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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/veterans-are-no-more-likely-than-the-general-public-to-support-political-violence/" 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;">Veterans are no more likely than the general public to support political violence</a>
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<p><p>A recent study published in the journal <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s40621-025-00626-5" target="_blank">Injury Epidemiology</a></em> provides evidence that military service and combat experience do not broadly increase support for political violence or right-wing extremism. The findings suggest that while veterans who engage in extremist violence pose specific threats due to their training, widespread extremist attitudes among military members appear to be relatively rare. </p>
<p>“The January 6 insurrection raised questions about whether people with military experience are disproportionately involved in political violence,” said study author Elizabeth A. Tomsich, a researcher at the Centers for Violence Prevention at UC Davis.</p>
<p>“While reports indicated that veterans were overrepresented among those charged, limited research has examined links between military service and support for or willingness to engage in political violence. We conducted this study to better understand whether military service and combat experience are associated with support for or willingness to engage in political violence, agreement with extremist views, or approval of extremist groups or movements.”</p>
<p>Some experts have proposed that the psychological processes involved in military training, such as desensitization to violence and intense group solidarity, might make some veterans susceptible to extremist recruitment. At the same time, the loss of community and purpose during the difficult transition back to civilian life could pull some individuals toward radical organizations. However, prior surveys examining the endorsement of political violence among the general veteran population have yielded mixed and sometimes contradictory results.</p>
<p>The researchers wanted to clarify whether military service or combat experience acts as a widespread risk factor for supporting political violence or extremist organizations. They sought to measure personal willingness to engage in such violence and approval of various extremist movements. By surveying a large, nationally representative sample, they hoped to provide a clearer picture of political militancy within the armed forces.</p>
<p>To investigate these questions, the scientists analyzed data from the 2022 Life in America Survey, an online poll administered to a sample of 12,947 adult members of the Ipsos KnowledgePanel. The sample included 2,255 respondents with military backgrounds, of which 1,105 reported having served in a combat or war zone. The researchers recruited participants through a probability-based sampling method, ensuring the demographics matched the broader adult population of the United States.</p>
<p>The researchers measured military background by asking respondents about active duty, Reserve, or National Guard service, while combat experience was identified by service in an official war zone. The survey included questions across four broad domains, which covered beliefs about democracy, opinions on race in American society, justification for violence, and support for extremist ideologies. These ideologies included concepts like the QAnon conspiracy theory, as well as specific organizations like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers.</p>
<p>To ensure accuracy, the scientists designed the survey without a neutral middle option, forcing respondents to pick a definitive side. They also randomized the order of positive and negative response options to prevent people from falling into habit-driven answer patterns. The researchers then compared the responses of individuals with military backgrounds to those without such experience.</p>
<p>The data suggests that military members and veterans share many of the same views as the general public. For the most part, the researchers found no significant differences between military and non-military respondents regarding beliefs about American democracy or the prospect of a civil war. In fact, military respondents were slightly less likely than non-military individuals to perceive the use of political violence to keep borders open as usually or always justified.</p>
<p>When it came to non-political violence, military respondents were more likely to justify the use of force for self-defense. They were also more likely to justify violence to prevent someone from injuring or killing another person. Additionally, respondents with military backgrounds were slightly more likely to strongly agree that straight white men hold far too much power in American society.</p>
<p>There were a few specific areas where military respondents indicated a higher personal willingness to engage in political violence. People with military backgrounds were slightly more likely to report being willing to use force on their own as an individual to advance a political objective. They also reported a greater willingness to organize a group of people who share their beliefs to use force.</p>
<p>Regarding the use of firearms, military respondents were more likely to say they would be armed with a gun in a hypothetical situation where they felt political violence was justified. They were also more likely to report that they would carry a gun openly so that people clearly knew they were armed. Despite this increased willingness to carry a weapon, the researchers found no difference between the two groups regarding their likelihood of actually threatening or shooting someone with a gun.</p>
<p>In terms of extremist organizations, military respondents were slightly more likely to strongly approve of the Oath Keepers, an anti-government organization that actively recruits current and former military personnel. Besides this specific group, the scientists found no other differences in approval for right-wing extremist movements. A supplemental analysis also revealed that combat experience did not increase the likelihood of supporting political violence among the military sample.</p>
<p>“This study found little evidence that military service or combat experience increases support for or willingness to engage in political violence, agreement with extremist views, or approval of extremist groups or movements,” Tomsich told PsyPost. “Differences between military and non-military respondents were small, suggesting that concerns about widespread extremist attitudes among veterans or service members may be overstated.”</p>
<p>“At the same time, individuals with military experience who do become involved in extremist violence may pose a particular threat given their training and experience, highlighting the importance of continued research to identify subgroups at heightened risk in order to inform targeted prevention and outreach efforts.”</p>
<p>Future research should explore the psychological and social challenges veterans face when separating from the military and transitioning back to civilian life. The researchers also suggest looking into the different branches of the armed forces to see if specific military subcultures influence political radicalization. Identifying the exact vulnerabilities that push certain individuals toward extremism will help inform targeted prevention efforts for active-duty service members and veterans.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s40621-025-00626-5" target="_blank">Militancy in the military: military service and support for political violence and right-wing extremism</a>,” was authored by Elizabeth A. Tomsich and Garen J. Wintemute.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/people-with-social-anxiety-are-less-likely-to-experience-a-post-sex-emotional-glow/" 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;">People with social anxiety are less likely to experience a post-sex emotional glow</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Mar 13th 2026, 08:00</div>
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<p><p>A comparison of individuals suffering from social anxiety disorder with individuals without this disorder revealed that they do not differ in the number of sexual interactions they have. However, individuals without social anxiety disorder tended to report higher levels of positive emotions the day after sexual interactions. This was not the case with individuals suffering from social anxiety disorder. The paper was published in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/16506073.2026.2625399"><em>Cognitive Behaviour Therapy</em></a>.</p>
<p>Social anxiety disorder is a mental health condition characterized by an intense fear of being judged, embarrassed, or negatively evaluated in social situations. People with this disorder worry excessively about how they appear to others and fear saying or doing something that will humiliate them. The anxiety can occur in specific situations, such as public speaking, or in social interactions in general.</p>
<p>Physical symptoms of social anxiety include blushing, sweating, trembling, rapid heartbeat, or nausea. Rather than enjoy social events, individuals with social anxiety tend to endure them with significant distress or completely avoid them. The fear they experience is most often disproportionate to the actual social threat. Social anxiety disorder usually begins in adolescence, though it can develop earlier or later in life.</p>
<p>Study author Talia Shechter Strulov and her colleagues note that very few studies have examined sexual interactions among individuals with social anxiety disorder. Therefore, the authors conducted a study in which they compared the sexual experiences of individuals with and without social anxiety disorder. They hypothesized that the two groups would not differ in the frequency of sexual interactions, but that socially anxious individuals would experience a much smaller increase in positive emotions and a larger increase in negative emotions the day following such interactions.</p>
<p>Study participants were 54 individuals formally diagnosed with social anxiety disorder, and 54 individuals without this disorder. The number of men and women was equal in both groups. Participants were recruited through social media advertisements calling for individuals to take part in a study focused on dating. Eligible participants needed to be between 18 and 33 years of age, not currently in a romantic relationship, and expressing a desire to pursue one.</p>
<p>At the start, study authors screened 1,383 applicants for social anxiety symptoms using the mini-Social Phobia Inventory. This was followed by a phone conversation in which the authors explained the purpose of the study. Selected participants subsequently underwent a comprehensive diagnostic interview in person.</p>
<p>After the diagnostic interview, participants were instructed to complete a series of daily assessments over a period of three weeks, amounting to a total of 21 assessments. These daily diary entries included questions about any sexual interactions they had that day and their emotional experiences, measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule – Expanded Form.</p>
<p>Results showed that, on average, participants with social anxiety disorder reported 0.78 sexual interactions total over the 21-day period, while those without the disorder reported 1.35 sexual interactions over the same period. This difference was not statistically significant, indicating that social anxiety does not necessarily reduce the likelihood of engaging in sex.</p>
<p>Further analyses revealed that individuals without social anxiety disorder tended to experience a significant increase in positive emotions on the days following sexual interactions. This was not the case with individuals with social anxiety disorder—their positive emotions, on average, remained more or less the same regardless of whether they had engaged in sexual interactions the day prior.</p>
<p>Regarding negative emotions, individuals with social anxiety disorder experienced more negative feelings overall than participants without the disorder. Furthermore, when comparing the two distinct groups, the gap in negative emotions widened on the days following sexual interactions. However, the authors noted that this specific finding was mixed; when social anxiety was measured on a continuous sliding scale rather than a strict diagnosis, this interaction disappeared. Therefore, conclusions regarding negative emotions should be treated with caution.</p>
<p>“The findings suggest that individuals with SAD [social anxiety disorder] may experience sexual interactions in different ways compared to individuals without SAD. These insights may inform both theoretical models of SAD as well as clinical practice, particularly in addressing the emotional and interpersonal challenges that arise in intimate contexts,” the study authors concluded.</p>
<p>The study contributes to the scientific understanding of social anxiety disorder, highlighting that for this demographic, sex does not automatically equate to positive emotional benefits. However, it should be noted that all data were based on self-reports, leaving room for reporting bias. Additionally, the study only looked at single individuals; the emotional consequences of sexual interactions within a long-term, committed relationship may look very different for individuals with social anxiety.</p>
<p>The paper, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/16506073.2026.2625399">Sexual interactions and their effect on positive and negative emotions in social anxiety disorder,</a>” was authored by Talia Shechter Strulov, Chen Cohen, and Idan M. Aderka.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/the-extreme-male-brain-theory-of-autism-applies-more-strongly-to-females/" 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 extreme male brain theory of autism applies more strongly to females</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Mar 13th 2026, 06:00</div>
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<p><p>A recent study published in <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.70198" target="_blank">Autism Research</a></em> suggests that the cognitive shifts associated with autism are significantly larger in females than in males. The findings provide evidence that females may need a greater biological push to develop autism, which helps explain why the condition is diagnosed much more frequently in boys. These insights clarify the psychological differences underlying the male-biased prevalence of autism spectrum disorder.</p>
<p>The extreme male brain theory of autism was originally proposed by psychologist Simon Baron-Cohen at the University of Cambridge. This theory suggests that autism represents an exaggeration of typical male cognitive traits. Specifically, it points to a profile of relatively low empathy, known as empathizing, and a high interest in analyzing or constructing rule-based structures, known as systemizing.</p>
<p>Empathizing involves the ability to recognize and respond to the feelings of others. Systemizing is the drive to understand non-social systems, such as mathematics, computer code, or mechanical devices. According to the extreme male brain theory, elevated exposure to testosterone in the womb tends to shift brain development toward this highly systemizing profile.</p>
<p>Historically, autism is diagnosed in about four males for every one female. Scientists Cory Szakal and Bernard Crespi at Simon Fraser University wanted to understand if the extreme male brain theory applies differently to males and females. They also wanted to explore whether females possess a biological resistance to the condition.</p>
<p>Some scientists suspect that a female protective effect exists. This concept suggests that females require a heavier load of genetic or environmental factors to reach the threshold for an autism diagnosis. If this protective effect is real, females diagnosed with autism should exhibit much more drastic cognitive shifts compared to their peers than males do.</p>
<p>“The main question was how to explain the male bias in autism. The main psychological theory on this question is Baron-Cohen’s Empathizing-Systemizing theory. However, the differences in empathizing and systemizing between people with autism and neurotypicals had never been compared between females and males. We did so using systematic review and meta-analysis of all of the published work,” explained Crespi, a professor of biological sciences.</p>
<p>A meta-analysis is a statistical technique that combines data from multiple independent studies to identify overall trends. The researchers gathered data from 34 previously published studies that measured empathizing and systemizing traits.</p>
<p>In total, the analysis included 1,234,560 participants, comprising 757,726 females and 476,834 males. The sample featured both autistic individuals and neurotypical people, meaning those whose brain development aligns with typical standards. The researchers looked at three specific self-report measures used across these studies.</p>
<p>These measures included the Empathy Quotient, the Systemizing Quotient, and the Autism Spectrum Quotient. The Empathy Quotient measures a person’s social sensitivity, while the Systemizing Quotient gauges their interest in systems and rules. The Autism Spectrum Quotient evaluates the presence of autistic traits in everyday behavior.</p>
<p>Because the 34 studies used different versions of these questionnaires, the researchers standardized the scores. They divided the reported averages by the maximum possible score for each specific test. This conversion changed all scores into a percentage, making them easily comparable across the entire dataset.</p>
<p>The researchers found that the gap in empathy and systemizing scores between autistic and neurotypical females is significantly wider than the gap between autistic and neurotypical males. In other words, an autistic female shows a much larger departure from the average female cognitive profile than an autistic male does from the average male profile. This provides evidence that a larger cognitive shift is involved in a female developing autism.</p>
<p>The data also revealed that differences in empathy scores between autistic and neurotypical individuals are substantially larger than the differences in systemizing scores. On a proportional basis, the empathy shifts were three to five times larger than the systemizing shifts. This suggests that reduced empathy may play a larger role in the psychological differences that characterize an autism diagnosis.</p>
<p>Additionally, the normal sex differences seen in empathy and systemizing are highly reduced among autistic individuals. Autistic males and autistic females showed almost identical scores on the Systemizing Quotient. For the Empathy Quotient, the difference between autistic males and females was also very small, showing a blending of typical gender lines.</p>
<p>The researchers also examined how strongly these traits predict overall autistic behaviors. They found that changes in empathy and systemizing scores have a much stronger impact on overall autism scores in autistic individuals than in neurotypical ones. The data suggests that as empathy drops and systemizing rises, the outward signs of autism multiply much faster for those already on the spectrum.</p>
<p>The scientists also discovered an unexpected relationship between empathy and systemizing in autistic people. Among neurotypical participants, empathy and systemizing scores tend to rise together in a positive correlation. In contrast, autistic individuals showed an inverse relationship, where higher systemizing scores were linked to lower empathy scores.</p>
<p>This inverse relationship points to a cognitive trade-off in people with autism. A cognitive trade-off occurs when the enhancement of one mental ability interferes with another. For example, a hyper-focus on rule-based, non-social systems might naturally suppress the brain networks used for social and emotional processing.</p>
<p>As with all research, there are limitations to consider. The studies included in the analysis relied on self-reported questionnaires. Self-reporting can sometimes reflect how people wish to be seen or how they mask their traits to fit societal expectations, a behavior known as camouflaging.</p>
<p>Autistic females are known to camouflage their traits more frequently than autistic males, often out of a desire to conform to gender norms. They might use their intellect to mimic social behaviors, which could artificially inflate how they score on empathy tests. Also, the data gathered inconsistently reported participant ages, preventing the researchers from analyzing how these cognitive traits might change over a person’s lifespan.</p>
<p>Another limitation is that a large portion of the data came from a small number of research groups. This clustering means that specific testing methods or regional biases might influence the overall results. The scientists recommend that future studies investigate the exact causes of the cognitive trade-offs seen between empathy and systemizing.</p>
<p>Future research should also explore how environmental and genetic factors interact to create these psychological shifts. Understanding these mechanisms could clarify why females appear to have a biological resistance to autism. It might also improve diagnostic tools to better identify autistic females who currently go unnoticed.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.70198" target="_blank">Does the Extreme Male Brain Hypothesis of Autism Apply More to Females Than Males? A Systematic and Meta-Analytic Approach</a>,” was authored by Cory Szakal and Bernard Crespi.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/a-newly-discovered-brain-cluster-acts-as-an-on-and-off-switch-for-sex-differences/" 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 newly discovered brain cluster acts as an on and off switch for sex differences</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Mar 12th 2026, 18:00</div>
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<p><p>Researchers have discovered a distinct cluster of brain cells in mice that behaves like an on and off switch for sex-specific social behaviors, turning on permanently in females but remaining quiet in adult males until they mate. This strictly binary brain feature offers fresh insight into how social and reproductive life stages physically alter the brain. The findings were recently published in the <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2518703123" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a></em>.</p>
<p>Male and female bodies show obvious physical differences in anatomy and hormones. Biologists refer to these sex-based physical differences as sexual dimorphism. In the brain, these physical distinctions are usually much less obvious and much harder to categorize.</p>
<p>Most brain differences between sexes appear as overlapping gradients rather than a strict presence or absence of a feature. A specific brain region might be slightly larger or have a few more connections in one sex, but the two groups still share many similarities. Truly binary differences in the brain are exceptionally rare.</p>
<p>Tamar Licht and Dan Rokni from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem wanted to find out if there were absolute differences in how brain cells behave at rest. They led a research team to look for neurons that were active in one sex but entirely quiet in the other.</p>
<p>The researchers focused on a region called the medial amygdala. This is a small structure deep inside the brain that helps animals process emotions, interpret social signals, and manage reproductive behaviors. It acts as a central hub for integrating smells and other sensory cues from the environment, allowing the animal to respond appropriately to rivals or potential mates.</p>
<p>To see which cells were active, the team tracked specific genes that turn on immediately after a neuron fires. These genes act like a genetic signpost that indicates a cell has recently communicated with other cells. Biologists often use these genes to map which parts of the brain are working during a specific behavioral task.</p>
<p>The scientists used a genetic tracking tool to permanently tag active neurons in live mice. When the mice received a specific triggering drug, any brain cell firing at that exact moment became permanently labeled with a bright red fluorescent protein.</p>
<p>This technique allowed the team to look at slices of the brain under a microscope weeks later. They could easily spot which cells had been active during the tagging process, even if the cells had since gone quiet.</p>
<p>When examining the medial amygdala, Licht and her colleagues noticed a dense, circular cluster of glowing cells in the female mice. They named this cluster DIMPLE, partly because it resembled bilateral facial dimples when viewing the brain slices.</p>
<p>This glowing cluster appeared in every single female mouse they tested. In contrast, it was completely absent in almost one hundred adult virgin male mice. The cell activity represented a perfect binary split between the sexes.</p>
<p>“Most sex differences in the brain are subtle and distributed,” said Dr. Licht. “What surprised us here was the clarity of the signal. This is a discrete group of neurons that behaves almost like a biological switch, reflecting sex and social state in a very robust way.”</p>
<p>The researchers then tested whether removing adult reproductive hormones would change this pattern. They surgically removed the ovaries from female mice and the testes from male mice.</p>
<p>After waiting a month for hormone levels to drop, they tagged the brain cells again. The glowing DIMPLE cluster still appeared in all the females and none of the males, showing that baseline adult sex hormones do not maintain this difference.</p>
<p>Next, the team looked at younger mice to see when this difference develops. They tagged the brains of adolescent mice before the pups were separated from their mothers.</p>
<p>At this young age, the DIMPLE cluster was active in both males and females. The activity in males only faded away after they grew older and were separated from their family unit, suggesting the social environment influences the cells.</p>
<p>The team then investigated whether social and reproductive experiences could turn the cluster back on in adult males. They placed adult virgin males in cages with females and allowed them to mate.</p>
<p>When the researchers tagged the male brains right after mating, the DIMPLE cluster was suddenly glowing. The cells had turned back on after a single reproductive encounter.</p>
<p>The researchers ran several tests to see exactly what triggered this change in the males. Letting a male smell female bedding or interact with a female through a clear barrier did not activate the brain cells.</p>
<p>The cluster only turned on when the male had physical sexual contact with the female. The cells remained active as long as the male stayed in the cage with his pregnant partner.</p>
<p>If the male was removed from the cage a few days after mating, the cluster went dark again. The brain activity required the continuous presence of the female, showing that the cluster reacts dynamically to an animal’s current social status.</p>
<p>Because mating triggers the release of certain chemicals in the body, the researchers suspected a hormone might be responsible. They focused on prolactin, a hormone well known for stimulating milk production and encouraging parental behaviors.</p>
<p>In a normal physiological setting, prolactin levels naturally spike in male mice immediately after mating. When the scientists injected virgin male mice with prolactin, the DIMPLE cluster turned on without any female contact. This suggested that prolactin alone was capable of activating these specific brain cells.</p>
<p>The team then tried to block prolactin in mating males and in females to see if the cluster would turn off. They added a drug to the mice’s drinking water that stops the pituitary gland from releasing prolactin.</p>
<p>The drug failed to turn off the brain cluster in both groups. The researchers noted that either the drug did not lower the hormone enough, or other chemical signals are also involved in keeping the cells active.</p>
<p>These results provide a clear example of a biological switch, but the exact behavioral purpose of the DIMPLE cluster remains unproven. The researchers suspect it might help stop adult males from attacking newborn pups.</p>
<p>Male mice typically exhibit aggressive behavior toward infants, but this behavior shifts to protective parenting after they mate. The sudden activation of the DIMPLE cluster lines up perfectly with this behavioral change.</p>
<p>Testing this idea will be technically difficult. The cell cluster is located deep within the brain and lacks a unique molecular marker, making it incredibly hard to target with current laboratory tools.</p>
<p>Future studies will need to find ways to selectively turn these cells on and off to observe how the mice behave. Scientists also need to look into other hormones and genes to fully understand how this brain region operates.</p>
<p>For now, the discovery shows how deeply social experiences can rewire the male brain. It provides a new starting point for understanding how animals adapt to different stages of life.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2518703123" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A sexually dimorphic neuronal cluster in the mouse medial amygdala responds to male sexual status</a>,” was authored by Tamar Licht, Adan Akarieh, Aya Dhamshy, Amit Zeisel, Osnat Ophir, and Dan Rokni.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/researchers-identify-personality-traits-that-predict-alcohol-relapse-after-treatment/" 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;">Researchers identify personality traits that predict alcohol relapse after treatment</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Mar 12th 2026, 16:00</div>
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<p><p>Having a high novelty-seeking personality trait may raise the risk of relapse after alcohol withdrawal. This finding comes from new research published in the <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2025.10.062" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Journal of Psychiatric Research</a></em>.</p>
<p>Alcohol use disorder remains a major public health challenge in France, where millions struggle with harmful drinking patterns. Personality traits can shape a person’s vulnerability to addiction, but few studies have examined how these traits influence recovery in the months following withdrawal. Past research suggests that impulsivity, difficulty regulating emotions, and sensitivity to rewards may all play a role in addiction.</p>
<p>Led by Anne-Laure Virevialle from Centre Hospitalier Esquirol, the team aimed to better understand why some individuals relapse soon after treatment. Virevialle and colleagues recruited 88 adults undergoing inpatient alcohol withdrawal at a psychiatric hospital in France. Participants completed several assessments, including a personality questionnaire, a craving scale, a cognitive test, and measures of anxiety and depression.</p>
<p>Blood samples were taken to measure carbohydrate-deficient transferrin, a biological marker that reflects recent heavy drinking. The researchers also measured brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a protein involved in the brain’s ability to adapt and rewire itself. Three months later, 46 participants returned for follow-up testing.</p>
<p>The researchers analyzed 76 participants who had complete, usable data, finding that 29 had relapsed by the three-month mark. Those who relapsed scored higher on novelty-seeking, a personality trait associated with impulsivity and a tendency to act quickly without considering consequences. These individuals also scored lower on harm avoidance, meaning they were less sensitive to potential negative outcomes.</p>
<p>Relapsers also showed higher self-directedness, a trait typically associated with better self-control. The authors suggest this reflects a temporary boost in confidence during inpatient treatment rather than long-term resilience. They wrote, “the hospitalization context may temporarily reinforce self-esteem and self-efficacy through social validation and structured support.”</p>
<p>The researchers used statistical modeling to identify the strongest predictor of relapse, and novelty-seeking stood out. Although it explained only about one-fifth of the variation in relapse outcomes, it was the most reliable single factor. This suggests that certain traits may shape a person’s recovery trajectory over time.</p>
<p>The study also explored how personality traits relate to craving, mood, and cognition. People with higher harm avoidance and higher alexithymia, which is a difficulty identifying and expressing emotions, reported stronger cravings. Depression and anxiety were also more common among those with high harm avoidance and low self-directedness.</p>
<p>Brain-derived neurotrophic factor increased over the three-month period for both relapsers and non-relapsers. This increase is expected during brain recovery as patients abstain from or reduce their alcohol intake. However, there was no significant difference in these protein levels between the two groups at the three-month mark, suggesting it is not a reliable relapse predictor on its own.</p>
<p>The researchers believe these findings can help doctors tailor treatment to individual patients. “This study highlights the need to develop a global evaluation of individuals for personalised care because the motivation to change concerning alcohol also requires the management of psychiatric comorbidities, taking into account the personality profile of the individual,” the authors concluded.</p>
<p>The study has a few limitations, including a high dropout rate. Nearly half of the original participants did not return for the follow-up, which may skew the final results. Craving scores were also unusually low, likely because the initial assessments were conducted in a protected inpatient environment.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychires.2025.10.062" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Personality traits and craving in patients undergoing alcohol withdrawal treatment</a>,” was authored by Anne-Laure Virevialle, Benjamin Calvet, Murielle Girard, Mirvat Hamdan-Dumont, Alexandra Foucher, Brigitte Plansont, Aurélie Lacroix, and Philippe Nubukpo.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/new-study-links-the-fatigue-of-depression-to-overworked-cellular-power-plants/" 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 study links the fatigue of depression to overworked cellular power plants</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Mar 12th 2026, 14:00</div>
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<p><p>Young adults with depression exhibit unusual cellular energy patterns in both their brains and blood, characterized by cells that overwork at rest but fail to respond adequately to physical stress. This biological signature of fatigue suggests that early medical intervention could help restore cellular balance before longer-term physical damage occurs. The research was published in the journal <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-026-03904-y" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Translational Psychiatry</a></em>.</p>
<p>Fatigue is a common and disabling symptom of major depressive disorder. Despite its prevalence, the biological origins of this profound exhaustion remain largely mysterious. Medical professionals need a clearer picture of how depression alters the body at a microscopic level to develop better treatments.</p>
<p>To understand this phenomenon, researchers looked at adenosine triphosphate, commonly known as ATP. ATP acts as the primary energy currency for all living cells. It provides the fuel required for basic biological functions, from muscle contractions to the transmission of nerve signals in the brain.</p>
<p>The human brain demands an immense amount of energy just to maintain its baseline operations. Even when a person is resting, the brain consumes a large portion of the body’s glucose and oxygen to keep its cells alive and communicating. It relies heavily on mitochondria, which are the tiny power plants inside cells responsible for generating ATP.</p>
<p>If this cellular energy production falters, the brain cannot function optimally. When brain cells cannot maintain their necessary energy levels, it can lead to symptoms like profound tiredness, physical sluggishness, and cognitive slowing. This energy deficit theory has existed for years, but studying it in living human brains has always been technically difficult.</p>
<p>Kathryn R. Cullen, a psychiatrist at the University of Minnesota, led a team of researchers to investigate these energy dynamics in human patients. They suspected that young adults experiencing early stages of depression might show measurable deficits in how their cells produce and use ATP. The researchers wanted to see if these cellular changes appeared simultaneously in the central nervous system and the peripheral circulatory system.</p>
<p>To achieve this, the team decided to look at immune cells circulating in the blood as well as neurons in the brain. Blood cells are much easier to collect and study than brain tissue. If the researchers could prove that blood cells and brain cells share the same energy problems, simple blood tests might one day help diagnose or monitor depression.</p>
<p>The research team recruited a group of volunteers between the ages of 18 and 24. This included individuals diagnosed with major depressive disorder and a control group of healthy participants. All participants underwent a thorough clinical assessment to determine the severity of their depression and fatigue.</p>
<p>To measure brain energy, the investigators used an incredibly powerful 7-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging scanner. Most hospital scanners operate at much lower magnetic strengths and only show the physical structure of the brain. This specialized 7-Tesla machine allows scientists to safely look at the chemical makeup of brain tissue in living people.</p>
<p>This advanced scanning technology allowed the team to look specifically at the visual cortex, a region at the back of the brain. The visual cortex was chosen because it sits close to the skull, making it easier for the scanner to pick up clear chemical signals. Instead of just taking a static picture of the brain’s anatomy, the scanner tracked the real-time chemical reactions involved in ATP production.</p>
<p>By tracking these chemical exchanges, researchers could calculate exactly how fast the brain cells were manufacturing new energy molecules. On the same day as the brain scans, the team also drew blood samples from the participants. They isolated specific immune cells from the blood to measure their baseline ATP levels.</p>
<p>The researchers then applied chemicals to these immune cells in a laboratory setting to intentionally stress their mitochondria. These chemicals act like a treadmill test for the cells, forcing them to burn energy as fast as they can. This mimics a state of high energy demand and reveals the maximum capacity of the cellular power plants.</p>
<p>The results challenged the initial expectations of the research team. In the visual cortex, the young adults with depression were actually producing ATP at a higher rate than the healthy control group. The blood samples mirrored this hyperactivity, showing elevated levels of ATP in the immune cells of the depressed participants while at rest.</p>
<p>Higher rates of ATP production in the brain and higher ATP concentrations in the blood both correlated with the severity of the patients’ self-reported fatigue. The participants who felt the most exhausted had the highest levels of baseline cellular energy activity. Susannah Tye, an associate professor at the University of Queensland who collaborated on the study, noted the uniqueness of this dual discovery.</p>
<p>“This suggests that depression symptoms may be rooted in fundamental changes in the way brain and blood cells use energy,” Tye said. She added that fatigue is notoriously hard to treat, and these biological insights might eventually guide more directed medical interventions. It can often take years for patients to find the right treatment for their illness.</p>
<p>The blood cell stress tests revealed another layer of the cellular dysfunction. When the researchers forced the immune cells to work harder using chemical stressors, the cells from the healthy participants easily ramped up their oxygen consumption. They seamlessly produced more energy to meet the simulated threat.</p>
<p>In contrast, the cells from the depressed participants showed a blunted response. They lacked the spare capacity to meet the increased demand, quickly reaching their maximum output limit. Roger Varela, a researcher at the University of Queensland, explained that the cells of depressed individuals seem to operate in overdrive just to maintain normal resting functions.</p>
<p>“This suggests cells may be overworking early in the illness, which could lead to longer-term problems,” Varela said. The constant overexertion leaves the cells without a reserve tank to handle additional stress. Because they are already running at full speed, they have nothing left to give when energy demands increase.</p>
<p>“This was surprising, because you might expect energy production in cells would be lower for people with depression,”Varela said. Instead, the data points to a biological compensation mechanism. The body senses an energy crisis and cranks up production at rest to compensate, but the mitochondria eventually hit a ceiling when pushed further.</p>
<p>This reduced capacity to cope with higher energy demands could be the root cause of the low mood and reduced motivation seen in patients. Varela hopes that highlighting the physical reality of the disease will change public perceptions and reduce the stigma surrounding mental illness. “This shows multiple changes occur in the body, including in the brain and the blood, and that depression impacts energy at a cellular level,” he said.</p>
<p>While these observations offer a new perspective on depression, the study has several limitations. The sample size was quite small, with usable brain imaging data available for only 18 participants. The researchers note that these results must be replicated in a much larger group of people to confirm the patterns.</p>
<p>Many of the depressed participants were also taking psychiatric medications and had other co-occurring conditions, like anxiety. These variables make it difficult to completely isolate the specific effects of depression from the potential effects of drugs or other mental health disorders. When the researchers adjusted their mathematical models to account for age and sex, some of the group differences were not statistically significant.</p>
<p>Future research will need to track patients over long periods to see if this cellular overwork eventually leads to a total collapse of energy production later in life. Some medical professionals suspect that chronic overexertion of mitochondria could contribute to neurodegeneration as patients age. Understanding this timeline could help doctors intervene early enough to preserve cellular function.</p>
<p>Ultimately, recognizing depression as a whole-body metabolic condition could open up entirely new avenues for drug development. Rather than focusing solely on brain chemicals like serotonin, future medicines might target the mitochondria directly. By helping cells manage their energy more efficiently, doctors might finally be able to alleviate the crushing fatigue that affects so many young adults with depression.</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41398-026-03904-y" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ATP bioenergetics and fatigue in young adults with and without major depression</a>,” was authored by Kathryn R. Cullen, Susannah J. Tye, Bonnie Klimes-Dougan, Hannes M. Wiesner, Roger B. Varela, Brooke Morath, Lin Zhang, Wei Chen, and Xiao-Hong Zhu.</p></p>
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<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/new-study-reveals-risk-factors-for-suicidal-thoughts-in-people-with-gambling-problems/" 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 study reveals risk factors for suicidal thoughts in people with gambling problems</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Mar 12th 2026, 12:00</div>
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<p><p>A recent study published in the journal <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2026.108616" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Addictive Behaviors</a></em> provides evidence that nearly one in five people seeking help for gambling problems experiences suicidal thoughts. The research suggests that factors like overwhelming debt and a lack of social support increase this risk for both men and women. These findings highlight the severe mental health consequences of gambling addiction while pointing to a need for stronger prevention and support systems.</p>
<p>The researchers wanted to identify the specific mechanisms that contribute to gambling-related suicidality across different genders. Past evidence suggests that the relationship between gambling and suicidal thoughts is highly complex. It is often influenced by underlying psychological conditions, personality traits, and severe financial ruin.</p>
<p>By examining men and women separately, the scientists hoped to uncover unique risk factors that could improve targeted mental health treatments. Identifying these specific warning signs is a necessary step for preventing severe mental health crises in vulnerable populations. Understanding how different people experience gambling harm allows health professionals to offer better, more personalized care.</p>
<p>“We know that gambling can lead to suicidality. However, less research has looked at the risk factors that make some individuals who gamble more likely to have suicidal thoughts. For this study, we had an exceptionally large dataset of individuals who have problems with their gambling. This allowed us to investigate risk factors for suicidality with statistical methods and separately for men and women,” explained study author <a href="https://researchportal.helsinki.fi/fi/persons/virve-marionneau/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Virve Marionneau</a>, an associate professor and director of <a href="https://www.helsinki.fi/en/researchgroups/addiction-control-and-governance" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Centre for Research on Addictions, Control and Governance</a> at the University of Helsinki.</p>
<p>The scientists analyzed data from 2,800 adults who enrolled in a Finnish online help program for gambling problems between 2019 and 2024. The sample included 1,746 men and 1,054 women. These individuals were seeking assistance through an eight-week online treatment program that included self-help materials, peer support, and professional counseling.</p>
<p>Because the program was available online and offered a low barrier to entry, it reached a wide variety of people experiencing addiction. Upon entering the program, participants completed detailed questionnaires about their gambling habits and overall physical and mental well-being. The researchers measured suicidal ideation, which refers to having active thoughts about ending one’s own life.</p>
<p>They used a standard clinical depression rating scale that asked participants about their will to live over the past three days. Those who reported feeling that death was a possible way out or their only salvation were classified as experiencing suicidal thoughts. The survey also asked participants to identify which specific gambling products caused them problems over the past year.</p>
<p>These products included electronic gambling machines, which are similar to digital slot machines found in casinos or online. They also looked at online casino table games, sports betting, online bingo, and online poker. The researchers measured gambling-related debt by asking participants if they currently owed money due to their betting habits.</p>
<p>To understand other behavioral risks, the scientists assessed at-risk alcohol consumption using a standard screening tool. At-risk drinking refers to alcohol consumption habits that increase the chances of negative physical or mental health outcomes. Finally, they evaluated the presence of personal social support, meaning whether participants had reliable friends or family to turn to during stressful life events.</p>
<p>The analysis revealed that 19.8 percent of all respondents experienced recent suicidal thoughts. This issue was notably more common among women. The data showed that 25.5 percent of the women reported suicidal thoughts, compared to 16.4 percent of the men.</p>
<p>For both genders, a lack of social support emerged as the strongest predictor of suicidal ideation. People who felt they had no one to turn to during difficult times were at a much higher risk of considering suicide. This suggests that isolation plays a massive role in the psychological toll of addiction.</p>
<p>Having gambling-related debt also provided evidence of a heightened risk for suicidal thoughts in both men and women. The financial burden of owing large sums of money can act as a direct catalyst for severe emotional distress and hopelessness. The severity of a person’s gambling problem was another shared risk factor.</p>
<p>As the intensity of the gambling addiction increased, the likelihood of experiencing suicidal thoughts tended to rise as well. The researchers found a unique difference between the genders when examining alcohol consumption. At-risk alcohol use significantly increased the chances of suicidal ideation among women. For men, heavy drinking did not show a statistically significant link to suicidal thoughts in this specific context.</p>
<p>The study found no statistical link between specific gambling games and suicidal thoughts. “This was surprising because some prior evidence suggests that suicidality may be more common with people who gamble with fast-paced online gambling products (casino, slots),” Marionneau told PsyPost.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, most participants reported that fast-paced games, such as online electronic slots and online casino products, caused them the most harm. These rapid-play games allow users to place bets continuously without a break, which tends to lead to quick financial losses.</p>
<p>The researchers caution against misinterpreting the lack of a link between specific games and suicidal thoughts. It does not mean that fast-paced online casino games are safe to play.</p>
<p>“Almost 65% of our full sample reported experiencing problems due to online slots, and 48% reported experiencing problems due to online casino products,” Marionneau noted. “These fast-paced online products are causing significant harm in the full sample, not only for those who report suicidal thoughts.”</p>
<p>The researchers suggest that because these highly addictive games were so widely used by almost everyone in the sample, it was difficult to isolate their specific impact on suicidal thoughts.</p>
<p>The study also has some limitations based on its sample. Because the participants were all individuals actively seeking help, they do not perfectly represent the general population of people who gamble. People seeking treatment often experience more severe problems than those who do not seek help.</p>
<p>Many individuals with gambling problems never seek assistance due to feelings of shame, social stigma, or a lack of accessible services. As a result, the rates of suicidal thoughts seen in this study might be higher than what exists in the general public. Still, studying help-seekers provides a clear picture of those experiencing the most acute gambling harms.</p>
<p>“Next, we are planning to look at risk-factors for gambling-related suicidality in a representative population sample,” Marionneau said. “It will be important to compare findings from the population-level to these findings from a help-seeking population.”</p>
<p>“Our results highlight that gambling-related suicidality is a public health issue, driven by commercial and social determinants. Anyone suffering from suicidal thoughts due to gambling should know that help is available. As societies, we should also ensure that preventive measures are adequate. Improved prevention would require, among other things, stricter regulations on gambling industry practices as well as disenabling gambling with debt money.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2026.108616" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gender-specific risk factors for gambling-related suicidal ideation: Evidence from a help-seeking population</a>,” was authored by Virve Marionneau, Sara Havuaho, and Håkan Wall.</p></p>
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<p><strong>Forwarded by:<br />
Michael Reeder LCPC<br />
Baltimore, MD</strong></p>
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