognitive effort, but exploring ways to change the thoughts to be less distressing (i.e., fantasizing).”</p>
<p>“This effect hadn’t been reported before, so it should be replicated, and we need more studies to understand the causality of this relationship. Another possibility is that cognitive effort was a welcome distraction from participants’ thoughts. If that were the case, people could try engaging with cognitively demanding tasks as a way to modulate their anxiety. I would be curious if any of your readers already do so!”</p>
<p>Greater anhedonia and behavioral apathy, on the other hand, were associated with higher physical effort costs, meaning individuals with these symptoms were more likely to avoid physically demanding tasks. This aligns with the idea that physical symptoms, such as fatigue and low energy, contribute to reduced motivation in depression.</p>
<p>Interestingly, participants with more severe depression exhibited lower thresholds for leaving a patch, suggesting that they perceived time as less valuable or were less likely to seek better opportunities. This finding supports theories that depression may reduce perceptions of reward in one’s environment, leading to decreased goal-directed behavior.</p>
<p>“We expected that individuals with greater depression symptom severity would exhibit decreased willingness to exert cognitive effort, but we found the opposite,” Bustamante said.</p>
<p>No significant differences were found between the depression and comparison groups in terms of overall effort costs, suggesting that the relationship between effort-based decisions and depression is driven by individual symptom patterns rather than the diagnosis as a whole. This highlights the importance of examining symptom-specific relationships in major depressive disorder, rather than relying solely on diagnostic labels.</p>
<p>However, as with all research, there are a few limitations to consider. The study’s cross-sectional design cannot establish causal relationships between symptoms and effort-based decision-making. In addition, the study’s findings may not generalize to other measures of effort-based decision-making or to real-world contexts. The Effort Foraging Task is a laboratory-based task that relies on specific manipulations of effort and reward, and its results may differ from those of more explicit decision-making tasks.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, by identifying distinct patterns of cognitive and physical effort costs associated with symptoms like anxiety, anhedonia, and apathy, the researchers offer new perspectives on how depression affects decision-making.</p>
<p>“My broadest research goal is to use computational cognitive neuroscience to help people reach their goals,” Bustamante said. “This is one of many studies linking mental health and effortful behavior. Understanding the dynamic interplay between affect, anxiety, effort, and cognitive function will put us in a better position to find effective solutions. I’m passionate about bringing neurodiversity and disability perspectives into clinical psychology. I always have an eye out for how to play to people’s strengths, and how environmental and contextual factors help or hinder goal achievement.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291724002691">Major depression symptom severity associations with willingness to exert effort and patch foraging strategy</a>,” was authored by Laura A. Bustamante, Deanna M. Barch, Johanne Solis, Temitope Oshinowo, Ivan Grahek, Anna B. Konova, Nathaniel D. Daw, and Jonathan D. Cohen.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/a-nation-exhausted-the-neuroscience-of-why-americans-are-tuning-out-politics/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">A nation exhausted: The neuroscience of why Americans are tuning out politics</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jan 24th 2025, 18:00</div>
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<p><p>“I am definitely not following the news anymore,” one patient told me when I asked about her political news consumption in the weeks before the 2024 U.S. presidential election.</p>
<p>This conversation happened around the time I talked with a local TV channel about why we saw <a href="https://www.wxyz.com/news/national-politics/america-votes/are-there-fewer-political-yard-signs-this-year-we-asked-voters-for-their-thoughts">fewer political yard signs</a> during this year’s election season, compared with past ones.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.starclab.org/members/arash-javanbakht">I am a psychiatrist</a> who studies and treats fear and anxiety. One of my main mental health recommendations to my patients during the 2016 and 2020 election cycles was to reduce their political news consumption. I also tried to convince them that the five hours a day they spent watching cable news was only leaving them helpless and terrified.</p>
<p>Over the past couple of years, though, I have noticed a change: Many of my patients say they either have tuned out or are too exhausted to do more than a brief read of political news or watch one hour of their favorite political show.</p>
<p>Research supports my clinical experience: A <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2020/02/26/almost-seven-in-ten-americans-have-news-fatigue-more-among-republicans/">Pew research study</a> from 2020 showed that 66% of Americans were worn out by political stress. Interestingly, those who are not following the news feel that same news fatigue at an even higher percentage of 73%. <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2023/09/19/americans-feelings-about-politics-polarization-and-the-tone-of-political-discourse/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">In 2023</a>, 8 out of 10 Americans described U.S. politics with negative words like “divisive,” “corrupt,” “messy” and “polarized.”</p>
<p>In my view, three major factors have led Americans to exhaustion and burnout with U.S politics.</p>
<h2>1. The politics of fear</h2>
<p>In my 2023 book, “<a href="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781538170380/Afraid-Understanding-the-Purpose-of-Fear-and-Harnessing-the-Power-of-Anxiety">AFRAID: Understanding the Purpose of Fear, and Harnessing the Power of Anxiety</a>,” I discuss how American politicians and major news media have <a href="https://theconversation.com/if-anxiety-is-in-my-brain-why-is-my-heart-pounding-a-psychiatrist-explains-the-neuroscience-and-physiology-of-fear-210871">found an ally in fear</a>: a very strong emotion that can be used to grab our attention, keeping us in the tribal dividing lines and making us follow, click, tap, watch and donate.</p>
<p>Over the past few decades, many people have felt a strong push for tribalism, an “us vs. them” way of seeing the world, turning Americans against one another. This has led to a point where we are not just in disagreement with each other. <a href="https://theconversation.com/trump-the-politics-of-fear-and-racism-how-our-brains-can-be-manipulated-to-tribalism-139811">We hate</a>, cancel, block and attack those who disagree with us.</p>
<h2>2. People live in information bubbles</h2>
<p>It can feel like Fox News and MSNBC commentators are talking about Americas from two different planets. The same is true when it comes to different social media feeds.</p>
<p>Many people are part of social media communities that are closed to the world outside their homes and familiar social circles. Based on people’s political views and what they search for or watch and read, <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-matrix-is-already-here-social-media-promised-to-connect-us-but-left-us-isolated-scared-and-tribal-148799">social media algorithms feed them content</a> where everybody talks and thinks alike. If you hear about the other side, it is only about their worst attributes and behavior.</p>
<p>The disconnect is so wide that people are not even able to comprehend the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-matrix-is-already-here-social-media-promised-to-connect-us-but-left-us-isolated-scared-and-tribal-148799">thinking of those from other perspectives</a> and find their logic or political beliefs unfathomable.</p>
<p>Many Americans have gotten to the point of believing that the other half of Americans are, <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2022/08/09/republicans-and-democrats-increasingly-critical-of-people-in-the-opposing-party/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">at best, unintelligent and stupid; and at worst, immoral and evil</a>.</p>
<h2>3. People’s political opinions have become their identities</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2013/09/chris-matthews-book-tip-and-the-gipper-when-politics-worked-097585?utm_source=chatgpt.com">There was a time</a> in American politics where two politicians or two neighbors could disagree, but still believe that the other person was fundamentally good.</p>
<p>Over time, and more so <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/perspectives-on-politics/article/from-backwaters-to-major-policymakers-policy-polarization-in-the-states-19702014/51DD7B022E358A99333447A6E2BA7B63">since the early 2000s</a>, this ability to connect despite political beliefs has decreased.</p>
<p>The majority of both Democrats and Republicans said in a 2022 Pew Research survey that someone’s political ideas are an indicator of their <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2022/08/09/republicans-and-democrats-increasingly-critical-of-people-in-the-opposing-party/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">morality and character</a>.</p>
<p>This 2022 Pew survey also shows that partisan animosity extends to judgments about character: 72% of Republicans and 63% of Democrats said they believe members of the opposing party are more “immoral” than other Americans.</p>
<p>This is evident in day-to-day conversations of members of both political tribes: “How can I be friends with someone who wants to kill babies,” or “How can I talk to someone who is OK with women dying in a corner of a clinic parking lot”. We can no longer see someone’s political affiliation in the context of their humanity at large.</p>
<h2>What psychology and neuroscience say</h2>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/the-science-of-fright-why-we-love-to-be-scared-85885">Fear</a> as a deeply ingrained survival mechanism takes priority over other brain functions.</p>
<p>Fear guides your memories, feelings, attention and thoughts, and can cause you to keep watching, scrolling and reading to monitor this perceived threat. Positive or neutral news could then become uninteresting because it is not important in your survival response. That has been the key to a person’s deep engagement with the fear-based political news.</p>
<p>But too much fear does not keep someone engaged forever. That is because of another survival mechanism – what’s called “learned helplessness.”</p>
<p>In 1967, American psychologist Martin Seligman <a href="https://ppc.sas.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/lhtheoryevidence.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com">exposed two groups of dogs</a> to painful shocks. Dogs in group 1 could stop the shock by pressing a lever, which they quickly learned to do. But the dogs in group 2 learned that they could not control when the shock starts and stops.</p>
<p>Then, both groups were placed in a box divided into two halves by a small barrier, and shock was applied to only one side of the box. Dogs in group 1 – who had learned how to stop the shocks in the earlier experiment – quickly learned to jump over the barrier to the shock-free side. But dogs in group 2 did not even attempt to do so. They had learned there is no point in trying.</p>
<p>This experiment has been replicated in different forms with other animals and humans with the same conclusion: When people feel they cannot control the painful or scary situation, they just give up. During such experiences, the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S1053-8119(03)00363-X">brain’s fear region</a> – called the amygdala – is hyperactive. Meanwhile, emotion-regulating brain areas like the prefrontal cortex decrease in activity under these circumstances.</p>
<p>Learned helplessness also means the brain mechanisms commonly involved in regulating anxiety and depression don’t function as well.</p>
<p>When working with patients who have suffered from long periods of intense anxiety, fear, trauma and exhaustion, I see learned helplessness showing up in the form of depression, loss of motivation, fatigue and lack of engagement with the world around them.</p>
<p>The COVID-19 pandemic, more than a decade of intense political stress, polarizing social media and wars across the world, as well as <a href="https://www.thenewpolitical.com/opinion/w8fn6i8ojr573o4zgvd6qgrlx1y4zx">public disillusionment</a> with U.S. politics and media, have led, I believe, to many people experiencing burnout and learned helplessness.</p>
<p>If you feel politically exhausted, you are not the problem. Feel free to tune out from the noise.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/245343/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1"><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p>
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<p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-nation-exhausted-the-neuroscience-of-why-americans-are-tuning-out-politics-245343">original article</a>.</em></p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/the-brains-reward-system-and-ptsd-new-insights-from-research/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">The brain’s reward system and PTSD: New insights from research</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jan 24th 2025, 16:00</div>
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<p><p>Researchers have recently uncovered new insights into how the brain’s reward system functions in individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its relationship with psychological resilience and metabolic syndrome. The study, published in <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pscychresns.2024.111918" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging</a></em>, highlights distinct patterns of brain activity in areas associated with reward processing. These patterns were influenced by PTSD, depression severity, resilience, and trauma exposure. While psychological resilience appeared to positively affect reward-related brain activity, metabolic syndrome showed limited associations.</p>
<p>Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of health conditions that collectively increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and stroke. These conditions include high blood pressure, elevated blood sugar, abnormal cholesterol or triglyceride levels, and excess fat around the waist.</p>
<p>While each condition is problematic on its own, their combination amplifies the risk of serious health issues. Lifestyle factors such as poor diet, lack of physical activity, and obesity are primary contributors to metabolic syndrome, but genetic predispositions and stress also play significant roles in its development.</p>
<p>Individuals with PTSD are at a heightened risk for developing metabolic syndrome compared to the general population. The new study was designed to explore whether dysfunction in the brain’s reward system might serve as a shared mechanism underlying PTSD and metabolic syndrome.</p>
<p>“This study forms part of a neuroimaging substudy of a larger project ‘Understanding the SHARED ROOTS of Neuropsychiatric Disorders (NPDs) and Modifiable Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease (CVD)’ that aimed to investigate the pathways that contribute to the comorbidity of metabolic syndrome in neuropsychiatric disorders. The SHARED ROOTS study is utilizing various methodologies to investigate what factors may contribute to increased risk of cardiovascular disease in neuropsychiatric disorders,” explained study author Leigh van den Heuvel, an associate professor and psychiatrist at the Stellenbosch University Department of Psychiatry and Tygerberg Hospital</p>
<p>“In this study, we wanted to use functional neuroimaging (fMRI) to assess whether alterations in the reward pathway could play a role in the comorbidity of metabolic syndrome in PTSD. The reward pathway is involved in experiencing pleasure and in motivating human behaviour. Alterations in reward function have been found across mental health conditions, including in addictive behaviors, such as substance use disorders, and in disorders that include a limited ability to experience positive emotions or anhedonia, such as major depressive disorder.”</p>
<p>“PTSD also includes symptoms of anhedonia and studies have demonstrated that reward function is altered in individuals with PTSD. Metabolic syndrome entails a group of risk factors that increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, such as hypertension, diabetes, and central obesity. The behaviors that contribute to these risks, such as unhealthy diets and overeating and sedentary behaviour are also linked to altered reward function.”</p>
<p>“We thus wanted to build on the existing body of evidence by investigating whether reward function investigated with fMRI using a monetary incentive delay (MID) task would be altered in relation to PTSD and metabolic syndrome. To broaden our investigation and include a more positive or protective aspect, we also wanted to assess whether psychological resilience, involving stress-coping ability, would influence reward function in our sample.”</p>
<p>Conducted in Cape Town, South Africa, the study included 173 participants: 88 diagnosed with PTSD and 85 trauma-exposed controls who did not meet PTSD criteria. All participants were adults of mixed ancestry who had experienced some form of trauma. Researchers excluded individuals with significant medical or psychiatric comorbidities unrelated to PTSD, current substance use disorders, or contraindications for MRI scans.</p>
<p>Participants underwent fMRI while completing a monetary incentive delay task. This task is commonly used to assess reward system activation, as it separates the anticipation of a reward from the receipt of the reward. During the task, participants viewed visual cues signaling whether they could win money or not. They were then required to press a button quickly in response to a target, with feedback indicating whether they had succeeded in earning the reward.</p>
<p>The study focused on two key brain regions: the ventral striatum, which is involved in reward anticipation, and the orbitofrontal cortex, which processes reward outcomes. Psychological resilience was measured using the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, while PTSD severity was assessed with the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale. Metabolic syndrome was diagnosed based on established clinical criteria, including elevated blood pressure, abnormal cholesterol or triglyceride levels, elevated blood sugar, and increased waist circumference.</p>
<p>The researchers observed distinct patterns of reward system activation in individuals with PTSD, influenced by the severity of depressive symptoms. Among PTSD participants with lower depression severity, activation in the ventral striatum during reward anticipation was reduced, while activation in the orbitofrontal cortex during reward outcomes was heightened.</p>
<p>Conversely, PTSD participants with significant depressive symptoms exhibited the opposite pattern: heightened ventral striatum activation during anticipation and diminished orbitofrontal cortex activation during reward outcomes. These findings suggest that depressive symptoms shape how PTSD affects reward system function.</p>
<p>Psychological resilience also played a significant role in modulating reward responses. Participants with higher resilience showed less activation in the ventral striatum during reward anticipation but greater activation in the orbitofrontal cortex during reward outcomes.</p>
<p>This pattern implies that resilient individuals may experience less anticipation for rewards but greater enjoyment upon receiving them. Notably, these resilience-related effects were most pronounced in participants with PTSD, highlighting its potential as a protective factor in trauma-exposed populations.</p>
<p>Trauma exposure influenced reward system function as well. Individuals with greater childhood trauma showed heightened orbitofrontal cortex activation during reward outcomes, particularly among those with PTSD. Meanwhile, participants with fewer types of lifetime trauma exhibited stronger reward responses overall, indicating that cumulative trauma exposure may diminish the brain’s ability to process rewards effectively.</p>
<p>“Our study demonstrated that reward function in the ventral striatum and orbitofrontal cortex differed between cases with PTSD and trauma-exposed controls, but only when we accounted for depression severity in our models,” van den Heuvel said told PsyPost. “We also found that PTSD cases with depression showed opposite effects to PTSD cases without depression. Depression is highly comorbid with PTSD and our results suggest that reward function may be altered in different ways in those with and without comorbid depression.”</p>
<p>“In our sample, PTSD cases with depression tended to demonstrate a pattern suggestive of greater anticipation of monetary reward but decreased pleasure on receipt of reward, with those without depression showing the opposite effects. We also found that those with higher psychological resilience had a pattern suggesting lower anticipation of a monetary reward and greater pleasure on receipt of the reward. This is in alignment with an observed tendency to experience greater satisfaction when least expecting a reward.</p>
<p>“The results pertaining to psychological resilience were more prominent in the PTSD cases than trauma-exposed controls, suggesting that in PTSD cases psychological resilience may protect against comorbid depression and that these effects may at least be partially mediated through reward circuitry.”</p>
<p>Regarding metabolic syndrome, the study found no significant differences in reward system activation between participants with and without the condition. However, exploratory analyses hinted at subtle effects when examining individual components of metabolic syndrome, such as obesity and elevated triglycerides. For instance, participants with higher triglyceride levels showed reduced ventral striatum activation during reward anticipation, suggesting potential links between metabolic health and reward processing.</p>
<p>“Our sample size may have been underpowered” to detect statistically significant effects,” van den Heuvel said. It is also possible that “the ways in which reward function is altered in relation to metabolic syndrome may be more complex” than previously thought.</p>
<p>In addition, the sample was limited to individuals of mixed ancestry in South Africa, which may affect the generalizability of the findings.</p>
<p>“The context of our study is important to take into consideration,” van den Heuvel noted. “Our study was conducted in South Africa in a sample who generally experienced significant socio-economic challenges and high rates of trauma exposure. The setting of the study could influence the study outcomes, with results differing from those demonstrated in other environments. This highlights the importance of greater diversity in geographical, environmental, and cultural representation in neuroscience research.”</p>
<p>Future research could explore how interventions aimed at enhancing resilience or addressing reward dysfunction might improve outcomes in PTSD. For instance, therapies like behavioral activation or mindfulness-based practices that boost positive affect and reward sensitivity could help mitigate the negative impact of trauma and depression.</p>
<p>“Our research emphasizes the role of positive valence systems in the expression and comorbidity of PTSD,” van den Heuvel said. “Most interventions targeting PTSD aim to decrease negative affect and our results suggest that interventions should be developed and tested that focus on enhancing reward function and positive affect in PTSD. These interventions may be particularly useful in addressing depression comorbidity in PTSD. We hope that this research can be utilized toward broadening the treatment options available in PTSD and comorbid conditions and improving patient outcomes.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pscychresns.2024.111918" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reward functioning in posttraumatic stress disorder, metabolic syndrome, and psychological resilience</a>,” was authored by Leigh Luella van den Heuvel, Laila Asmal, Stefan du Plessis, Chanellé Juanita Hendrikse, and Soraya Seedat.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/news-finds-me-study-identifies-a-widespread-phenomenon-linked-to-fake-news-susceptibility/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">News finds me: Study identifies a widespread phenomenon linked to fake news susceptibility</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jan 24th 2025, 14:00</div>
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<p><p>A recent study conducted by researchers from Fudan University and Syracuse University, published in <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0747563224002991"><em>Computers in Human Behavior</em></a>, sheds light on a troubling trend in today’s digital media landscape. The study explores how the “News-Finds-Me” perception—a belief that important news will naturally reach individuals through social media without active effort—contributes to overconfidence in identifying fake news. This mindset not only heightens susceptibility to misinformation but also encourages the sharing of false stories.</p>
<p>Social media has revolutionized how people consume and share information, but it has also become a fertile ground for misinformation. Unlike traditional news sources, social media platforms often prioritize engagement over accuracy, using algorithms to amplify content that garners likes, shares, or comments. This system can lead to the viral spread of misinformation, as false or misleading information is often designed to be emotionally provocative and easily digestible.</p>
<p>Many users adopt a “News-Finds-Me” mentality, believing they can remain informed without actively seeking out verified information. Instead, they rely on algorithms and social media peers to deliver important updates. This passive approach to news consumption creates an illusion of knowledge, fostering overconfidence in one’s ability to discern truth from falsehood. Compounding the issue, this mindset often leads to disengagement from traditional news outlets, which typically adhere to fact-checking and editorial standards.</p>
<p>The researchers conducted this study to better understand how these patterns of news consumption contribute to susceptibility to misinformation and its subsequent spread. By focusing on the “News-Finds-Me” perception and its link to Third-Person Perception—a cognitive bias where individuals believe they are less influenced by misinformation than others—the study aimed to uncover mechanisms that explain why some people are more prone to believing and sharing fake news.</p>
<p>To examine this, the researchers conducted an online survey of 1,014 adults across the United States. Conducted between late February and mid-March 2023, the survey was designed to be nationally representative, balancing factors such as age, gender, and ethnicity.</p>
<p>To measure the “News-Finds-Me” perception, participants responded to statements like, “I rely on my friends to tell me what’s important when news happens” and “I don’t have to actively seek news because it will find me.” These responses captured the extent to which participants passively consumed news through algorithms and peers rather than actively seeking verified information.</p>
<p>To measure Third-Person Perception, participants rated their own and others’ susceptibility to fake news and were asked to evaluate a series of headlines, including both verified news and widely debunked fake news. By comparing participants’ self-assessments with their actual ability to distinguish fake from real news, the study captured the extent of their overconfidence in avoiding misinformation.</p>
<p>The survey also assessed participants’ intent to share fake news by asking whether they would share certain headlines on social media. The fake news headlines included a mix of politically conservative and liberal content to control for partisan biases.</p>
<p>The researchers found that the “News-Finds-Me” perception was widespread. Over half of the participants (55.2%) endorsed this mindset. This passive approach to news consumption was more common among younger users and those who used social media extensively.</p>
<p>Participants who relied on the News-Finds-Me mindset were more likely to find fake news headlines credible. This was especially concerning because vulnerability to fake news was strongly associated with an increased likelihood of sharing misinformation.</p>
<p>The researchers also found strong evidence of Third-Person Perception bias among participants. Many believed they were more adept at recognizing fake news than others, yet nearly 40% of those who expressed such confidence were less capable than average at distinguishing fake from real news.</p>
<p>Importantly, the study identified a significant relationship between the “News-Finds-Me” perception and Third-Person Perception, demonstrating that these two psychological factors reinforce each other in ways that heighten vulnerability to misinformation. Individuals with a strong “News-Finds-Me” mindset were more likely to exhibit Third-Person Perception.</p>
<p>One way the “News-Finds-Me” perception might contribute to Third-Person Perception is by fostering an illusion of knowledgeability. Individuals who passively consume news through social media may feel well-informed despite lacking a comprehensive understanding of current events. This false sense of knowledge leads them to overestimate their ability to resist fake news.</p>
<p>Another potential factor linking the two perceptions is the role of social media algorithms and peer networks. Those with a “News-Finds-Me” mindset tend to rely on like-minded peers and personalized algorithms to curate their news feeds. This creates echo chambers that reinforce their existing beliefs and make them feel insulated from misinformation. However, this reliance on limited and potentially biased sources can amplify overconfidence.</p>
<p>The study, like all research, has some caveats. Notably, its cross-sectional design prevents the establishment of causality. For example, it remains unclear whether the News-Finds-Me perception leads to overconfidence or whether overconfidence fosters this passive mindset. Longitudinal studies are needed to clarify these dynamics.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2024.108431">From news disengagement to fake news engagement: Examining the role of news-finds-me perceptions in vulnerability to fake news through third-person perception</a>,” was authored by Yu Tian and Lars Willnat.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/harsh-parenting-linked-to-poorer-emotional-and-social-outcomes-in-children/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Harsh parenting linked to poorer emotional and social outcomes in children</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jan 24th 2025, 12:00</div>
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<p><p>New research has found that children whose parents were moderately or very harsh tended to exhibit worse emotion regulation, lower self-esteem, and more peer relationship problems. They also scored lower on prosocial behavior scales. The paper was published in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2024.08.112"><em>Journal of Affective Disorders</em></a>.</p>
<p>Harsh parenting is a parenting style characterized by the frequent use of physical punishment, verbal aggression, criticism, and an overall lack of warmth or support from a parent toward a child. Harsh parents often yell at their children, spank them, shame them, and dismiss their emotional needs. Estimates suggest that around 50% of children worldwide are subjected to harsh parenting.</p>
<p>Harsh parenting can negatively affect a child’s emotional and psychological development, leading to issues such as anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem. It may also impair the child’s ability to develop healthy relationships and self-regulation skills later in life. Long-term exposure to harsh parenting has been linked to increased stress levels, behavioral problems, and poorer academic performance in children.</p>
<p>Study author Mariana Otero Xavier and her colleagues sought to explore the influence of harsh parenting during childhood and adolescence on socioemotional competencies, including emotion regulation, self-esteem, prosocial behavior, and peer relationship problems at the age of 18. They analyzed data from the longitudinal 2004 Pelotas (Brazil) Birth Cohort study.</p>
<p>The 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort is a prospective, population-based study of all live births from January 1 to December 31, 2004, in the city of Pelotas, Brazil. The study included 4,231 newborns (99.2% of total births that year). The goal of the study was to explore how early-life exposures affect health outcomes and assess disparities in health conditions related to social inequalities. Mothers participating in the study first completed questionnaires after delivering their baby and then on nine other occasions until their child was 18 years old. At 18, children also completed a set of assessments.</p>
<p>From this dataset, the authors of this analysis used data on parenting harshness derived from responses to the Conflict Tactics Scale Parent-to-Child version, completed by parents or caregivers, mostly biological mothers. Data on children’s prosocial behavior and peer relationship problems were obtained from the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, also completed by caregivers. Additionally, data were drawn from the participating children’s (now 18-year-old young adults) responses to assessments of emotion regulation (the Emotional Regulation Index for Children and Adolescents) and self-esteem (the self-report Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale). All the necessary data were available from 3,489 participants.</p>
<p>The results showed that 50% of children had parents who were not harsh (“low harsh parenting”), 45% had parents who were moderately harsh, and 5% had parents who were very harsh (“high harsh parenting”). Children of moderately and very harsh parents tended to have lower scores in emotion regulation, self-esteem, and prosocial behavior scales. They also had higher scores on peer relationship problems.</p>
<p>“We identified a small but important group of children experiencing chronic high harsh parenting and, for this group, socioemotional competences were particularly compromised. Our study also showed that adolescents from not only high harsh parenting but also on moderate harsh parenting trajectories presented more socioemotional difficulties than those on a low harsh parenting trajectory,” the study authors concluded.</p>
<p>“Given the potential long-term impacts of harsh parenting on offspring’s competences, early identification, appropriate intervention, and follow-up must be a key priority.”</p>
<p>The study sheds light on the long-term effects of harsh parenting. However, it should be noted that all the study data came from self-reports, leaving room for reporting bias to have influenced the results. At least part of the results might be due to harsh parents giving harsher evaluations of their children due to their critical and punitive mindset. They may have focused on their child’s perceived shortcomings rather than strengths, exaggerating negative behaviors or underestimating positive traits. Children subjected to harsh parenting might have shown a similar tendency in their responses.</p>
<p>The paper, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2024.08.112">Harsh parenting trajectories from childhood through adolescence and socioemotional competences at age 18: 2004 Pelotas Birth Cohort Study,</a>” was authored by Mariana Otero Xavier, Luciana Tovo-Rodrigues, Ina S. Santos, Joseph Murray, Jessica Mayumi Maruyama, and Alicia Matijasevich.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/alcohols-impact-on-pain-and-aggression-new-research-uncovers-a-critical-link/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Alcohol’s impact on pain and aggression: New research uncovers a critical link</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jan 24th 2025, 10:00</div>
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<p><p>A recent study sheds light on the connection between alcohol consumption, pain tolerance, and aggression, suggesting that alcohol’s ability to numb physical pain may play a significant role in why intoxicated individuals are more prone to aggressive behavior. Recently in the <em><a href="https://www.jsad.com/doi/abs/10.15288/jsad.24-00144" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs</a></em>, the findings indicate that the less pain participants experienced after drinking alcohol, the more likely they were to inflict pain on others.</p>
<p>Prior research has consistently demonstrated that alcohol increases the likelihood of aggressive behavior, but the exact reasons for this effect remain elusive. Researchers Brad Bushman and his colleagues proposed that alcohol’s pain-numbing properties could diminish empathy, making individuals less sensitive to the suffering of others. This hypothesis aligns with the idea that feeling one’s own pain is essential to understanding and responding to others’ discomfort.</p>
<p>“For over 30 years I have studied risk factors for aggression and violence. Alcohol is an important risk factor,” said Bushman, a professor of communication at The Ohio State University.</p>
<p>To test their hypothesis, the researchers conducted two experiments with a total of 870 participants, all healthy social drinkers aged 21 to 35. Participants were recruited through advertisements and compensated for their time. Individuals with serious mental illnesses, alcohol or drug dependencies, or other disqualifying conditions were excluded to ensure the sample represented typical social drinkers.</p>
<p>Each participant was randomly assigned to consume either an alcoholic or placebo beverage. Men in the alcohol group received a dose of alcohol mixed with orange juice equivalent to 1 gram of alcohol per kilogram of body weight, while women received a slightly lower dose to account for physiological differences. Placebo drinks contained only a minimal amount of alcohol to simulate the sensory experience without causing intoxication.</p>
<p>Once the beverages were consumed, participants underwent a pain threshold test. This involved receiving brief electric shocks that gradually increased in intensity until the participant indicated the sensation had become painful. For those in the alcohol group, the test began 15 minutes after drinking to allow time for the alcohol to take effect, while the placebo group completed the test shortly after finishing their beverages.</p>
<p>Participants then engaged in a competitive reaction-time task, a well-established method for measuring aggression in laboratory settings. In this task, participants competed against a supposed opponent, with the winner able to administer an electric shock to the loser. They could control the shock’s intensity and duration, with higher levels corresponding to the participant’s pain threshold. Unbeknownst to them, the “opponent” was an accomplice who deliberately escalated the shocks they appeared to administer, encouraging participants to retaliate.</p>
<p>The findings revealed a clear pattern. Participants who consumed alcohol had a higher pain threshold than those in the placebo group, consistent with the known analgesic effects of alcohol. More importantly, this reduced sensitivity to pain was linked to increased aggression during the competitive task. Participants in the alcohol group administered higher-intensity shocks for longer durations compared to their placebo counterparts, and their willingness to inflict pain correlated with their own diminished ability to feel it. These results were replicated across both experiments.</p>
<p>“It is already well-known that alcohol increases aggression and that alcohol numbs pain,” Bushman told PsyPost. “This is the first study to link those two well-known findings. One reason alcohol increases aggression is because it increases people’s pain threshold.”</p>
<p>“I was surprised by how consistent the findings were. Scientists like to replicate their studies to make sure they are reliable. We found almost identical results in two very large studies.”</p>
<p>But there are still some caveats to consider. For instance, the findings only partially explained the relationship between alcohol and aggression, as pain tolerance accounted for roughly 20% of the observed effects. This suggests that other factors, such as impaired judgment or reduced empathy, also contribute to intoxicated aggression.</p>
<p>“There are many possible reasons alcohol increases aggression,” Bushman noted. “Increasing one’s pain threshold is not the only reason.”</p>
<p>Additionally, the study focused on moderate doses of alcohol and interactions with strangers, leaving questions about whether higher doses or conflicts involving close relationships might produce different outcomes.</p>
<p>Future research could address these limitations by exploring other potential mediators of alcohol-induced aggression, such as emotional regulation or social dynamics. Examining individual differences, including personality traits or histories of trauma, might also shed light on why some individuals are more prone to aggression when intoxicated.</p>
<p>Regarding the long-term goal of this line of research, Bushman said he hopes “to make the world a more peaceful place!”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.15288/jsad.24-00144" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Too Insensitive to Care: Alcohol Increases Human Aggression by Increasing Pain Threshold</a>,” was authored by C. Nathan DeWall, Peter R. Giancola, and Brad J. Bushman.</p></p>
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<p><strong>Forwarded by:<br />
Michael Reeder LCPC<br />
Baltimore, MD</strong></p>
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