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<td><span style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:20px;font-weight:bold;">PsyPost – Psychology News</span></td>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/seeing-struggle-as-growth-linked-to-higher-self-esteem-and-life-satisfaction/" 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;">Seeing struggle as growth linked to higher self-esteem and life satisfaction</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jun 13th 2025, 10:00</div>
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<p><p>Believing that daily hardships build character might help to boost well-being and motivation, according to a new study published in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/15298868.2025.2487537"><em>Self & Identity</em></a>.</p>
<p>What happens when people believe that life’s struggles are not only unavoidable but also transformative? The answer lies in a mindset called “difficulty-as-improvement”—the belief that hardships build character, purify one’s spirit, or lead to personal growth.</p>
<p>Existing frameworks like identity-based motivation theory suggest that how people interpret difficulty can shape their self-perception and behavioral choices, influencing whether they persist through challenges or give up. Building on earlier work demonstrating the construct’s validity across cultures and religious versus secular framings, Gülnaz Kiper and colleagues conducted four daily diary studies to test the dynamic nature of this mindset and its predictive power in real-world contexts.</p>
<p>The research involved a total of 382 university students. Each participant completed a nightly online survey sent at 9:00 P.M., intended to be filled out just before bedtime. These surveys measured participants’ daily endorsement of the “difficulty-as-improvement” belief—capturing whether they felt that the day’s struggles contributed to their personal growth—and tracked multiple aspects of daily well-being, including life satisfaction, self-esteem, coherence (the sense that life makes sense), and meaning.</p>
<p>Participants also reported the extent to which they engaged in effortful, goal-oriented behaviors and whether they experienced meaningful successes each day. Depending on the study, these beliefs were assessed using either a secular framing (e.g., “struggles make you stronger”) or a religious framing (e.g., “struggles purify the soul”).</p>
<p>Trait-level measures of difficulty-as-improvement were administered either before or after the diary period, using the secular or religious version depending on the study. The researchers also included trait-level assessments of participants’ overall well-being, enabling them to examine both stable individual differences and day-to-day fluctuations. Participant samples were ethnically diverse and primarily female. Across all four studies, participants completed over 4,600 daily entries, with most individuals submitting 12 or more reports. Entries that were duplicated, submitted too late, or failed attention checks were excluded from the analyses.</p>
<p>The findings showed robust and consistent associations between endorsing difficulty-as-improvement beliefs and various indicators of well-being and motivated action. Individuals who scored higher on the trait version of the scale—whether religious or secular—tended to report greater life satisfaction, a stronger sense of meaning, more coherent life narratives, and higher self-esteem.</p>
<p>These participants were also more likely to report engaging in effortful daily strategies and experiencing successes in identity-relevant areas such as school, health, or social life. This pattern was consistent across all four studies and supported the idea that people who view hardships as transformative are more motivated and psychologically resilient.</p>
<p>On days when participants believed more strongly than usual that their struggles were meaningful or character-building, they also reported enhanced daily well-being and engagement. These day-to-day fluctuations predicted increases in meaning, coherence, self-esteem, and satisfaction—regardless of whether the day itself was objectively positive or negative.</p>
<p>Moreover, participants were more likely to engage in demanding activities and report successful outcomes on days when they held stronger difficulty-as-improvement beliefs. There was also some evidence of a carryover effect: higher endorsement of this belief on one day modestly predicted greater meaning and self-esteem the following day, though these effects were smaller and less consistent than the same-day relationships.</p>
<p>Overall, the results suggest that this mindset not only reflects a stable orientation but also varies meaningfully from day to day in ways that shape people’s lived experience.</p>
<p>The authors note that while the diary method allows for rich, ecologically valid data, it does not establish causality.</p>
<p>The research, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/15298868.2025.2487537">Difficulty-as-improvement in daily life: believing that difficulties are character-building supports well-being, effortful engagement, and experiencing successes</a>,” was authored by Gülnaz Kiper, David Newman, and Daphna Oyserman.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/new-research-links-certain-types-of-narcissism-to-anti-immigrant-attitudes/" 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;">New research links certain types of narcissism to anti-immigrant attitudes</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jun 13th 2025, 08:00</div>
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<p><p>People with particular narcissistic traits may be more likely to hold negative attitudes toward immigrants, according to new research published in the journal <em><a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/15/4/451" target="_blank">Behavioral Sciences</a></em>. The study found that individuals high in extraverted or antagonistic narcissism were more likely to endorse anti-immigrant beliefs, and this connection was driven by their tendency to view the world as a highly competitive place and to support authoritarian or dominance-oriented ideologies. On the other hand, individuals high in neurotic narcissism tended to show weaker or even negative associations with anti-immigrant attitudes.</p>
<p>Narcissism is a personality trait that involves a heightened sense of self-importance and a focus on status, admiration, and superiority. While narcissism is often discussed in broad terms, researchers have increasingly recognized that it includes multiple dimensions. The current study focused on three types: extraverted narcissism, which is characterized by confidence and a desire for attention; antagonistic narcissism, which includes hostility and a lack of empathy; and neurotic narcissism, which reflects insecurity and sensitivity to criticism. These subtypes differ in how individuals relate to others and perceive social situations, including intergroup dynamics.</p>
<p>“We were interested in understanding what role personality traits—particularly narcissistic traits—might play in shaping people’s views about outgroup members such as immigrants,” said study author <a href="http://www.zeigler-hill.com/" target="_blank">Virgil Zeigler-Hill</a>, a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Psychology at Oakland University.</p>
<p>“There has been growing evidence that narcissism can influence how people perceive and treat others, especially those they see as outsiders. I was especially curious about whether this connection might be explained by how narcissistic individuals view the social world—do they see it as a place of constant competition where others are either allies or threats? And if so, might that competitive mindset help explain why some individuals with narcissistic traits develop negative attitudes toward immigrants?”</p>
<p>The researchers conducted three separate studies to examine whether these different facets of narcissism were associated with anti-immigrant attitudes and whether this relationship could be explained by broader social beliefs and ideological views. Specifically, they tested whether individuals high in narcissism were more likely to see the social world as a competitive “jungle” and to endorse authoritarianism or social dominance as a way of organizing society. In turn, these beliefs were expected to predict negative attitudes toward immigrants.</p>
<p>The first study included 366 undergraduate students from a university in the United States. Participants completed a series of questionnaires measuring narcissistic traits, their beliefs about the social world, their ideological attitudes, and their views toward immigrants. </p>
<p>Measures included validated tools such as the Five-Factor Narcissism Inventory, scales assessing dangerous and competitive worldviews, and instruments measuring Right-Wing Authoritarianism and Social Dominance Orientation. Anti-immigrant attitudes were measured using a scale that asked participants how willing they would be to support persecution of immigrant groups under hypothetical government orders. To ensure data quality, the researchers excluded participants who provided inattentive or inconsistent responses. </p>
<p>The second study replicated this design in a more diverse sample of 904 adults from the United States, recruited through an online platform. The third study used a similar approach in a sample of 754 adults from Israel. This cross-cultural extension allowed the researchers to test whether the patterns observed in the United States would also appear in a different national context.</p>
<p>Across all three studies, a consistent pattern emerged. Antagonistic narcissism was strongly associated with anti-immigrant attitudes. Individuals who scored high on this trait were more likely to see the world as a competitive place where people must fight for limited resources and status. This worldview was linked to higher endorsement of ideological beliefs that emphasize group hierarchy and authority, such as social dominance and authoritarianism. </p>
<p>These beliefs, in turn, were associated with greater support for punitive and exclusionary attitudes toward immigrants. In other words, individuals with antagonistic narcissism appeared to justify their negative views of immigrants by adopting a worldview that prioritizes dominance and control.</p>
<p>Extraverted narcissism also showed indirect associations with anti-immigrant attitudes, but the pattern was more complex. Although extraverted narcissism was not consistently linked to anti-immigrant views at a direct level, it was associated with competitive worldviews and ideological attitudes that predicted these views. </p>
<p>For example, individuals high in extraverted narcissism were more likely to endorse authoritarian or dominance-oriented beliefs, especially when they viewed the world as a competitive environment. These beliefs were, in turn, associated with more negative attitudes toward immigrants. This suggests that even if people high in extraverted narcissism do not explicitly express prejudice, the way they view the social world may contribute to attitudes that reinforce social exclusion.</p>
<p>“Even though extraverted narcissism didn’t always show a direct link to anti-immigrant attitudes, it still had a reliable indirect association through competitive worldviews and ideological beliefs,” Zeigler-Hill said. “That subtle pathway was unexpected and informative.”</p>
<p>In contrast, neurotic narcissism showed a different pattern. Across the studies, individuals high in neurotic narcissism tended to report fewer anti-immigrant attitudes, and this trait was negatively associated with authoritarianism and social dominance. While neurotic narcissism was occasionally linked to a belief that the world is a dangerous place, it was not associated with competitive worldviews or ideological attitudes that justify dominance over outgroups. </p>
<p>“One of the most surprising findings was the consistent negative association between neurotic narcissism and anti-immigrant attitudes,” Zeigler-Hill told PsyPost. “Although neurotic narcissism is often linked to insecurity and emotional distress, those traits didn’t seem to translate into greater prejudice—in fact, quite the opposite. That stood out because it challenges the idea that all narcissistic traits are inherently associated with hostility toward outgroups.”</p>
<p>These findings shed light on the complex psychological pathways that connect personality traits with social attitudes. The results suggest that not all forms of narcissism are associated with prejudice in the same way, highlighting the importance of considering the different dimensions of narcissism when studying its social consequences.</p>
<p>The researchers also emphasized the role of competitive worldviews in shaping these attitudes. Across all three studies, individuals who believed that society operates as a zero-sum game were more likely to endorse hierarchical ideologies and negative views toward immigrants. This suggests that encouraging people to see the social world as cooperative rather than competitive might be one way to reduce prejudice, especially among those with narcissistic traits.</p>
<p>“One key takeaway is that certain personality traits can shape not only how we view ourselves, but also how we understand the world around us—and ultimately, how we treat other people,” Zeigler-Hill told PsyPost. “For example, individuals with high levels of antagonistic or extraverted narcissism were more likely to view the world as a competitive place, which seemed to fuel authoritarian and dominance-oriented beliefs. These beliefs, in turn, were associated with stronger anti-immigrant attitudes. </p>
<p>“On the other hand, people with more neurotic narcissistic traits tended to be less prejudiced—perhaps because their anxiety and insecurity don’t lead them to see immigrants as threats. This highlights how complex and varied the pathways to prejudice can be.”</p>
<p>But the study, like all research, includes some caveats.</p>
<p>“One limitation is that the studies relied on cross-sectional data, which means we can’t definitively say these narcissistic personality traits <em>cause</em> people to adopt anti-immigrant attitudes—we can only say they’re associated,” Zeigler-Hill noted. “Also, most participants were from the United States or Israel, and largely identified as White, so the results might not generalize to other cultural or demographic groups. It’s possible that different cultural norms or life experiences could alter how narcissistic traits relate to social worldviews and prejudice toward immigrants. Future research with more diverse samples and longitudinal designs will be crucial to better understanding these patterns.”</p>
<p>Future research could also test whether changing people’s perceptions of the social world—such as by promoting cooperative values—could weaken the link between narcissism and prejudice. If interventions could reduce competitive thinking, it might lessen the appeal of authoritarian or dominance-based ideologies and, in turn, reduce anti-immigrant sentiment.</p>
<p>“A major goal moving forward is to explore how context shapes the relationship between narcissism and attitudes toward immigrants,” Zeigler-Hill explained. “For example, does the link become stronger during times of political instability or economic uncertainty, when people feel their status is under threat? I’m also interested in developing and testing interventions that might weaken the influence of competitive worldviews—for instance, by encouraging more cooperative ways of thinking about social life. Understanding the psychological roots of prejudice is important, but it’s equally important to find ways to address and reduce it.”</p>
<p>“This research underscores the value of looking beneath the surface of personality traits to understand the broader social beliefs and ideologies that link them to real-world outcomes. Narcissism isn’t a one-size-fits-all trait—its different forms can have very different implications for how people see the world and treat others. By identifying the specific pathways that connect personality to prejudice, we can develop more precise and effective strategies for promoting tolerance and reducing intergroup hostility.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15040451" target="_blank">Narcissism and Anti-Immigrant Attitudes: A Tale of Pride and Prejudice</a>,” was authored by by Virgil Zeigler-Hill, Angelina Toma, Emily Thomas, and Avi Besser.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/common-sleep-aid-blocks-brain-inflammation-and-tau-buildup-in-alzheimers-model/" 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;">Common sleep aid blocks brain inflammation and tau buildup in Alzheimer’s model</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jun 13th 2025, 06:00</div>
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<p><p>A recent study published in <em><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-025-01966-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nature Neuroscience</a></em> provides evidence that lemborexant, a medication used to treat insomnia, can reduce brain damage linked to Alzheimer’s disease in a mouse model. The drug helped restore more normal sleep patterns and limited the buildup of tau, a protein known to damage neurons. The findings raise the possibility that medications targeting the brain’s sleep-wake system could one day help prevent or slow the progression of neurodegenerative diseases.</p>
<p>Alzheimer’s disease is marked by memory loss, cognitive decline, and shrinking of brain tissue over time. One of its key features is the buildup of tau, a protein that normally helps stabilize the internal structure of brain cells. In Alzheimer’s, tau becomes chemically altered in a way that causes it to clump together and form tangles inside neurons. These tangles disrupt communication between brain cells and contribute to their eventual death.</p>
<p>Although sleep disturbances are common in Alzheimer’s, researchers are increasingly viewing poor sleep not just as a symptom of the disease, but as a possible contributing factor to its progression. A growing body of research has linked reduced time spent in restorative non-REM and REM sleep to a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative conditions. One of the mechanisms thought to underlie this relationship involves a system in the brain that helps regulate wakefulness, known as orexin signaling.</p>
<p>Orexin is a neuropeptide produced in a part of the brain called the hypothalamus. It plays a central role in keeping us awake and alert by stimulating activity in wake-promoting areas of the brain. In healthy individuals, orexin levels rise during the day to promote alertness and fall at night to allow sleep.</p>
<p>But in people with sleep disturbances—and in animal models of Alzheimer’s—orexin signaling can become overactive, contributing to fragmented sleep and increased time spent awake. Notably, orexin-producing neurons are among the earliest to show damage in Alzheimer’s and related tau disorders.</p>
<p>“Investigating the role of orexin signaling as a potential therapeutic treatment for pathological tau was the next step in a broader line of investigation the lab has been following for a while. We have known that sleep loss is a risk for Alzheimer’s for a long time,” explained study author <a href="https://sleepresearch.wustl.edu/people/samira-parhizkar-phd/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Samira Parhizkar</a>, an instructor of neurology at Washington University in St. Louis.</p>
<p>“Previously, we had looked into how knocking out orexin receptors affects amyloid pathology, one of the key hallmark proteins in Alzheimer’s disease, in mice. From that, we already knew orexin signaling was tied into sleep regulation and disease processes. But since tau pathology, another key characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease —rather than amyloid—is more tightly linked with actual brain atrophy and cognitive decline, we wanted to shift focus.”</p>
<p>“That’s where lemborexant came in,” Parhizkar explained. “It’s a clinically approved drug for treating insomnia that blocks orexin receptors – peptides in the brain that keep us awake and alert. We figured if it could normalize sleep, and hit that same orexin pathway, maybe it could also prevent some of the tau-related damage.</p>
<p>To explore this, the researchers used a genetically engineered mouse model that mimics key features of Alzheimer’s disease. These mice, called P301S/E4 mice, carry both a human tau mutation and the human APOE4 gene, which is the strongest known genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s. These mice begin to show significant tau buildup, brain inflammation, and brain shrinkage by about 9.5 months of age. Importantly, they also show disrupted sleep-wake cycles, making them a useful model for studying the connection between sleep and neurodegeneration.</p>
<p>“We investigated the effects of lemborexant, which is partially selective for orexin receptor 2 and primarily influences sleep/wake regulation, in the P301S/E4 mouse model of tau-mediated neurodegeneration,” Parhizkar said. “This model exhibits both sleep disturbances and brain atrophy with accumulating tau pathology.”</p>
<p>The researchers compared lemborexant’s effects to those of zolpidem, a commonly prescribed sleep aid that works through a different mechanism. Starting at 7.5 months of age, the mice were treated daily with one of the drugs or a control solution. Sleep was measured using both EEG recordings and motion sensors, and brain tissues were analyzed after two months of treatment.</p>
<p>Lemborexant increased the amount of non-REM sleep in male mice, especially when administered in the early evening (ZT13). This increase in deep sleep was associated with reduced levels of phosphorylated tau in the brain, especially in the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex—regions essential for memory. Immunohistochemistry revealed that mice treated with lemborexant had fewer tau tangles, and biochemical analyses showed a reduction in tau proteins phosphorylated at sites associated with disease progression. Zolpidem, while also promoting sleep, did not significantly reduce tau levels.</p>
<p>In addition to its effects on tau, lemborexant appeared to protect the brain’s structure and function. Treated mice showed less shrinkage in key brain regions and thicker layers of neurons in the dentate gyrus and piriform cortex. They also had lower levels of neurofilament light chain in the blood, a marker of neurodegeneration.</p>
<p>Importantly, lemborexant-treated mice retained more synaptic structures, as shown by markers of presynaptic and postsynaptic proteins. These mice also showed reduced microglial activation, suggesting less brain inflammation. The drug appeared to shift microglia—the brain’s immune cells—away from a reactive, potentially damaging state and toward a more homeostatic role.</p>
<p>“We initially hypothesized that enhancing non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, which is closely linked to deep sleep, could help mitigate the damage caused by abnormal tau in the brain,” Parhizkar told PsyPost. “What was surprising was that these effects were not seen with a standard sleep drug like zolpidem that increases NREM sleep similarly to lemborexant. This suggests that the benefit is not just about more sleep, but rather how that sleep is promoted.”</p>
<p>To understand how lemborexant might be reducing tau pathology, the researchers looked at downstream molecular pathways. They found that lemborexant reduced levels of cyclic AMP (cAMP) and the activity of protein kinase A (PKA), a key enzyme known to phosphorylate tau. This suggests that blocking orexin signaling can suppress a molecular cascade that leads to abnormal tau modification.</p>
<p>The researchers also tested this idea in a second experiment, using mice genetically engineered to lack orexin receptor 2. When these mice were injected with pathological tau extracted from human Alzheimer’s brains, they showed significantly less tau seeding and spreading compared to normal mice. This effect was similar to that seen in mice treated with lemborexant, reinforcing the idea that orexin receptor 2 plays a key role in tau pathology.</p>
<p>“Another surprising finding was that protein kinase A, an enzyme recognized for decades for its role in promoting formation of abnormal tau found in disease states, could be affected by changes in the orexin signaling pathway,” Parhizkar said. “By showing both pharmacologic (lemborexant) and genetic (orexin receptor 2 knockout) approaches having similar effects, the study makes a strong case that orexin signaling may be a modifiable driver of tau pathology, not just a bystander.”</p>
<p>Interestingly, the protective effects of lemborexant were mostly seen in male mice. Female mice did not show the same reductions in tau buildup or brain atrophy, despite experiencing similar improvements in sleep. This sex difference is consistent with other studies showing that male and female animals can respond differently to both Alzheimer’s pathology and pharmacological interventions. The reason for this difference remains unclear but may involve hormonal influences or differences in baseline tau accumulation.</p>
<p>Although lemborexant showed strong protective effects at the molecular and structural levels, its impact on behavior was limited. The only behavioral improvement observed was a modest enhancement in a spontaneous alternation task, which measures exploratory behavior. The lack of improvement in more memory-focused tasks, such as fear conditioning, may be due to the fact that lemborexant’s protective effects were stronger in the entorhinal cortex than in the hippocampus, which is more directly involved in those tasks.</p>
<p>“Our study is the first of its kind to demonstrate that a sleep aid can prevent atrophy in the brain typically observed with build-up of abnormal tau, suggesting that targeting sleep through dual orexin receptor antagonism may have broader therapeutic potential beyond symptom management with potential protective effects on the brain,” Parhizkar told PsyPost. “This opens the door to repurposing orexin antagonists—already approved for insomnia—as a potential disease-modifying therapy in Alzheimer’s and additional tau-related neurodegenerative diseases.”</p>
<p>Despite the promising results, there are some limitations to consider. The study was conducted in mice, so it is unclear whether the findings will generalize to humans. The treatment began before significant tau pathology had developed, meaning the drug’s effects on established disease remain unknown. The researchers also did not test other orexin receptor antagonists or explore the long-term effects of treatment beyond two months. Moreover, the reason why only male mice benefited remains to be explored.</p>
<p>“Significant questions remain before lemborexant could be recommended for preventing Alzheimer’s disease in humans,” Parhizkar noted. “For example, we need more evidence to determine whether long-term use is effective in preventing cognitive decline and which individuals may benefit from it. Although these findings are encouraging, it is still early days. We now have evidence that dual orexin antagonists can influence levels of both amyloid and tau, which could potentially delay the progression of Alzheimer’s disease if treatment begins before or during the early stages of mild cognitive decline.”</p>
<p>“Our team is planning additional studies to better understand the mechanisms behind lemborexant’s protective effects and to explore whether combining different therapeutic approaches might be more effective than current options, either alone or in combination with other available treatments.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-025-01966-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lemborexant ameliorates tau-mediated sleep loss and neurodegeneration in males in a mouse model of tauopathy</a>,” was authored by Samira Parhizkar, Xin Bao, Wei Chen, Nicholas Rensing, Yun Chen, Michal Kipnis, Sihui Song, Grace Gent, Eric Tycksen, Melissa Manis, Choonghee Lee, Javier Remolina Serrano, Megan E. Bosch, Emily Franke, Carla M. Yuede, Eric C. Landsness, Michael Wong, and David M. Holtzman.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/the-dark-psychology-of-how-people-get-drawn-into-cults/" 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 dark psychology of how people get drawn into cults</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jun 12th 2025, 22:00</div>
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<p><p>Like other quirky TV shows that explore coercively controlling groups, Sirens leans into the “wackiness” of cult life. Set on a remote island, an affluent community exists under extravagant rule of Michaela Kell aka Kiki (Julianne Moore). Her devoted followers – many of whom are employed by her – are committed to ensuring her every whim is met.</p>
<p>This carefully curated existence appears bizarre but flawless, until outsider Devon (Meghann Fahy) arrives looking for her sister Simone (Milly Alcock) and begins to illuminate the control and cult-like behaviour being used as tools of oppression.</p>
<p>It is easy to laugh along with Sirens, to get caught up in the eccentric characters and absurd rituals – from assistants being instructed to sext Kiki’s partner to rituals around perfuming her underwear drawer each morning. We shake our heads at the characters’ choices and reassure ourselves: “I would never fall for that, I would just leave.”</p>
<p>But the uncomfortable truth is it’s not that simple.</p>
<p>What portrayals of cult communities in sitcoms often miss, or gloss over, is the deeply manipulative psychology behind why leaving a cult is incredibly difficult.</p>
<p>Research into cult experiences has shown, cults do not just trap people physically. They entrap them <a href="https://www.simonandschuster.co.uk/books/The-Cult-of-Trump/Steven-Hassan/9781982127343">mentally</a> and <a href="https://archive.org/details/boundedchoicetru0000lali_c9a5">emotionally</a> too.</p>
<p>I have seen this in my own research into how to help children and their families resist exploitative and coercively controlling individuals and groups. We do see such entrapment in Sirens but it is often obscured by the wackiness of Michaela’s cult-ish community.</p>
<h2>Isolation and love-bombing</h2>
<p>In the real world, entrapment starts with <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Terror-Love-and-Brainwashing-Attachment-in-Cults-and-Totalitarian-Systems/Stein/p/book/9780367467715?srsltid=AfmBOooVf3IcNOVEgCFEakMEkrIA0D7EfUqxMsVVu-heSXs5V7qi6Yir">isolation</a>. New recruits are gradually cut off from their support networks, separated from their friends and family.</p>
<p>We see this in Sirens between Simone, who is Kiki’s assistant, and her outsider sister Devon. In one episode, for instance, Simone makes it clear to Devon that their matching sister tattoos were no longer valuable to her.</p>
<p>What was once a show of love has become viewed as “trashy” by Simone. This is a reflection of how Simone was being manipulated away from her previous values.</p>
<p>Rejecting the importance of familial relationships is a tool often used by cult leaders, enabling them to construct rifts between the person in the cult and their loved one on the outside.</p>
<p>In Sirens, we see a sisterly relationship become ruptured at the instruction of the powerful Kiki, who exploits the vulnerability of Simone to her own advantage.</p>
<p>Then comes the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/law/2023/apr/24/cps-includes-love-bombing-in-guidance-on-abusive-partners-prosecution">love-bombing</a> – a flood of praise, attention, and affection. It feels amazing, especially to someone who has been overlooked or undervalued.</p>
<p>When the person expresses surprise, the group responds with lines like, “that’s because we truly see you” or they belittle the person’s previous relationships.</p>
<p>The message from the group is clear: only we value you. Only we understand the real you.</p>
<h2>Fear and dependence</h2>
<p>But the honeymoon phase does not last. Soon, the fear of being cast out takes hold. The group convinces the person that they can only become their best self within the group, that they are fulfilling a higher destiny by being guided by the leader.</p>
<p>Leaders in cults use <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38971-9_1999-1">authoritarian tactics</a>, often portraying themselves as messianic figures with mystical powers. They demand unwavering loyalty and devotion. Questioning their authority is not tolerated. Any concern or question is reframed as a personal failing rather than as legitimate concern.</p>
<p>Punishment for dissent reinforces the leader’s dominance and sends a clear message to the rest of the group: Do not question. The leader and their doctrines are irrefutable.</p>
<p>This sort of control can lead people to do things they never imagined they would.<br>
Take the scene where Simone willingly chews gum that has just been in Kiki’s mouth. We might cringe at this, think it’s gross and abnormal, but it’s symbolic of something much bigger: it depicted total control being exerted over another.</p>
<p>Here we watch as Kiki insults Simone, telling her her breath stinks. Instead of being seen as cruelty it is perceived as care, and Kiki then giving Simone the gum she has just chewed to rectify the problem, is perceived as kindness. Simone is grateful and doesn’t question it at all.</p>
<p>Simone’s mind has been manipulated. Devon asks her: “Does Michaela have her talons so deep in your brain you cannot tell, you are in trouble?” Through using <a href="https://uncpress.org/book/9780807842539/thought-reform-and-the-psychology-of-totalism/">thought reform techniques</a>, cults hack minds. They override critical thinking and replace it with fear and dependency.</p>
<p>The constant sense of danger and fear keeps members in a state of acute stress, impairing their capacity to think clearly or make rational decisions. However, this constant fear is happening in a place they are repeatedly told and are convincing themselves is where they have never been happier.</p>
<p>The cognitive dissonance of this can contribute to the group’s ability to retain members even when exposing them to prolonged psychological and or physical abuse. Even after someone leaves, the effects of this trauma can linger for years – sometimes a lifetime.</p>
<p>Survivors often exit these groups with very <a href="https://thefamilysurvivaltrust.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Coercive-Control-in-Cultic-Groups-in-the-United-Kingdom-v2.pdf">few tangible resources</a>. Education and employability may have been restricted and housing and financial independence are often tightly controlled by the group.</p>
<p>Many survivors suffer from mental health issues and other stress induced physical ailments. As a result, survivors require various forms of support and different interventions over the cause of their recovery.</p>
<p>And yet, in pop culture, cults are often played for laughs. The trauma is reduced to punch lines. To be fair, shows like Sirens effectively capture the bizarre nature of cult life and hopefully reading this piece has helped you look beyond the laughs to see the dark nature of how these groups operate. For survivors, cult life is not eccentric or surreal – it is traumatic.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/257759/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/sirens-the-dark-psychology-of-how-people-really-get-drawn-into-cults-257759">original article</a>.</em></p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/a-neuroscientist-explains-why-its-impossible-for-ai-to-understand-language/" 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 neuroscientist explains why it’s impossible for AI to “understand” language</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jun 12th 2025, 20:00</div>
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<p><p>As meaning-makers, we use spoken or <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/09637214231173071">signed language</a> to understand our experiences in the world around us. The emergence of <a href="https://news.mit.edu/2023/explained-generative-ai-1109">generative artificial intelligence</a> such as <a href="https://openai.com/about/">ChatGPT</a> (using <a href="https://www.understandingai.org/p/large-language-models-explained-with">large language models</a>) call into question the very notion of how to define “meaning.”</p>
<p>One popular characterization of AI tools is that they “understand” what they are doing. Nobel laureate and AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton said: “What’s really surprised me is how good neural networks are at understanding natural language — <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-canadas-geoffrey-hinton-ai-pioneer-co-wins-nobel-prize-in-physics-with/">that happened much faster than I thought</a>…. And I’m still amazed that they really do understand what they’re saying.”</p>
<p>Hinton repeated this claim in an interview with <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/events/nobel-prize-dialogue/madrid-2024/panellists/adam-smith-2-3-2-3/">Adam Smith</a>, chief scientific officer for Nobel Prize Outreach. In it, Hinton stated that “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-icD_KmvnnM">neural nets are much better at processing language</a> than anything ever produced by the <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/analytic-synthetic/analyticity-chomsky.html">Chomskyan school of linguistics</a>.”</p>
<p>Chomskyan linguistics refers to American linguist Noam Chomsky’s theories about the nature of human language and its development. Chomsky proposes that there is a universal grammar innate in humans, which allows for the acquisition of any language from birth.</p>
<p>I’ve been researching how humans understand language since the 1990s, including <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S0093-934X(03)00109-3">more than 20 years</a> of studies on the neuroscience of language. This has included measuring brainwave activity <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandl.2024.105438">as people read or listen to sentences</a>. Given my experience, I have to respectfully disagree with the idea that AI can “understand” — despite the growing popularity of this belief.</p>
<h2>Generating text</h2>
<p>First, it’s unfortunate that most people conflate text on a screen with natural language. Written text is related to — but not the same thing as — language.</p>
<p>For example, the same language can be represented by vastly different visual symbols. Look at Hindi and Urdu, for instance. At conversational levels, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/09296170701794278">these are mutually intelligible</a> and therefore considered <a href="https://asianstudies.unc.edu/hindi-urdu/">the same language by linguists</a>. However, they use entirely different writing scripts. The same is true for <a href="https://slavic.fas.harvard.edu/bcs">Serbian and Croatian</a>. Written text is not the same thing as “language.”</p>
<p>Next let’s take a look at the claim that machine learning algorithms “understand” natural language. Linguistic communication mostly happens face-to-face, in a particular environmental context shared between the speaker and listener, alongside cues such as spoken tone and pitch, eye contact and facial and emotional expressions.</p>
<h2>The importance of context</h2>
<p>There is a lot more to understanding what a person is saying than merely being able to comprehend their words. Even babies, who are not experts in language yet, can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0001584">comprehend context cues</a>.</p>
<p>Take, for example, the simple sentence: “I’m pregnant,” and its interpretations in different contexts. If uttered by me, at my age, it’s likely my husband would drop dead with disbelief. Compare that level of understanding and response to a teenager telling her boyfriend about an unplanned pregnancy, or a wife telling her husband the news after years of fertility treatments.</p>
<p>In each case, the message recipient ascribes a different sort of meaning — and understanding — to the very same sentence.</p>
<p>In my own <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.566894">recent research</a>, I have shown that even <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brainres.2019.146309">an individual’s emotional state</a> can alter brainwave patterns when processing the meaning of a sentence. Our brains (and thus our thoughts and mental processes) are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2012.09.005">never without emotional context</a>, as other neuroscientists have also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3403">pointed out</a>.</p>
<p>So, while some computer code can respond to human language in the form of text, it does not come close to capturing what humans — and their brains — accomplish in their understanding.</p>
<p>It’s worth remembering that when workers in AI talk about neural networks, they mean computer algorithms, not the actual, biological <a href="https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2128-13.2013">brain networks</a> that characterize brain structure and function. Imagine constantly confusing the word “flight” (as in birds migrating) versus “flight” (as in airline routes) — this could lead to some serious misunderstandings!</p>
<p>Finally, let’s examine the claim about neural networks processing language better than theories produced by Chomskyan linguistics. This field assumes that all human languages can be understood via <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandl.2024.105438">grammatical systems (in addition to context)</a>, and that these systems are related to some universal grammar.</p>
<p><a href="https://linguistics.arizona.edu/person/noam-chomsky">Chomsky conducted research</a> on syntactic theory as a paper-and-pencil theoretician. He did not conduct experiments on the psychological or neural bases of language comprehension. His ideas in linguistics are absolutely silent on the mechanisms underlying sentence processing and understanding.</p>
<p>What the Chomskyan school of linguistics does do, however, is ask questions about how <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/little-scientists-babies-have-scientific-minds1/">human infants and toddlers can learn language with such ease</a>, barring any neurobiological deficits or physical trauma.</p>
<p>There are <a href="https://www.ethnologue.com/insights/how-many-languages/">at least 7,000 languages on the planet</a>, and no one gets to pick where they are born. That means the human brain must be ready to comprehend and learn the language of their community at birth.</p>
<p>From this fact about language development, Chomsky posited an (abstract) innate module for language learning — not processing. From a neurobiological standpoint, the brain has to be ready to understand language from birth.</p>
<p>While there are plenty of examples of <a href="https://symposium.cshlp.org/content/79/211.abstract">language specialization in infants</a>, the precise neural mechanisms are still unknown, but not unknowable. But objects of study become unknowable when scientific terms are misused or misapplied. And this is precisely the danger: conflating AI with human understanding can lead to dangerous consequences.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/246540/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-neuroscientist-explains-why-its-impossible-for-ai-to-understand-language-246540">original article</a>.</em></p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/parental-conflict-may-shape-how-mothers-discipline-their-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;">Parental conflict may shape how mothers discipline their children</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jun 12th 2025, 18:00</div>
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<p><p>A new study published in <em><a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2024-77163-001?doi=1" target="_blank">Developmental Psychology</a></em> sheds light on how conflict between parents may influence the way they discipline their young children. The findings suggest that for mothers, hostile interactions with their partner are associated with changes in how secure they feel in the relationship, which in turn relates to more harsh and less constructive approaches to discipline. These patterns were not found among fathers, pointing to possible differences in how men and women respond to relationship stress.</p>
<p>Past studies have consistently shown that when parents experience high levels of anger, criticism, and verbal aggression in their relationship, their caregiving can suffer. They may become more controlling, less consistent, or less responsive to their children’s needs. While this pattern is widely accepted, the psychological processes that drive it remain less clear. The current study tested one proposed explanation: that relationship stress undermines a parent’s sense of emotional support from their partner, which can ripple into how they interact with their children.</p>
<p>To explore this idea, the researchers drew on attachment theory, which focuses on how people manage emotional closeness and support in relationships. When someone feels secure with their romantic partner, they are more likely to cope with stress in healthy ways and to remain emotionally available for others, including their children. However, ongoing conflict may erode this sense of security, leading parents to either withdraw emotionally (attachment avoidance) or become overly worried and reactive (attachment anxiety). The study tested whether these changes in attachment security—both consciously reported and automatically processed—might explain the link between conflict and parenting behavior.</p>
<p>The research team recruited 235 families from a midsize city in the northeastern United States. Each family included a mother, a father, and a child between the ages of two and four. Participants were assessed annually over three years, using a combination of laboratory observations, surveys, and computerized tasks. During their first visit, couples engaged in a structured discussion about topics they frequently disagreed on. Trained observers rated the level of hostility in these interactions, including signs of verbal aggression, negativity, and emotional escalation.</p>
<p>Parents also completed a widely used questionnaire that measures conscious attachment patterns, including avoidance and anxiety in romantic relationships. In addition, they participated in a rapid word-sorting task designed to measure automatic, unconscious associations between their partner and words representing security or insecurity (such as “safe” or “hurtful”). This type of task taps into a level of relational belief that may not be fully available through self-reflection but still guides behavior. </p>
<p>Parenting practices were measured through vignettes describing common child misbehaviors, with parents indicating how likely they were to use power-assertive discipline (such as spanking), permissive discipline (such as ignoring the problem), or inductive discipline (such as explaining consequences).</p>
<p>The researchers then analyzed the data using structural equation modeling, which allowed them to test whether hostile conflict predicted changes in attachment, and whether those changes, in turn, predicted parenting behavior.</p>
<p>Among mothers, the results supported the proposed model. Higher levels of conflict between partners were linked to lower automatic attachment security one year later. This decline in attachment security was then related to an increase in power-assertive discipline the following year. In other words, when mothers experienced more hostility in their relationship, they became less likely to unconsciously associate their partner with support and comfort, and more likely to resort to harsh discipline strategies. </p>
<p>The study also found that mothers who developed greater attachment avoidance over time were less likely to use inductive discipline—an approach that involves calmly reasoning with the child and explaining why their behavior is inappropriate.</p>
<p>Interestingly, the effects of conflict on parenting through attachment did not hold for fathers. While conflict was related to increases in both attachment anxiety and avoidance for men, these changes were not significantly associated with how fathers disciplined their children. The researchers propose several possible explanations for this pattern. One is that mothers may be more sensitive to relationship stress, particularly in early childhood when they often take on more caregiving responsibilities. </p>
<p>Prior research suggests that women may react more strongly to signs of emotional disruption in close relationships, and that they often serve as the emotional regulators within the family. As a result, their caregiving behavior may be more vulnerable to changes in how they view their partner.</p>
<p>The distinction between automatic and self-reported measures of attachment also played a meaningful role. The automatic measure—based on rapid word-sorting—was a significant predictor of power-assertive discipline, while self-reported attachment avoidance predicted lower use of inductive discipline. This suggests that both conscious and unconscious representations of the romantic relationship may contribute to parenting behavior in different ways. The study highlights the value of including automatic assessments in psychological research, as they may uncover processes that are not captured by traditional questionnaires.</p>
<p>The researchers noted several limitations of the study. One is that discipline was assessed through self-report, which may not fully reflect actual behavior in everyday parenting situations. Future research could incorporate direct observations of parent-child interactions to build on these findings. </p>
<p>Another limitation concerns the automatic attachment measure, which showed low stability over time, especially for fathers. It remains unclear whether this instability reflects changes in the attachment system or measurement limitations. The sample also lacked diversity in terms of socioeconomic background and cultural representation, which may affect how broadly the findings can be applied.</p>
<p>Despite these limitations, the study offers new insight into how romantic relationships and parenting are connected over time. The findings suggest that for mothers of young children, the quality of the romantic relationship can shape their parenting, not only through conscious thoughts and emotions but also through subtle, automatic associations with their partner. When mothers experience conflict that erodes their sense of emotional security, they may respond by becoming more reactive and less likely to use constructive discipline strategies.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1037/dev0001753" target="_blank">Hostile Interparental Conflict and Parental Discipline: Romantic Attachment as a Spillover Mechanism</a>,” was authored by Cory R. Platts, Melissa L. Sturge-Apple, and Patrick T. Davies.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/moral-self-concept-in-kindergarten-predicts-better-social-skills-in-early-school-years-study-finds/" 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;">Moral self-concept in kindergarten predicts better social skills in early school years, study finds</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jun 12th 2025, 16:00</div>
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<p><p>Children’s views of themselves as moral individuals can boost their social and emotional skills — and vice versa — according to a longitudinal study published in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/02699931.2025.2491538"><em>Cognition & Emotion</em></a>.</p>
<p>Socioemotional competencies, such as emotion regulation, empathy, and prosocial behavior, are essential for children’s successful social functioning and psychological development. These skills are shaped by early experiences and social interactions, and they become especially important during key life transitions, like entering primary school.</p>
<p>A related but distinct construct, moral self-concept (MSC), refers to how children view themselves in terms of moral traits and actions. Past research shows that a strong MSC is associated with increased prosocial behavior and emotion regulation. However, less is known about how MSC and socioemotional competencies influence each other over time, particularly during the transition from kindergarten to primary school.</p>
<p>Tina Schiele and colleagues explored this connection by investigating the development and relationship of socioemotional competencies and MSC in early childhood. Theoretical accounts differ: one view posits that MSC emerges from observing one’s own prosocial behaviors (the self-perception approach), while another suggests that MSC, formed through early socialization, leads to later socioemotional competencies (the self-consistency approach). This study was designed to test both models using a longitudinal dataset.</p>
<p>The researchers tracked 500 children (~5-years-old) from southern Germany across two years, beginning in the penultimate year of kindergarten and ending at the close of Grade 1. These children were drawn from over 300 kindergartens and later enrolled in more than 200 primary schools, ensuring broad representativeness. Data collection occurred at four key points, capturing both children’s self-perceptions and teacher-rated behavior. The cohort was split into two groups: one began data collection about eight months earlier than the other, allowing for staggered tracking of development.</p>
<p>Children’s moral self-concept was assessed using picture-based self-report measures tailored to their age. Initially, children responded to images of peers engaging in moral or antisocial behaviors and indicated how much they resembled the child in the picture. As the children aged and entered primary school, this was replaced with a more detailed Likert-style scale allowing them to express moral tendencies (like sharing or helping) on a continuum.</p>
<p>Teachers, meanwhile, evaluated the children’s socioemotional competencies, such as emotion regulation, empathy, and prosocial behavior, through well-validated behavioral checklists appropriate to the child’s developmental stage. Instruments evolved over time, switching from observation tools commonly used in kindergarten to rating scales suited for school settings. To contextualize children’s social environment, the researchers also gathered data on family socioeconomic status, including income, parental education, and occupational prestige.</p>
<p>The researchers found that moral self-concept and socioemotional competencies demonstrated considerable stability across the two-year period, even as children transitioned from kindergarten into the more structured environment of primary school. Children who rated themselves as more moral at earlier time points tended to maintain that view over time, and the same was true for teacher ratings of socioemotional competencies. These trajectories did not appear to be random or situationally bound, but rather suggested relatively consistent developmental patterns.</p>
<p>Interestingly, while the two constructs were only weakly linked in kindergarten, a meaningful correlation emerged after children entered school. Specifically, moral self-concept and socioemotional competencies began to align more closely in Grade 1, suggesting that children’s self-perception as “good” or “moral” became increasingly reflected in their socially competent behaviors, or vice versa.</p>
<p>When examining predictive relationships, the findings supported a bidirectional model. A strong moral self-concept in the final year of kindergarten predicted greater socioemotional competence in the early months of Grade 1. In turn, children who displayed stronger socioemotional skills in Grade 1 were more likely to report a heightened moral self-concept by the end of that school year. This reciprocal pattern supports the idea that early moral identity and emotional-social abilities reinforce each other across time.</p>
<p>Girls consistently received higher socioemotional competence ratings from teachers and reported higher MSC at certain time points, though these differences were not uniform. Children from lower socioeconomic backgrounds occasionally reported higher moral self-concepts than their higher-socioeconomic peers, though they were rated less favorably on socioemotional competencies by teachers. These effects, however, were not consistently observed across all time points and should be interpreted cautiously.</p>
<p>Overall, the findings underscore a developmental synergy between children’s sense of themselves as moral beings and their social-emotional skill set, especially during the sensitive school transition period.</p>
<p>This research faced a high proportion of missing teacher data (around 46%), which may limit the precision of the findings despite the use of robust imputation techniques.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/02699931.2025.2491538">Good child, bad child: the development of and relations between children’s socioemotional competencies and moral self-concept from kindergarten to the end of Grade 1</a>” was authored by Tina Schiele, Anna Mues, María Valcárcel Jiménez, and Frank Niklas.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/changes-in-sleep-can-signal-hypomanic-episodes-days-before-they-begin-study-finds/" 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;">Changes in sleep can signal hypomanic episodes days before they begin, study finds</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jun 12th 2025, 14:00</div>
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<p><p>A new study published in the <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2025.01.026" target="_blank">Journal of Affective Disorders</a></em> has found that subtle fluctuations in sleep and activity levels may anticipate the onset of hypomanic episodes in people with bipolar disorder. By using wearable devices and self-report tools over the course of a year, researchers were able to detect early warning signs of mood changes up to three days before a full episode was reported.</p>
<p>Bipolar disorder is a psychiatric condition marked by shifts between periods of depression and periods of elevated or irritable mood, known as mania or hypomania. While depressive episodes often receive the most clinical attention, hypomanic episodes—periods of unusually high energy, reduced need for sleep, and impulsive behavior—can be disruptive and increase the risk of full-blown mania. Detecting these mood changes before they escalate could support early intervention strategies and improve outcomes.</p>
<p>The researchers conducted the study because past attempts to predict mood episodes in bipolar disorder have shown mixed results. Some studies have suggested that changes in sleep and activity precede mood shifts, while others have found inconsistent results when comparing clinician ratings to data from smartphones or wearable devices. A major obstacle has been the inability to track behavior frequently and precisely enough to identify early signs. This study sought to overcome that gap by using continuous monitoring and advanced analytic techniques.</p>
<p>The study followed 164 individuals diagnosed with bipolar I or bipolar II disorder, although only 50 experienced at least one hypomanic episode and were included in the final analysis. Participants were recruited from outpatient programs at two academic medical centers in Canada. All participants were adults diagnosed using standard clinical interviews and were free from active substance use disorders. After enrollment, participants were monitored for over a year, with some extending participation to two years.</p>
<p>Each participant wore an Oura ring—a commercial wearable device that continuously records physiological data, including movement and sleep. The device provided detailed, high-frequency information, capturing 5-minute intervals of energy expenditure and sleep stages. In addition to the passive data collection, participants completed weekly online self-reports using the Altman Self-Rating Mania Scale, which assesses five key symptoms of hypomania: elated mood, inflated self-confidence, reduced need for sleep, talkativeness, and heightened activity levels. Participants also completed the Patient Health Questionnaire to monitor depressive symptoms.</p>
<p>The researchers defined a hypomanic episode as any one-week period in which participants reported experiencing three or more hypomanic symptoms most days, based on a total scale score of 10 or more. Using these self-reports as a benchmark, the team then analyzed wearable data to see whether patterns in sleep and activity changed in the days leading up to an episode.</p>
<p>To do this, the researchers used a data analysis technique that breaks down complex time series into simpler components. By measuring how much these patterns fluctuated from day to day or within a single day, the team aimed to identify “spikes” in variability that might signal an impending mood shift. They defined a correct prediction as any significant change in sleep or activity that occurred within seven days before the onset of a hypomanic episode.</p>
<p>The analysis revealed that both sleep and activity levels began to show unusual variability a few days before participants reported symptoms of hypomania. On average, day-to-day changes in sleep were detected about three days before a reported episode, while changes in activity showed up about two and a half days in advance. Within-day fluctuations (such as 12-hour patterns) were particularly effective at identifying early shifts, outperforming weekly summaries or average values.</p>
<p>When comparing the effectiveness of different signals, 12-hour variability in sleep achieved a balanced accuracy of 87%, while activity data reached 89%. Sensitivity—the ability to correctly identify true positive cases—was above 90% in both cases, indicating that these methods detected many of the oncoming episodes. The results were even stronger when specific symptoms were analyzed. For instance, changes in sleep most accurately predicted the “decreased need for sleep” symptom, while changes in activity closely matched the “increased activity” item on the mania scale.</p>
<p>Interestingly, participants who experienced hypomanic episodes tended to be younger than those who did not, but there were no significant differences in gender, education, marital status, or baseline mood symptoms. The group was diverse in terms of gender identity and socioeconomic background, and most participants were receiving some form of psychiatric treatment during the study.</p>
<p>The researchers noted that variability—rather than average levels—was the most informative signal. This finding supports newer approaches to mental health that view mood as a dynamic system, where stability is maintained until disrupted by a loss of balance. In this model, rapid shifts between states, such as from stable mood to hypomania, may occur when a person’s usual regulatory mechanisms are no longer able to adapt. Detecting those disruptions in real time could be key to preventing more severe outcomes.</p>
<p>The study’s strengths include the use of continuous, high-resolution data from a wearable device, as well as a large number of data points over a long observation period. Unlike many earlier studies, this one did not rely solely on retrospective self-reports or clinician judgments, making the findings more reliable. The fact that the entire study was conducted remotely also highlights the feasibility of using wearable technology in real-world clinical settings.</p>
<p>However, the researchers acknowledged some limitations. The sample size, while robust for this type of intensive monitoring, was still relatively small compared to broader population studies. In addition, the study did not control for demographic factors like age or socioeconomic status, which could influence behavior. The team also noted that wearable devices can sometimes have missing or inconsistent data, which they addressed using advanced statistical techniques.</p>
<p>Future research could build on this study by including larger, more diverse samples and examining whether similar patterns hold for depressive episodes or mixed states. It may also be useful to explore how environmental factors, such as stress or social interactions, interact with biological signals to predict mood changes.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2025.01.026" target="_blank">Day-to-day variability in sleep and activity predict the onset of a hypomanic episode in patients with bipolar disorder</a>,” was authored by Abigail Ortiz, Ramzi Halabi, Martin Alda, Almendra Burgos, Alexandra DeShaw, Christina Gonzalez-Torres, Muhammad I. Husain, Claire O’Donovan, Mirkamal Tolend, Arend Hintze, and Benoit H. Mulsant.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/brain-stimulation-boosts-therapy-outcomes-for-ocd-in-clinical-trial/" 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;">Brain stimulation boosts therapy outcomes for OCD in clinical trial</a>
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<p><p>A new study published in <em><a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s44220-025-00410-w" target="_blank">Nature Mental Health</a></em> suggests that combining brain stimulation with a common psychological treatment may enhance outcomes for people with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Researchers found that patients who received transcranial direct current stimulation during exposure-based therapy showed greater reductions in OCD symptoms compared to those who received therapy alone. The findings also point to subtle changes in brain activity that could help explain individual differences in treatment response.</p>
<p>Obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD, is a mental health condition characterized by the presence of obsessions, compulsions, or both. Obsessions are unwanted, intrusive thoughts, images, or urges that cause significant distress or anxiety. These might include fears of contamination, fears of harming others, concerns about symmetry or order, or intrusive taboo thoughts. Compulsions are repetitive behaviors or mental acts that individuals feel driven to perform in response to an obsession, often in an attempt to reduce the distress or prevent a feared outcome. Common compulsions include excessive cleaning or handwashing, checking doors or appliances, counting, or repeating phrases silently.</p>
<p>OCD is more than a preference for cleanliness or organization—it can be deeply distressing and disruptive, interfering with daily life, work, and relationships. Symptoms often follow a cycle in which a distressing thought (obsession) triggers anxiety, prompting the person to engage in a ritual (compulsion) to try to neutralize the anxiety or prevent something bad from happening. While compulsive behaviors may provide temporary relief, the obsessions typically return, reinforcing the cycle.</p>
<p>The condition is estimated to affect around 1.3% of the global population over the course of a lifetime. It tends to develop in childhood or early adulthood and often persists without treatment. OCD is associated with high levels of distress and can severely impair quality of life.</p>
<p>Psychological treatment usually takes the form of exposure and response prevention (ERP), a type of cognitive behavioral therapy. ERP works by helping people gradually confront the thoughts, images, or situations that trigger their obsessions, without performing their usual compulsions. Over time, this process helps reduce anxiety and weakens the obsessive-compulsive cycle.</p>
<p>While ERP is widely considered one of the most effective treatments for OCD, its success is variable. Some people show marked improvement, but many continue to experience symptoms. To improve treatment outcomes, the research team explored the use of transcranial direct current stimulation, or tDCS. This technique delivers a weak electrical current to the brain through electrodes placed on the scalp. </p>
<p>Some evidence suggests that tDCS targeting the medial prefrontal cortex—a brain region involved in learning and unlearning fear—might enhance a process called inhibitory learning. This process is thought to underlie the success of exposure-based therapies by helping people learn that previously feared situations are no longer dangerous.</p>
<p>The researchers conducted a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial at the Shanghai Mental Health Center to test whether applying tDCS during exposure and response prevention therapy could improve its effectiveness. They focused specifically on individuals whose OCD symptoms centered around contamination fears and cleaning rituals, a common and well-defined subtype that allowed for more consistent exposure sessions.</p>
<p>The study enrolled 53 patients between the ages of 18 and 50 who met diagnostic criteria for OCD and had moderate to severe symptoms. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups: one received active tDCS during exposure therapy, while the other received a sham version that mimicked the sensation of stimulation without delivering current. Neither the patients nor the therapists knew which type of stimulation was being used. All participants completed ten therapy sessions over eight weeks.</p>
<p>During the treatment sessions, tDCS was applied for 20 minutes at the beginning of each exposure session using a configuration that targeted the medial prefrontal cortex. High-definition tDCS was used to deliver a consistent 1.5 milliamp current in the active group, while the sham group received a brief initial current to mimic the sensation but no sustained stimulation.</p>
<p>To assess treatment outcomes, the researchers used the Yale–Brown Obsessive–Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), a well-established measure of OCD severity. They recorded scores at baseline and after the first, fourth, and eighth treatment sessions. The primary outcome was the percentage reduction in Y-BOCS scores from baseline. Additional assessments included EEG recordings to measure brain activity and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to model how the electrical field from tDCS was distributed across each individual’s brain.</p>
<p>The results showed that both groups improved over time, but those receiving active tDCS during therapy had significantly greater symptom reduction after four and eight sessions. By the end of the treatment period, the active group showed an average symptom reduction of 38%, compared to 28% in the sham group. Moreover, 62% of patients in the active group met the study’s threshold for a treatment response—defined as a 35% or greater reduction in symptoms—compared to 30% in the sham group.</p>
<p>These differences suggest that the combination of brain stimulation and therapy may enhance the learning processes that help reduce OCD symptoms. Importantly, no moderate or severe side effects were reported in either group, and mild side effects were similar between groups, indicating that the combined approach appears to be safe.</p>
<p>To better understand why some individuals responded more strongly to treatment, the researchers analyzed brain activity using electroencephalography (EEG). Specifically, they focused on patterns known as EEG microstates—brief periods during which the brain’s electrical activity remains stable. These microstates are thought to reflect different functional networks in the brain.</p>
<p>After the first treatment session, the researchers found a small increase in one type of EEG microstate (MS-B) in the active tDCS group compared to the sham group. They also found a weak correlation between changes in another microstate (MS-A) and treatment response, suggesting that early changes in brain network activity may be related to symptom improvement, though the finding did not reach strong statistical significance.</p>
<p>The team also used MRI data to create personalized models of how the electrical current from tDCS spread through each participant’s brain. This modeling confirmed that current strength varied across individuals, largely due to differences in skull thickness and brain anatomy. However, the researchers did not find a consistent relationship between the modeled electric field strength and treatment response, which suggests that other factors may play a more important role in how tDCS affects the brain.</p>
<p>While the findings support the potential benefits of combining tDCS with exposure therapy, the study has some limitations. The sample included only patients with contamination-related OCD, so it is unclear whether the results apply to other symptom types. The EEG findings were exploratory and only marginally significant, and the study was not designed to determine exactly how tDCS changes brain activity during therapy. More research with larger and more diverse samples will be needed to confirm and extend these findings.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s44220-025-00410-w" target="_blank">Transcranial direct current stimulation enhances exposure–response prevention for contamination-related OCD: a randomized clinical trial</a>,” was authored by Jian Gao, Wenjun Jia, Puzhe Li, Hui zhao, Liangjun Lin, Meiling Chen, Rui Gao, Xitong Liu, Tianran Zhang, Wenqing Zhao, Lian Gu, Jiejing Yu, Mu-Ming Poo, Dan J. Stein, Jianfeng Luo, Jian Jiang, and Zhen Wang.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/men-more-likely-than-women-to-orgasm-from-anal-penetration-study-finds/" 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;">Men more likely than women to orgasm from anal penetration, study finds</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Jun 12th 2025, 12:00</div>
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<p><p>A new study published in the journal <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/sexmed/qfaf037" target="_blank">Sexual Medicine</a></em> offers a detailed look at how cisgender men and women experience receptive anal intercourse. Drawing on a large and diverse sample, the researchers identified areas of the rectum that are most frequently associated with pleasure and examined how different groups experience orgasm during anal sex. The findings show that the superficial anterior region of the rectum is commonly identified as pleasurable, and that men are more likely than women to report reaching orgasm from anal stimulation alone.</p>
<p>The researchers conducted the study to address a longstanding gap in sexual health research. While many studies have examined anal sex in terms of health risks such as HIV and sexually transmitted infections, fewer have focused on the positive aspects of anal sexual activity, such as physical pleasure, satisfaction, and orgasm. </p>
<p>Additionally, most existing studies have focused on heterosexual women or men who have sex with men, leaving out the experiences of heterosexual men, lesbian and bisexual women, and other groups. The aim of this study was to better understand how people from a range of backgrounds experience receptive anal intercourse and to help clinicians provide more comprehensive sexual health counseling.</p>
<p>The study was approved by the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Institutional Review Board and conducted using an online survey distributed through the Qualtrics platform. A total of 498 cisgender women and 466 cisgender men completed the questionnaire in June 2020. Participants were selected to match the demographic distribution of the United States adult population based on 2010 census data, and responses were weighted accordingly. Participants ranged in age from 18 to over 60 years old and identified across a spectrum of sexual orientations, including heterosexual, gay, bisexual, and asexual.</p>
<p>Respondents first answered demographic questions and were asked whether they had ever engaged in receptive anal intercourse. Those who responded yes were shown anatomical diagrams of the rectum divided into four zones: superficial anterior, superficial posterior, deep anterior, and deep posterior. They were asked to indicate which regions they found pleasurable during sex with a partner. Participants were also asked whether they had experienced orgasm from receptive anal intercourse, either on its own or with stimulation of other body parts.</p>
<p>Overall, about one-third of women and one-quarter of men reported having engaged in receptive anal intercourse. Women were significantly more likely than men to report this experience, particularly middle-aged women. Among men, older adults were the least likely to have engaged in receptive anal intercourse. Participants who identified as gay or bisexual were more likely to report having had receptive anal intercourse than heterosexual participants. Notably, bisexual men were especially likely to endorse anal pleasure across different regions of the rectum, while heterosexual men were the least likely to report finding any rectal zone pleasurable.</p>
<p>When asked to identify specific areas of pleasure within the rectum, respondents most often selected the superficial anterior region. This was true for both men and women. This region lies at the front of the rectum, adjacent to the prostate in men, and near other sensitive structures in women such as the internal legs of the clitoris and branches of the pudendal nerve. Both anatomical and neurological explanations may account for why this area is commonly associated with pleasurable sensations. In contrast, the deeper and more posterior regions of the rectum were less frequently endorsed as pleasurable.</p>
<p>In terms of orgasm experiences, men were significantly more likely than women to report reaching orgasm from receptive anal intercourse without any additional stimulation—39% of men compared to 19% of women. About half of respondents from each gender reported that they could achieve orgasm during receptive anal intercourse with co-stimulation elsewhere on the body. Women were twice as likely as men to report never having orgasmed from anal penetration, regardless of whether other stimulation was involved.</p>
<p>These gender differences may reflect both biological and social factors. The prostate has long been considered a potential source of orgasmic pleasure for people assigned male at birth, and its proximity to the anterior rectal wall may explain why many men in the study reported orgasms from receptive anal intercourse alone. Women’s experiences, by contrast, may depend more heavily on clitoral stimulation or other forms of co-stimulation, and cultural expectations or internalized stigma around anal sex may also play a role in shaping sexual response.</p>
<p>Sexual orientation also influenced experiences with receptive anal intercourse. Gay men and bisexual individuals were more likely to engage in the practice and more likely to report pleasure from various regions of the rectum. Heterosexual men, by contrast, were the least likely group to report engaging in receptive anal intercourse or finding it pleasurable. Previous surveys have found that many heterosexual men associate anal pleasure with homosexuality, which may prevent some from exploring or reporting their experiences honestly.</p>
<p>Age also played a role. Middle-aged women were the most likely group to report experience with receptive anal intercourse, while older men were the least likely. Younger adults of both genders were more likely to find one or more rectal zones pleasurable, suggesting that younger generations may be more open to anal play or more attuned to their own pleasure. Cultural shifts, better sex education, and increased representation of diverse sexual practices in media may all be contributing to this generational trend.</p>
<p>The study had several strengths, including its large and demographically representative sample, anonymous format, and detailed anatomical illustrations. It also addressed questions about sexual function and erogenous sensation that are often overlooked in research. However, the authors acknowledge some limitations. As a self-report survey, the study relied on participants’ memory and honesty. It did not gather information about the frequency or context of receptive anal intercourse or about the specific methods used, such as penetration with a penis, finger, or toy. </p>
<p>The study also excluded gender minorities due to low sample size, meaning that the findings may not apply to transgender or nonbinary individuals. Future research could expand on these findings by including more gender-diverse participants and exploring the social and emotional context of anal sexual experiences.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/sexmed/qfaf037" target="_blank">Anal sex practices and rectal erogenous zone maps among men and women of diverse sexual orientations: an anatomic-map based questionnaire study</a>,” was authored by Michael Zaliznyak, Alice B. Walton, Jenna Stelmar, Dylan Isaacson, Thomas W. Gaither, Gail Knudson, and Maurice M. Garcia.</p></p>
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<p><strong>Forwarded by:<br />
Michael Reeder LCPC<br />
Baltimore, MD</strong></p>
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