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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/psychopathy-is-associated-with-higher-openness-to-engaging-in-casual-sex-without-emotional-intimacy/" 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;">Psychopathy is associated with higher openness to engaging in casual sex without emotional intimacy</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Sep 29th 2025, 10:00</div>
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<p><p>A meta-analysis of studies investigating the links between sociosexual orientation and psychopathy found that individuals with higher levels of psychopathic traits tend to be more open to engaging in casual sex without closeness or emotional intimacy—that is, to adopting an unrestricted sociosexual orientation. The paper was published in <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2024.113021" target="_blank">Personality and Individual Differences</a></em>.</p>
<p>Sociosexual orientation describes individual differences in people’s willingness to engage in sexual activity outside of a committed relationship. It is typically measured along a continuum from restricted to unrestricted. People with a restricted sociosexual orientation prefer sex only within emotionally close, committed partnerships. In contrast, those with an unrestricted sociosexual orientation are comfortable with casual sex and do not require emotional closeness or commitment beforehand.</p>
<p>Differences in sociosexual orientation are linked to personality traits, cultural context, and evolutionary factors. For example, higher openness and extraversion are associated with more unrestricted sociosexuality. Restricted individuals tend to prioritize long-term mating and parental investment, while unrestricted individuals are more likely to pursue short-term mating opportunities.</p>
<p>Study author Kaitlyn P. White and her colleagues wanted to systematize existing findings about the links between sociosexual orientation and psychopathy. They also wanted to explore whether this link depends on a person’s sex, their age, the way psychopathy was assessed, or their status as a college student.</p>
<p>These authors conducted a meta-analysis of existing studies. They searched scientific databases like PsycINFO, OneSearch, and ProQuest for studies reporting the link between psychopathy (assessed using self-report measures) and sociosexual orientation. Studies were required to be in English or have an English translation available. The search returned 1,170 articles.</p>
<p>However, a detailed inspection of those articles revealed that only 37 were research studies containing all the elements the study authors were looking for. These research studies included a total of 48 independent samples with 15,471 participants. The number of participants in individual studies ranged from 46 to 1,474.</p>
<p>Results showed that in 41 of the 48 samples, psychopathy was significantly associated with an unrestricted sociosexual orientation. On average, this association was a medium-sized effect, which the study notes is considered relatively large in the context of personality research. This means that individuals with more pronounced psychopathic traits tended to have a more unrestricted sociosexual orientation. In other words, they were more open to engaging in casual sex without requiring closeness, commitment, or emotional intimacy.</p>
<p>Contrary to the researchers’ initial hypothesis, the strength of the association was not significantly different between men and women. However, the strength of the link did depend on the psychological scale used to assess psychopathy. When psychopathy was assessed using the Dirty Dozen inventory, the association was weaker, but it was more than twice as strong in studies that utilized the Self-Report Psychopathy Scale-II.</p>
<p>“This quantitative synthesis provides compelling evidence that people with higher levels of psychopathy are more likely to engage in short-term mating opportunities, such as casual sex and one-night stands,” the study authors concluded.</p>
<p>The study contributes to the scientific understanding of the behavioral tendencies of individuals with pronounced psychopathic traits. However, it should be noted that this meta-analysis only included studies published in English, which may limit the range of cultures represented.</p>
<p>The paper, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2024.113021">A meta-analysis of psychopathy and the sociosexual orientation inventory,</a>” was authored by Kaitlyn P. White, Marisa A. Muhonen, Keara A. Werth, and Andrew Lac.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/neuroscience-research-finds-altered-brain-networks-in-youth-who-perceive-home-or-school-as-unsafe/" 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;">Neuroscience research finds altered brain networks in youth who perceive home or school as unsafe</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Sep 29th 2025, 08:00</div>
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<p><p>Children who view their homes, schools, or neighborhoods as threatening may be more likely to develop mental health difficulties as they grow older. A large-scale study published in <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291725101384" target="_blank">Psychological Medicine</a></em> suggests that these perceptions of social danger are linked to changes in brain connectivity during early adolescence, which in turn predict symptoms like anxiety, depression, and attention problems months and even years later.</p>
<p>Adolescence is a time of rapid brain development and increased vulnerability to mental health issues. In recent years, youth mental health problems have become more prevalent, raising concerns among health professionals and researchers alike. While many studies have explored how negative social environments affect children’s emotional well-being, fewer have investigated how these experiences shape brain development and contribute to later mental health outcomes.</p>
<p>The new study was led by <a href="https://profiles.ucl.ac.uk/100885-dimitris-tsomokos" target="_blank">Dimitris I. Tsomokos</a> of University College London and King’s College London, alongside Divyangana Rakesh, also based at King’s College London. Co-authors include Henning Tiemeier from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and George M. Slavich from the University of California, Los Angeles.</p>
<p>The researchers were guided by Social Safety Theory, which proposes that humans are biologically wired to detect safety or threat in their environments. When children frequently experience conflict, instability, or danger, their brains may respond in ways that are adaptive in the short term but potentially harmful over time. These biological changes might influence how the brain processes emotions and stress, eventually leading to difficulties such as depression, anxiety, or attention problems.</p>
<p>To better understand these processes, the researchers focused on how children’s perceptions of social threat relate to functional connectivity between major brain networks involved in self-reflection, attention, and emotional regulation. They also tested whether these brain patterns could explain why children who perceive social threats are more likely to develop mental health problems later.</p>
<p>“This study grew out of ongoing conversations among the four of us. With Slavich, I had been working on applying Social Safety Theory to child and adolescent mental health. This theory suggests that social safety (trust, belonging, and warm, supportive relationships) promotes health, while social threats such as conflict, exclusion, or rejection harm health and development,” Tsomokos explained. </p>
<p>“At the same time, Rakesh and I were discussing how perceived threats in the social environment might shape brain connectivity during early adolescence, and how this could be tested in the large Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development dataset. Together with Tiemeier, who has worked on these topics in the past, we examined how children’s perceptions of threat across multiple social environments (home, school, and neighborhood) relate to brain connectivity and later mental health.”</p>
<p>The Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study is a long-term project involving over 11,000 children across the United States. From this larger group, the researchers selected nearly 8,700 participants who had usable brain imaging data and completed surveys at multiple time points.</p>
<p>When the children were around 10 years old, they were asked to report on their experiences of conflict at home, feelings of safety at school, and whether they felt safe in their neighborhoods. These three areas were combined into an overall score reflecting perceived social threat. The researchers also collected resting-state brain scans at this age, which measure how different brain regions communicate when a person is not actively engaged in a task.</p>
<p>The team focused on five major brain networks known to play a role in emotional and cognitive processes: the Default Mode Network (which is active during self-focused thought), the Frontoparietal Network (involved in decision-making and regulation), the Dorsal Attention Network (related to goal-directed attention), the Cingulo-Opercular Network (which helps maintain focus), and the Salience Network (which detects important stimuli and helps switch between other networks).</p>
<p>Analysis showed that higher levels of perceived social threat were associated with reduced internal communication (or connectivity) within the Default Mode and Frontoparietal Networks. In addition, there was increased communication between networks that typically operate more independently, such as between the Default Mode and Dorsal Attention Networks. These shifts suggest that the brain’s internal organization may become less distinct in children who feel socially unsafe.</p>
<p>“When children feel exposed to conflict or unsafe/unstable situations in their family, school, or neighborhood, they are more likely to develop symptoms of mental health problems later on,” Tsomokos told PsyPost. “We found that these experiences are linked to changes in brain connectivity even before symptoms appear, suggesting that the brain may carry part of the imprint of these early social threats.”</p>
<p>To test whether these brain patterns were meaningful, the researchers examined whether they predicted mental health symptoms reported by the same children six months and 30 months later. Indeed, lower connectivity within certain networks and greater connectivity between others were linked to higher levels of problems like anxiety, depression, and attention difficulties. These brain differences appeared to partially explain how early perceptions of social threat translated into later psychological symptoms.</p>
<p>The findings were especially notable in children who reported unsafe neighborhoods. In this group, reduced connectivity within the Default Mode Network and increased connectivity between the Default Mode and Dorsal Attention Networks were particularly strong predictors of mental health issues. This pattern held even when controlling for other factors such as sex, parental education, family income, and parental mental health.</p>
<p>“The effects were statistically reliable but modest in size,” Tsomokos explained. “In practice, this means that, although perceived social threats are an important piece of the puzzle, the brain connectivity patterns we identified explained only a small portion of the overall effect. Still, even small effects can matter at the population level, especially when you consider how common perceived social threats are during childhood unfortunately and how long-lasting their impact can be.”</p>
<p>When the researchers broke down the types of symptoms, they found that brain connectivity differences were most closely linked to internalizing problems (like sadness or anxiety) and attention problems. The same patterns were not found for externalizing problems such as aggression.</p>
<p>Interestingly, when the different sources of social threat (family conflict, school unsafety, and neighborhood unsafety) were analyzed together, family conflict emerged as the strongest overall predictor of later mental health problems. However, only neighborhood unsafety was associated with distinct changes in brain connectivity, suggesting that different types of threats may impact mental health through different pathways.</p>
<p>While the study offers important insights, some limitations are worth noting. First, the findings are based on children’s perceptions rather than objective measures of threat. While perception is itself important, future work could benefit from comparing self-reports with official records, such as reports of bullying, crime statistics, or family involvement with child services.</p>
<p>In addition, the observational nature of the study means that causality cannot be confirmed. It is not possible to say for certain whether perceptions of threat cause changes in brain connectivity or whether some other factor, such as pre-existing temperament or genetics, may contribute to both.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, the study adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that children’s experiences of their social environments leave measurable marks on brain development. Future studies could explore how these findings relate to brain activity during emotional or cognitive challenges, which may provide additional clarity about how perceived threats shape mental processing.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291725101384" target="_blank">Social threat, neural connectivity, and adolescent mental health: a population-based longitudinal study</a>,” was published September 18, 2025.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/midlife-diets-high-in-ultra-processed-foods-linked-to-cognitive-complaints-in-later-life/" 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;">Midlife diets high in ultra-processed foods linked to cognitive complaints in later life</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Sep 29th 2025, 06:00</div>
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<p><p>Women who consume more ultra-processed foods during midlife face a higher likelihood of experiencing memory and thinking difficulties later in life, according to a new study published in <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2025.108390" target="_blank">Preventive Medicine</a></em>. The research found that those with the highest intake of these foods were about 20 percent more likely to report subjective cognitive complaints in their later years compared to those with the lowest intake. These findings raise concerns about the potential long-term impact of diet on brain health.</p>
<p>Alzheimer’s disease and related forms of dementia affect millions of people in the United States, with women accounting for roughly two-thirds of diagnosed cases. Identifying early indicators and modifiable risk factors is an urgent public health priority. One such early warning sign is subjective cognitive complaints, which refer to a person’s own perception of memory or cognitive difficulties. Research indicates that these self-reported problems may reflect subtle changes in brain function and could precede clinical signs of dementia by several years.</p>
<p>Ultra-processed foods are increasingly being investigated for their links to health problems. These products, typically made from highly refined ingredients and industrial additives, now make up over half of the daily caloric intake in many high-income countries. Previous research has connected them to conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. </p>
<p>There is also growing interest in whether diets high in these foods might affect brain health. However, most studies have focused on older adults or clinical outcomes, such as diagnosed dementia, rather than early cognitive symptoms. This new study aimed to fill that gap by examining the relationship between midlife consumption of ultra-processed foods and the risk of later-life cognitive complaints.</p>
<p>“We have been interested in how diet and midlife lifestyle factors can influence aging and late-life disease. We have a cohort of women recruited in 1985 and prospectively followed to date,” said study author Yu Chen, a professor of epidemiology at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine.</p>
<p>The researchers used data from the New York University Women’s Health Study. It included over 14,000 women who were between 35 and 65 years old at the time of enrollment. For this specific analysis, the team focused on 5,119 women who were still alive and had completed follow-up questionnaires about their cognitive health in 2018 or 2020, roughly 25 to 35 years after they joined the study.</p>
<p>At the start of the study, participants provided detailed information about their diets through a food frequency questionnaire. The researchers classified the reported foods according to the “NOVA” system, which categorizes foods based on the extent of processing. Ultra-processed foods include items such as packaged snacks, reconstituted meat products, ready-to-eat meals, and sweetened dairy desserts. Beverages were not included due to limitations in the dietary questionnaire.</p>
<p>To assess cognitive health later in life, participants answered six questions about changes in memory and mental function, such as difficulty remembering a short list or following conversations. Women who reported at least two of these issues were considered to have significant cognitive complaints.</p>
<p>After adjusting for factors like age, education, body weight, smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity, and health history, the researchers found a pattern: the more ultra-processed food a woman consumed in midlife, the more likely she was to report cognitive complaints in later life. Specifically, women in the highest fifth of ultra-processed food intake had 24 percent higher odds of reporting two or more cognitive complaints compared to those in the lowest fifth. This association remained consistent even when applying statistical techniques to account for missing data or potential selection bias.</p>
<p>“Women who consume a lot of ultra-processed food during midlife are 20 percent more likely to have subjective cognitive complaints in later life, indicating worse cognitive function,” Chen told PsyPost. “The findings are consistent with the literature that a higher level of fat intake in the diet is related to the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.”</p>
<p>The analysis also looked at different types of ultra-processed foods. Dairy products with high levels of processing, such as flavored yogurts and processed cheeses, were linked to a greater risk of cognitive complaints. Processed meats and fast foods also showed associations, though these were less pronounced. Interestingly, no strong association was found for sugary foods or sauces when considered independently, once other variables were controlled.</p>
<p>Even after removing women who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias from the analysis, the association between midlife ultra-processed food intake and late-life cognitive complaints remained. This suggests the findings may apply to women without diagnosed neurodegenerative conditions and could reflect earlier stages of brain health changes.</p>
<p>Like all observational studies, this one cannot determine cause and effect. While the researchers adjusted for many factors that could influence both diet and cognition, there may still be unmeasured variables that played a role. For example, the dietary data came from a questionnaire completed decades ago, and such surveys may not fully capture all food items or preparation methods. Beverages, including sugary drinks and processed protein shakes, were not included, which may have underestimated the participants’ total ultra-processed food intake.</p>
<p>“Our food frequency questionnaire may not be comprehensive enough to capture more ultra-processed food products,” Chen noted. “In addition, beverages are not included.”</p>
<p>Another limitation is that the study population included only women, which limits how widely the findings can be applied. Further research is needed to examine whether the same patterns hold in men or in more diverse groups.</p>
<p>The authors note that future studies should include more detailed dietary assessments and explore specific ingredients in ultra-processed foods that may impact the brain. It may also be helpful to study biological mechanisms, such as how processed food affects inflammation or the gut microbiome, both of which have been linked to cognitive function.</p>
<p>“We hope to identify modifiable lifestyle risk factors in midlife that impact late-life cognition,” Chen said. “Interventions or health education can be designed accordingly.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2025.108390" target="_blank">Association between midlife intake of ultra-processed foods and later-life subjective cognitive complaints: Evidence from the new York University women’s health study</a>,” was authored by Kejia Zhang, Fen Wu, Tess V. Clendenen, Yelena Afanasyeva, Yian Gu, Karen L. Koenig, Anne Zeleniuch-Jacquotte, and Yu Chen.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/gen-z-is-over-dating-apps-but-the-real-world-feels-even-more-daunting/" 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;">Gen Z is over dating apps, but the real world feels even more daunting</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Sep 28th 2025, 16:00</div>
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<p><p>With plummeting subscriber numbers, rising costs and users who are <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/dating-apps-burnout-1.7152917">sick of endless swiping</a>, the dating app industry is in crisis. Recent <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/25/bumble-to-lay-off-30-of-its-workforce/">layoffs at Bumble</a> are raising questions about the future of dating apps and alternatives for people who want to find romance and connection offline instead.</p>
<p>One of the most popular alternatives is a return to <a href="https://macleans.ca/society/online-dating-is-out-real-life-romance-is-in/">in-person dating activities</a> like speed dating, running clubs and daytime raves.</p>
<p>For millennials and older generations, in-person dating is familiar territory, but if you’re <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2025/02/14/gen-z-love-instagram-tiktok-dating/78336999007/">part of Gen Z</a> — often described as the “<a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90956028/the-rise-of-gen-z-embrace-the-digital-generation">digital generation</a>” — that isn’t necessarily the case.</p>
<p>This inter-generational divide was on display recently at <a href="https://www.sextechto.com/about">Canada’s first sex tech</a> conference, where I made a presentation on masculinity, dating apps and in-person alternatives to swiping. During the Q&A, a young woman chimed in with a comment that stopped me in my tracks: “Check your extrovert privilege,” she said.</p>
<p>After a few moments of awkward silence, the discussion resumed with a new focus on how difficult it is for younger folks to date in-person. Many of you are disillusioned with dating apps and lack the interpersonal experience some of us older generations take for granted.</p>
<p>So where does that leave you? Telling Gen Z to just “get out there” is not only culturally tone-deaf, but it could also contribute to rising levels of loneliness and <a href="https://www.cell.com/heliyon/fulltext/S2405-8440(23)10538-X">feelings of not mattering</a> that already affect many young people today.</p>
<h2>In-person dating is trending</h2>
<p>If dating apps are starting to feel more like a chore than a chance at connection, you’re not alone. A <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/06/well/dating-irl-analog-online.html"><em>New York Times</em></a> article by reporter Catherine Pearson encourages Gen Z to create meaningful communities and be open to different kinds of relationships versus the pressure-laden focus to find “the one.”</p>
<p>Some dating apps have joined the movement to support in-person dating. For example, Hinge hosts <a href="https://hinge.co/onemorehour">One More Hour</a>, a social impact initiative to help people make in-person connections. It’s aimed at Gen Z, many of whom report anxiety around face-to-face interactions.</p>
<p>The hyper-digitized environment many Gen Z are a part of can feel pretty disingenuous over time, which makes connecting with someone at a park, bar or library refreshing and novel.</p>
<p><a href="https://thetyee.ca/Culture/2025/06/13/Ditch-Dating-Apps-Find-Real-Life-Romance/">Meet-cutes</a> in physical places can also take frustrating app-based practices like catfishing out of the equation. Interestingly, <a href="https://edubirdie.com/blog/how-remote-working-impacting-gen-z-sex-lives">38 per cent of Gen Z</a> polled in a recent survey expressed a desire to have designated spaces for hookups and self-love at work.</p>
<h2>How one organization is re-thinking dating</h2>
<p>Although not specifically for Gen Z, another noteworthy force in the in-person dating landscape is the relationship-building organization called <a href="https://www.wemetirl.com/about">We Met IRL</a>, founded in 2022 by entrepreneur Maxine Simone Williams.</p>
<p>Born out of frustration with dating apps and the lack of diversity in traditional dating spaces, We Met IRL hosts speed dating events, mixers and social gatherings that encourage romantic or platonic connections offline.</p>
<p>The desire for in-person romance among Gen Z is beginning to shift the cultural needle, at least in the United States where a <a href="https://www.hims.com/news/dating-in-person-vs-online">recent survey</a> indicates that only 23 per cent of Gen Z adults met their partner through a dating app, social media or online community.</p>
<p>So, if a lot of these young people are already dating in-person, why is it often spoken about as being hard or stressful?</p>
<h2>In-person dating is hard</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/wellness/article/2024/jul/10/gen-z-digital-dating-era">Dating in-person can be challenging</a> for a number of reasons. <a href="https://www.buzzfeed.com/amber-mckynzie/gen-z-dating-habits">Key culprits</a> include the fact that dating apps focus on performative and inauthentic forms of communication, the challenges of coming-of-age during the pandemic and the cultural shift away from relationships all together.</p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/valentines-day-gen-z-avoids-committed-relationships-prefers-casual-hookups-130936">A study I conducted with Gen Z students</a> also highlighted the reasons behind the decline of relationships. Gen Z want meaningful partnerships, but fear getting cheated on, ghosted or emotionally hurt.</p>
<p>Socio-cultural factors like the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/20/style/modern-love-men-where-have-you-gone-please-come-back.html">retreat of men from intimacy and vulnerability</a> also feed into the dismantling of traditional relationship structures and gender relations more broadly. These shifts have a cascading effect on younger generations and boys, in particular, are described as being <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-023-01921-3">“lost” and less emotionally resilient</a>.</p>
<p>The rise of <a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/boys-are-adopting-andrew-tates-misogynistic-views-and-bringing-them-to-class-study-finds">misogynistic influencers</a> and politicians openly denigrating women as part of their radicalization of boys and young men is only making things worse.</p>
<p>And yes, some of the awkwardness around in-person dating might come down to what that young woman called “extrovert privilege.” A <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976231163877">recent study</a> found that Gen Z are more shy than other generations but not for no reason. Growing up immersed in smartphone technology and social media means Gen Z have had fewer opportunities to develop interpersonal skills.</p>
<p>In-person dating can be hard, but not because there’s something wrong with you or because there are fewer good catches out there. It’s hard because connection, trust and vulnerability are difficult in a complex world that doesn’t always create the space you need to learn about relationships and interpersonal communication.</p>
<h2>How to build confidence with in-person dating</h2>
<p>As a formerly painfully shy young person, I can say with confidence that the categories of introvert and extrovert are not written in stone. There is ample evidence to show that Gen Zers who are less confident in the realm of romance can learn to enhance their in-person skills and reduce anxiety around social events.</p>
<p>Here are <a href="https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/relations/how-to-feel-confident-in-awkward-social-situations/">seven tips from licensed counsellors</a> for ways to build your in-person skills:</p>
<ol>
<li>Prepare for the event ahead of time when possible.</li>
<li>Reframe how you view and feel about uncertainty — not as a threat, but as an opportunity for growth.</li>
<li>Stay grounded in who you are.</li>
<li>Practise social skills to gain confidence.</li>
<li>Pay attention to your body language — to make sure you appear open and welcoming.</li>
<li>Remind yourself you’re not the only one struggling with feeling confident.</li>
<li>Consider seeking the help of a therapist if fear or anxiety is overwhelming.</li>
</ol>
<p>Reframing your vulnerability as being less about your ingrained tendencies and more an opportunity for you to reflect on who you area as a social being is one of the most powerful things you can do.</p>
<p>Tools like reflexive vision boards or self-reflection exercises can help you explore your values, goals and identity in meaningful ways. These reflective practices are even more effective when supported by schools, communities or organizations that can help young people turn moments of risk or fear into opportunities for personal exploration.</p>
<p>Building resilience is like building muscle: it needs to be exercised and challenged to grow into the resource we need it to be. With the right support and space to practice, you can build the kind of confidence and self-awareness that carries into every part of your life, not just dating.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/257210/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/why-in-person-dating-is-making-a-comeback-and-why-gen-z-is-struggling-with-it-257210">original article</a>.</em></p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/men-given-testosterone-are-more-likely-to-mirror-opponents-actions-in-strategic-play/" 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 given testosterone are more likely to mirror opponents’ actions in strategic play</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Sep 28th 2025, 14:00</div>
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<p><p>New research from China suggests that applying a 125 mg dose of testosterone gel makes men more likely to mimic the behaviors of their opponents in a variant of the Prisoner’s Dilemma game. Participants were more likely to defect (betray the other player) when their opponent defected and to cooperate when both players cooperated. They were also more likely to respond with angry emojis after receiving emojis indicating negative emotions from their counterparts. The research was published in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2025.107525"><em>Psychoneuroendocrinology</em></a>.</p>
<p>Testosterone is the primary male sex hormone. It is produced mainly in the testes in men and in the ovaries and adrenal glands in women. Testosterone plays a crucial role in the development of male reproductive tissues, such as the testes and prostate. It is also essential for secondary sexual characteristics, including facial hair, a deeper voice, and increased muscle mass.</p>
<p>Beyond reproduction, testosterone contributes to bone density, red blood cell production, and overall physical energy. Levels of testosterone naturally rise during puberty and peak in early adulthood. As people age, testosterone levels typically decline, which can lead to symptoms such as reduced libido, muscle loss, or fatigue. In women, lower levels of testosterone help regulate ovarian function, bone health, and sexual desire. Abnormally low or high levels can cause health issues, requiring medical evaluation and, in some cases, hormone therapy.</p>
<p>Study author Renhui Fang and his colleagues aimed to explore the effects of testosterone administration on young men’s behavior and emotional expression in social games. Specifically, they wanted to understand how testosterone influences responses to the behavior of counterparts in such interactions.</p>
<p>The study involved 62 healthy young men with an average age of 21–22 years. Participants received 200 CNY (around $27) for their participation.</p>
<p>Participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group received testosterone gel applied to their left shoulder (150 mg dose), while the other group received a visually identical placebo gel applied in the same manner. Neither the participants nor the person applying the gel knew which treatment was administered—a double-blind design.</p>
<p>After one hour (the estimated time for testosterone to reach peak concentration in the body), participants played a modified version of the Prisoner’s Dilemma game. In this setup, two players (the participant and a computer opponent) decided whether to cooperate or defect. After each round, participants had the option to send one of four preset emojis to the other player.</p>
<p>Participants played up to 100 rounds of the game. The initial design included 80 rounds, but additional trials were conducted if some outcome types were underrepresented, ensuring all conditions were adequately sampled. The researchers ran two versions of the experiment with slight differences. For instance, in the second version, participants saw the emoji sent by their counterpart before responding.</p>
<p>The results indicated that testosterone administration increased the likelihood of cooperation when the counterpart cooperated and increased the likelihood of defection when the counterpart defected.</p>
<p>When analyzing emoji use, researchers found that participants in the testosterone group were more likely—compared to the placebo group—to respond with an angry emoji when they received a sad or angry emoji from their counterpart.</p>
<p>“We found that exogenous testosterone administration can affect the reciprocal tendency of men, making men more willing to cooperate in pursuit of mutual benefit and a win-win situation when facing opponents worthy of cooperation, but more unwilling to cooperate to maintain their self-interests when facing opponents who are not worthy of cooperation,” the study authors concluded.</p>
<p>The findings provide evidence that testosterone can influence social behavior and emotional expression in conflict-based interactions. However, it is important to note that this study involved young men in a low-stakes, simulated environment. Results may differ in other demographic groups or in real-world, high-stakes conflict situations.</p>
<p>The paper, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2025.107525">Testosterone and emotion expression shape social interactions in defection-cooperation conflicts</a>,” was authored by Renhui Fang, Wenbin Pan, Mei Li, Zhihao Zhao, Kaiqiong Yuan, Ran Zhou, Benjamin Becker, and Hong Li.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/affection-deprivation-may-explain-why-phubbing-harms-relationship-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;">Affection deprivation may explain why phubbing harms relationship satisfaction</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Sep 28th 2025, 12:00</div>
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<p><p>A new study published in the <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/02654075251364560" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Journal of Social and Personal Relationships</a></em> suggests that when people feel ignored by their partners because of phone use — a behavior known as “phubbing” — it can lead to a deeper sense of emotional disconnection. Specifically, the research indicates that individuals who perceive their partner as being distracted by their phone tend to feel more deprived of affection. This emotional gap, in turn, is linked with lower relationship satisfaction.</p>
<p>The study was inspired by the increasingly common experience of couples feeling neglected because of mobile phone use, especially during conversations or shared time. Phubbing is the act of diverting attention away from a partner in favor of a smartphone — such as checking notifications, scrolling through social media, or replying to messages while someone else is present.</p>
<p>Surveys suggest that many people are affected by this behavior. Nearly half of Americans in relationships report that a partner has been distracted by their phone during a conversation. Over a third say they are bothered by how much time their partner spends on their phone. Prior studies have linked phubbing to reduced intimacy and satisfaction, but few have investigated the specific emotional processes that might explain these outcomes.</p>
<p>The COVID-19 pandemic presented a unique opportunity to explore this issue. With stay-at-home mandates and social distancing measures in place, couples were spending more time together than usual, often with limited access to other sources of social support.</p>
<p>“This study was part of a larger project our team conducted exploring the ways that couples were navigating the pandemic while living together. Like others, we noticed how much relationships were shifting in response to stress, isolation, and changes in daily routines during the pandemic,” said study author <a href="https://communication.uconn.edu/person/amanda-denes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Amanda Denes</a>, a professor of communication at the University of Connecticut.</p>
<p>“One of our team members was particularly interested in mobile phone use among couples, and we started wondering how the potentially increased time that people were spending on their phones (not just for distraction, but also as a necessary means for reaching out to others during lockdown) might impact their relationships. Couples were also dealing with new challenges, like increased physical closeness.”</p>
<p>“Our study emerged from an interest in how couples who were living in isolation together might be using their phones in ways that interfered with or interrupted their relationship, also known as phubbing, and whether that might impact how they felt about the quality and quantity of affection they were receiving from their partner and ultimately, their relationship satisfaction. ”</p>
<p>The study included 51 couples, for a total of 102 individuals, who were living together during the early months of the pandemic. Participants were recruited from three major cities in the United States between April and September 2020. To take part, couples needed to be living without other housemates and meet several health-related criteria. Most participants were in different-sex relationships, but same-sex couples were also included.</p>
<p>Participants completed an initial survey assessing three main factors: how much they felt their partner phubbed them, how deprived of affection they felt, and how satisfied they were with their relationship. Phubbing was measured through questions such as whether a partner glanced at their phone during conversation or checked their phone during pauses. Affection deprivation was assessed with items that asked whether participants felt they received enough affection, such as hugs, smiles, or expressions of fondness. Relationship satisfaction was measured using a standard seven-item scale.</p>
<p>Importantly, the researchers used a dyadic analysis approach, which allowed them to examine how one partner’s experiences and perceptions influenced both their own outcomes and their partner’s. This design helped capture the interpersonal nature of the behaviors being studied.</p>
<p>The main finding was that when people perceived their partner as frequently engaging in phubbing, they were more likely to feel deprived of affection. This sense of emotional deprivation was then associated with lower satisfaction in the relationship. In other words, phubbing seemed to harm relationships indirectly by making people feel emotionally neglected.</p>
<p>The study also uncovered a significant partner effect: a person’s own feelings of being affection-deprived were linked not only to their own relationship satisfaction but also to their partner’s. This suggests that emotional disconnection can ripple across the relationship, affecting both individuals. For example, if one person feels emotionally neglected, they may act in ways — perhaps becoming withdrawn or less affectionate — that ultimately reduce their partner’s satisfaction as well.</p>
<p>“One of the big takeaways from our study is that when a person feels ignored by their partner because they are more focused on their phone, it may make them feel less loved and cared for, and ultimately, damage the relationship,” Denes told PsyPost. “Even if the phone use isn’t intended to be hurtful, it can still create distance. These findings highlight the importance of being mindful of how we use our phones around loved ones, especially in close quarters or during stressful times. By creating mutually agreed upon boundaries around phone use, along with finding ways to express affection intentionally, couples may be able to foster greater connection.”</p>
<p>Interestingly, the study did not find that phubbing similarity — the degree to which both partners engaged in similar levels of phone use — was associated with affection deprivation or satisfaction. This means that even if both partners used their phones frequently, it did not reduce the negative effects. Equal participation in the behavior did not appear to buffer against the feeling of being ignored or unimportant.</p>
<p>“We were surprised to find that similarity in phubbing behavior wasn’t associated with affection deprivation or relationship satisfaction,” Denes explained. “Even if both partners perceived each other as equally engaged in phubbing, the negative effects (like feeling less affection and lower satisfaction) still emerged. So ‘matching’ in phone use doesn’t seem to cancel out its impact. That was unexpected, as prior research on other technology use habits suggests that similarity in behavior can sometimes be a buffer.”</p>
<p>The study provides valuable insight into the emotional pathways through which phubbing can affect relationships, but it is not without limitations. The data were collected at a single point in time, which means the researchers could not determine the exact order of cause and effect. It is possible, for instance, that people who are unhappy in their relationships are more likely to perceive their partners as disengaged, or that lower satisfaction leads to more phubbing rather than the other way around.</p>
<p>“That said, the findings offer a useful snapshot of how mobile phone use, affection, and satisfaction are associated with one another during a particularly stressful time,” Denes said.</p>
<p>Future research could address these issues by collecting data over time or conducting experiments where phone use is manipulated. Researchers could also examine how conversations about phone use, or agreements about when and how phones are used during shared time, might help reduce feelings of emotional neglect. Additionally, studies could explore how affection deprivation plays a role in other contexts, such as during long-distance relationships or periods of individual stress.</p>
<p>“We’re interested in continuing to explore how everyday behaviors shape connection and communication in close relationships, especially when experiencing stress,” Denes said. “In the future, we hope to examine these dynamics over time, in different types of partnerships, and in more diverse samples. We’re also curious about what helps couples stay emotionally connected even when life is overwhelming, whether through supportive communication, affection, or open conversations about needs. Ultimately, we hope this line of research helps people become more intentional about how they express affection in their relationships, especially in our mobile phone-saturated world.”</p>
<p>“This study reinforces the point that affection matters in relationships. When people feel deprived of affection, especially during difficult times, it can ripple in ways that impact not just their individual well-being, but also their relationships. The good news is that affection is something we can be proactive about. Being aware of how phone use might interfere with our ability to express affection to important people in our lives is a first step in making sure we make the time and space to invest in our close relationships.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/02654075251364560" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Phone or affection?: Assessing dyadic perceptions of partner phubbing, affection deprivation, and relationship satisfaction</a>,” was authored by Amanda Denes, Chelsea Guest, Katrina T. Webber, Amy A. Gorin, and Talea Cornelius.</p></p>
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<p><strong>Forwarded by:<br />
Michael Reeder LCPC<br />
Baltimore, MD</strong></p>
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