It's only funny if we say it: Disparagement humor is better received if it originates from a member of the group being disparaged

It's only funny if we say it: Disparagement humor is better received if it originates from a member of the group being disparaged. Michael Thai, Alex M.Borgella, Melanie S. Sanchez. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, Volume 85, November 2019, 103838. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2019.103838

Abstract: Three studies investigated whether disparagement humor would be received more positively if the source of the humor is part of the group being disparaged than if they are not a member of the disparaged group. In Study 1, participants examined a straight or gay source making either a disparaging joke targeting gay people or a control joke not disparaging gay people. In Study 2, participants examined a White, Black, or Asian source making a disparaging joke targeting Asian people. In Study 3, participants evaluated how generally acceptable it was for members of different social groups to make certain disparaging jokes. In all three studies, participants evaluated disparagement humor more favorably if the source belonged to the group being disparaged than if they did not. These findings uncover a conventional wisdom in the domain of disparagement humor – it is more permissible for people to make disparaging jokes about their own social groups.

Fellow travellers in cognitive evolution: Co-evolution of working memory and mental time travel? Mental time travel is not a privilege of the mammalian brain

Fellow travellers in cognitive evolution: Co-evolution of working memory and mental time travel? Dorothea Dere, Armin Zlomuzica, Ekrem Dere. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, Volume 105, October 2019, Pages 94-105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.07.016

Highlights
• Co-evolution of working memory and mental time travel.
• Complex working memory function is a prerequisite for higher cognition.
• Mental time travel is not a privilege of the mammalian brain.

Abstract: Humans spend the lion’s share of their mental life either in their personal past or an anticipated or imagined future. This type of mental state is known as mental time travel. It is perhaps the most sophisticated and fitness-promoting cognition that has evolved in humans and with some reservation in animals. We have proposed that working memory capacity and the complexity of executive functions within working memory might limit the authenticity with which past events are reconstructed and anticipated or imagined future scenarios are constructed. In the present article, we discuss the possibility of a co-evolution between working memory capacity, complexity of executive functions available in the working memory workspace, and mental time travel abilities across species. We further assume that a complex working memory system can be constructed with quite different brains and conclude that the advanced cognitive function of thinking about the past and the future might not be a privilege of the mammalian brain.

Keywords: Mental time travelWorking memoryEpisodic-like memoryFellow traveller hypothesisTheory of mindAnimal cognitionWhat, where and when object memorySense of subjective timeAutonoetic consciousness

Political conservatism was associated with lower pro‐environmental attitudes, but also with greater concern for the future generations

Politics, concern for future generations, and the environment: Generativity mediates political conservatism and environmental attitudes. Michael D. Barnett  William P. Archuleta  Christina Cantu. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, August 10 2019. https://doi.org/10.1111/jasp.12624

Abstract: Climate change and pollution impact those alive today as well as future generations, suggesting that attitudes toward future generations may be linked with environmental attitudes. Despite the widespread impact of the environmental on human lives, there is considerable partisan divide in the United States with regards to environmental issues. We investigated relationships between political conservatism, generativity, and environmental attitudes in two studies (N = 429 and N = 618). Political conservatism was associated with lower pro‐environmental attitudes; however, political conservatism was also associated with higher generativity and had a positive indirect effect on pro‐environmental attitudes through higher generativity. More politically conservative individuals may have greater concern for future life and thereby have more pro‐environmental attitudes even while having lower pro‐environmental attitudes overall. These results likely reflect partisan polarization with regard to environmental issues. Pro‐environmental messages may be more persuasive for conservatives if they are linked to concerns about future generations.

From an evolutionary perspective, sexual stimuli are highly salient & are assumed to be processed with high priority, but impact is less than expected; men are higher propensity to distraction/interference

Attentional bias towards and distractibility by sexual cues: A meta-analytic integration. J. Strahler, A. M. Baranowski, B. Walter, N. Huebner, R. Stark. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, August 12 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.07.015

Highlights
• Sexual cues bias and divert attention but the actual extent remains unclear.
• Greater attentional bias for sexual cues is assumed in men.
• 32 studies provided 41 effects sizes with 13 studies examining gender differences.
• Attentional bias to and distractibility by sexual cues was less than expected (gz = 0.43).
• Results implicated higher attentional bias/interference in men (gs = 0.29).

Abstract: From an evolutionary perspective, sexual stimuli are highly salient and are assumed to be processed with high priority. Hence, attentional processing of sexual cues is expected to not only bias attention but to also distract from other cognitive (foreground) tasks. It is, however, unclear to what extent these stimuli capture attention and whether there are differences between men and women. This meta-analysis combined the results of 32 studies employing experiments of attentional bias towards and distraction by sexual stimuli. From these, 13 studies provided data to examine gender differences. Overall, attentional bias and distractibility was lower than anticipated (gz = 0.43, p < .001) and there was support for the assumption of higher attention bias/interference in men (gs = 0.29, p = 0.031). Importantly, there was evidence for the presence of publication bias. With this in mind, findings are discussed in the context of stimulus features, the impact of provoked sexual arousal and motivational state, and gender-specific and -nonspecific neural processing of sexual stimuli which influence attention towards them.

Childhood obesity has grown from 5% in 1978 to 18.5% in 2016; the rate of increase in childhood obesity has slowed from 2004 to 2016

Understanding recent trends in childhood obesity in the United States. Patricia M. Anderson, Kristin F. Butcher, Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach. Economics & Human Biology, Volume 34, August 2019, Pages 16-25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ehb.2019.02.002

Highlights
• Childhood obesity has grown from 5% in 1978 to 18.5% in 2016.
• The rate of increase in childhood obesity has slowed from 2004 to 2016.
• Cohort-level obesity increases through age 10 and is steady through age 18.
• 5 year olds in 2010 were 2 percentage points more likely to be obese than in 1997.
• The rate of obesity growth from kindergarten to 3rd grade has recently declined.

Abstract: The prevalence of childhood obesity in the United States has more than tripled over the last four decades from 5 percent in 1978 to 18.5 percent in 2016. There is evidence for a break in trend in recent years: after growing from 0.4 to 0.7 percentage point per year between 1978 and 2004, the rate of increase has slowed to 0.1 percentage point per year from 2004 to 2016. To better understand these trends, in this paper we analyze a range of datasets that collect information on childhood obesity. We analyze the data overall, across the age distribution, across birth cohorts, and for subgroups of interest. We find steady increases in cohort-level obesity prevalence through approximately age 10, with levels unchanged thereafter, suggesting a need for additional interventions at early ages. We find that the prevalence of obesity has diverged by race and gender in recent years, especially among children entering kindergarten. Compared with 5-year-olds in 1997, 5-year-olds in 2010 were 2 percentage points more likely to be obese overall. Black and Hispanic 5-year-olds were 5 and 3 percentage points more likely to be obese, respectively, while whites had a 1 percentage point increase in obesity. However, overall and among all subgroups the rate of growth in obesity from kindergarten through 3rd grade has declined in recent years. Together, these findings can inform a future research literature that aims to target obesity interventions where they will be most impactful.

Individuals scoring high on dark personality exhibited a preference for inner-city, relative to suburban or rural living; no relationships between dark personality & the population densities of where participants had lived

Fido, Dean, Alice Rees, Philip Clarke, Dominic Petronzi, and Miles Richardson. 2019. “Examining the Connection Between Nature Connectedness and Dark Personality.” PsyArXiv. August 6. doi:10.31234/osf.io/shd7v

Abstract: The psychological construct of nature connectedness - the depth of an individual’s relationship with the natural world - has not only been associated with benefits for mental well-being but has also shown relationships with personality traits relevant to the dark personality literature. These include agreeableness, cognitive and affective empathy, and callous and uncaring traits. Across two independently-sampled studies we delineate relationships between explicit and implicit indices of nature connectedness and dark personality. In Study 1 (N = 304), psychopathy (and Machiavellianism) was associated with self-reported, but not implicitly-measured, nature connectedness. Moreover, individuals scoring high on dark personality exhibited a preference for inner-city, relative to suburban or rural living. In Study 2 (N = 209), we replicated the findings of Study 1 in relation to explicit measures of nature connectedness but did not find further relationships between dark personality and the population densities of where participants had previously lived. Limitations of implicit and pseudo indices of nature connectedness are outlined, and the results are discussed in relation to future research and the potential role of nature connectedness interventions in forensic populations. Pre-registration information: [https://osf.io/2bpwy]. Data, syntax, and manuscript pre-print: [https://osf.io/3mg5d/?view_only=b5c7749d4a7945c5a161f0915a2d0259].

Homophily and minority-group size explain perception biases in social networks

Homophily and minority-group size explain perception biases in social networks. Eun Lee, Fariba Karimi, Claudia Wagner, Hang-Hyun Jo, Markus Strohmaier & Mirta Galesic. Nature Human Behaviour, August 12 2019, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-019-0677-4

Abstract: People’s perceptions about the size of minority groups in social networks can be biased, often showing systematic over- or underestimation. These social perception biases are often attributed to biased cognitive or motivational processes. Here we show that both over- and underestimation of the size of a minority group can emerge solely from structural properties of social networks. Using a generative network model, we show that these biases depend on the level of homophily, its asymmetric nature and on the size of the minority group. Our model predictions correspond well with empirical data from a cross-cultural survey and with numerical calculations from six real-world networks. We also identify circumstances under which individuals can reduce their biases by relying on perceptions of their neighbours. This work advances our understanding of the impact of network structure on social perception biases and offers a quantitative approach for addressing related issues in society.

Somatic perception of floor inclination

Somatic perception of floor inclination. Atsuki Higashiyama, Tadashi Yamazaki. Acta Psychologica, Volume 199, August 2019, 102896. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2019.102896

Abstract: We investigated somatically perceived inclination of a floor on which an observer was. In the first three experiments, using blindfolded observers, we determined the point of subjective equality (PSE) and the difference limen (DL) for horizontal floor. Orientation of the lying body relative to the axis around which the floor was rotated, distance of the lying body from the rotation axis, posture (standing, sitting, and lying), and age were varied. In the fourth experiment, effects of seeing the floor were examined. The mean PSEs were accurate within ±0.25° in all experiments. The mean DLs varied with condition: 1) The largest DLs were obtained for the blindfolded observers lying orthogonally or obliquely to the rotation axis, 2) the second largest DLs for the blindfolded observers lying parallel to the rotation axis, 3) medium DLs for the blindfolded observers sitting or standing, and 4) the smallest DLs for the standing observers with visual exposure to surroundings. In the last experiment, we determined a scale for inclination from verbally estimating apparent inclination with or without a blindfold. We concluded that the ratio of shear force to normal force was used for estimation of inclination. We discussed synergy of somatic inputs and visual inputs.

Socially excluded people indicate higher levels of darkness in perceptual judgments, & desire more brightness in a compensatory response; this coupling is not mediated by mood or needs but seems to exist more directly

Out of the dark, into the light: The impact of social exclusion on judgments of darkness and brightness. Michaela Pfundmair, Sarah K. Danböck, Maria Agthe. Acta Psychologica, Volume 199, August 2019, 102901. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2019.102901

Highlights
•    Socially excluded people indicate higher levels of darkness in perceptual judgments.
•    Socially excluded people desire more brightness in a compensatory response.
•    This coupling is not mediated by mood or needs but seems to exist more directly.

Abstract: Based on theories of grounded cognition, we assumed that the experience of social exclusion is grounded in a concept of darkness. Specifically, we hypothesized that social exclusion causes perceptual judgments of darkness and a preference for brightness as a compensatory response. To investigate these hypotheses, we conducted four studies using different manipulations and measurements. In Studies 1a and 1b, excluded participants judged a picturized room as darker and drew more attention to its brightest part than included participants. In Study 2, excluded participants judged a surface as darker and decided for brighter clothing than included participants. In Study 3, excluded participants judged their lab room as darker and expressed a higher preference for brightness than included participants. Providing consistent support for our hypotheses, these findings confirm the idea that the experience of social exclusion is grounded in multiple ways that share a common representational system.

Aversion to organs donated by suicide victims: The role of psychological essentialism

Aversion to organs donated by suicide victims: The role of psychological essentialism. Evan R. Balkcom et al. Cognition, Volume 192, November 2019, 104037. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2019.104037

Abstract: People are known to be susceptible to psychological essentialism when reasoning about organ transplantation, believing that the mental characteristics of the donor will transfer to the recipient. Because psychological essentialism is exacerbated in negative social contexts (i.e., moral contagion bias), the effect may be especially apparent when people consider the impact of receiving organs from donors who died by stigmatized causes, such as suicide and homicide. In a forced-choice paradigm, participants overwhelmingly ranked a suicide victim as their least preferred donor, with accident victims being the most preferred donors and homicide victims the most common second choice. In a follow-up study, we investigated the psychological mechanisms underlying this unease about suicide donors. Compared to those who imagined receiving a heart from homicide or accident victims, participants who imagined a suicide donor expressed greater unease about the source of their transplant. The effect could not be explained by participants’ rumination about the source of the transplant, or by the explicitly perceived stigma of suicide, but did depend on their essentialist beliefs. Those who believed that negative or neutral (but not positive) traits of the donor could transfer to them were more hesitant about receiving a heart from a suicide relative to other donors. These data suggest that the bias against suicide organ donors is moderated by socially relevant essentialist beliefs.

Informing and persuading conversational partners are still main functions of everyday conversations on mass media; we do rarely criticize mass media references of our conversational partners or introduce alternative media content

The role of mass media in everyday conversations: A comparison of two covert field observations. Nicole Podschuweit, Publizistik, August 2019, Volume 64, Issue 3, pp 303–327. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11616-019-00506-1

Abstract
This field study offers direct insights into how people deal with mass media content in their everyday communication on a broad empirical basis. It was inspired by a covert field observation Hans Mathias Kepplinger and Verena Martin conducted in the late 1970s. Back then, the authors concluded that interpersonal communication primarily reinforces mass media effects because interlocutors aim at informing and persuading their conversational partners by referring to mass media in most instances. During the last decades, many researchers in the field of media-stimulated interpersonal communication referred to their findings. However, this study is the first successful replication attempt. Furthermore, it represents a theoretical as well as a methodological extension of the pioneering study. The purpose of this elaborate and costly undertaking was to put the authors’ thesis of the mediating role of interpersonal communication to the empirical test.

The theoretical starting point are two basic assumptions: First, how strongly interpersonal communication intervenes in the process of mass media effects depends on how salient mass media content is in people’s everyday conversations. Second, whether interpersonal communication intervenes in the process of mass media effects as a mediator or a moderator depends on the consonance or dissonance of mass media’s presentation and interpersonal perception: If interlocutors pass mass media content on to others, interpersonal communication is supposed to reinforce mass media effects. However, if they strongly modify the mass media content they refer to, interpersonal communication is rather supposed to weaken or hinder mass media effects. Functions of media references for the group are supposed to be an important predictor for the role of interpersonal communication in the process of mass media effects. Reinforcing effects of interpersonal communication are especially likely when the interlocutors use mass media as “opportune witnesses” to inform others on facts or to convince them of a certain opinion. In view of the strong differentiation of today’s media scene, it was assumed that mass media content is now more often the subject of conversation than in the late 1970s; that media-stimulated interpersonal communication is increasingly fulfilling the function of affective processing of mass media content; that other interlocutors are more likely to respond with criticism or references to alternative media content.

To (re)define the role of interpersonal communication in the process of mass media effects, the study by Kepplinger and Martin (1986) was compared to a current covert field observation of everyday conversations. The current field study was conducted in spring 2016 in two medium-sized German cities. In both studies, small groups with two up to five members were observed in four different environments: (1) restaurants; (2) on the street, in public places and public transport; (3) at the university as well as (4) in private homes. Public conversations were captured in real time using a highly standardized coding scheme. Private conversations were first recorded and coded afterwards. In public, the observed interlocutors were debriefed. In the private sphere, interlocutors were additionally asked for their informed consents several days before the observation was conducted. The empirical analyses are based on 180 everyday conversations with 480 participants observed in 1979 as well as 1537 everyday conversations with 3961 participants captured in 2016.

Three key findings of the comparison between the two studies are: First, against the theoretical assumptions, mass media and their content are less salient in current everyday conversations than in times when media use focused on regional newspapers and public service broadcasting in Germany. An obvious explanation is that interpersonal intersection of media repertoires has become smaller in many conversational contexts. According to this study, it is largest in the private sphere, where people use mass media together most frequently and thus also talk about mass media most frequently. In public, the interlocutors usually generate a common meeting ground by focusing on private topics.

Second, television continues to play an important role in media-stimulated conversations. However, content of online mass media is at least as relevant for interpersonal communication today. While conversations on television are driven by a need for affective processing in the first instance, conversations on online mass media content primarily fulfill an informative function. From a methodological point of view, it is important to mention that the exact frequency of television and Internet references cannot by determined on the sole basis of an observational study. This is due to the fact that types of mass media can no longer be clearly differentiated by outside observers in the age of the Internet. Against this background, survey studies are a reasonable supplement.

Third, informing and persuading conversational partners are still main functions of everyday conversations on mass media. Although people can rely on a huge range of information today, they do still rarely criticize mass media references of their conversational partners or introduce alternative media content. Actually, the observed interlocutors mostly agreed with the mass media contents others referred to. The findings therefore suggest that interpersonal communication still mediates and thus strengthens mass media effects in the current mass media scene. With this study it has to be added, however, that mass media are often supposed to fulfill further functions for interpersonal communication, e.g., affective processing of mass media content.

Keywords: Interpersonal communication Mass communication Media-stimulated communication Covert field observation

Sexual fantasies: More gender similarities than differences; when men and women differed, it was in specific sexual fantasies and interests rather than sexual experiences

More than one flavour: University students’ specific sexual fantasies, interests, and experiences. Pari-Gole Noorishad et al. The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, Volume 28 Issue 2, August 2019, pp. 143-158. https://doi.org/10.3138/cjhs.2019-0024

Abstract: Sexual fantasies, interests, and experiences are three important aspects of human sexual expression that likely are related yet distinct. Updated and comprehensive information on patterns in these three areas of sexual expression is important for developing knowledge on the extent to which fantasies are distinct from interests and experiences as well as whether social sexual norms are changing. Thus, the overall goal of this study was to explore patterns in university students’ sexual expression. Participants (N = 236; 65 men, 171 women) completed a background questionnaire and a measure of 43 specific sexual fantasies, interests, and experiences. We used Joyal, Cossette, and Lapierre’s (2015) categories to determine which specific fantasies, interests, and experiences were typical, common, uncommon, unusual, and rare. The results suggested that typical and common fantasies, interests, and experiences are those that fit with sexual norms and evolutionary pressures. However, some activities that fall outside of social norms, or evolutionary benefits, may be common or uncommon, rather than unusual or rare. For the most part, the prevalence and diversity of sexual fantasies aligned closely with sexual interests. We found more gender similarities than differences; when men and women differed, it was in specific sexual fantasies and interests rather than sexual experiences. Our findings suggest that young men and women fantasize about, are interested in, and engage in diverse sexual activities that are somewhat guided by social norms and evolutionary pressures. These findings provide novel, contemporary information on social norms, gender similarities, and diversity in young adults’ sexual expression.

KEY WORDS: Gender, sexual diversity, sexual experiences, sexual fantasies, sexual interests

Sex dreams: Gender, erotophilia, and sociosexuality as predictors of content, valence, and frequency

Sex dreams: Gender, erotophilia, and sociosexuality as predictors of content, valence, and frequency. Amira Hmidan. The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, Volume 28 Issue 2, August 2019, pp. 177-189. https://doi.org/10.3138/cjhs.2019-0022

Abstract: The continuity hypothesis suggests that dream content is directly related to waking life experiences, personality traits, and gender; however, little is known about sexual dreaming. To address this gap, the current study examined how gender, sociosexuality (one’s willingness to engage in sexual relations outside of committed relationships) and erotophilia (a learned disposition to respond positively to sexual stimuli) related to the content, frequency, and valence of sexual dreams. Participants (n = 482) completed an online survey assessing their sex dream experiences, sociosexuality, and erotophilia and were asked to describe their most recent sexual dream. Men scored higher on sociosexuality and sex dream valence than women, but there were no gender differences in erotophilia or sex dream frequency. Individuals who scored higher on sociosexuality and erotophilia reported experiencing more frequent sex dreams and evaluated them more positively. Hierarchical regression analysis demonstrated that erotophilia and sociosexuality significantly predicted sex dream valence, accounting for 24.3% of the variance. The addition of gender at step 2 was significant, but only accounted for an additional 1.9% of the variance. Participants’ descriptions of their most recent sex dream were analyzed for common themes related to variables such as the partner(s) involved (most common: current partner), location (most common: house/apartment), and types of sexual behaviors involved (most common: kissing). Exploratory analyses, limitations, and future directions are discussed.

KEY WORDS: Dreaming, erotophilia, gender differences, sex dreams, sociosexuality

From 2018... When Intimate Partner Violence Meets Same Sex Couples: A Review of Same Sex Intimate Partner Violence

From 2018...  When Intimate Partner Violence Meets Same Sex Couples: A Review of Same Sex Intimate Partner Violence. Luca Rollè, Giulia Giardina, Angela M. Caldarera, Eva Gerino and Piera Brustia. Front. Psychol., August 21 2018, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01506. Corrigendum: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01706/full

Abstract: Over the past few decades, the causes of and intervention for intimate partner violence (IPV) have been approached and studied. This paper presents a narrative review on IPV occurring in same sex couples, that is, same sex IPV (SSIPV). Despite the myth that IPV is exclusively an issue in heterosexual relationships, many studies have revealed the existence of IPV among lesbian and gay couples, and its incidence is comparable to (Turell, 2000) or higher than that among heterosexual couples (Messinger, 2011; Kelley et al., 2012). While similarities between heterosexual and lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) IPV were found, unique features and dynamics were present in LGB IPV. Such features are mainly related to identification and treatment of SSIPV in the community and to the need of taking into consideration the role of sexual minority stressors. Our findings show there is a lack of studies that address LGB individuals involved in IPV; this is mostly due to the silence that has historically existed around violence in the LGB community, a silence built on fears and myths that have obstructed a public discussion on the phenomenon. We identified the main themes discussed in the published studies that we have reviewed here. The reviews lead us to the conclusion that it is essential to create a place where this subject can be freely discussed and approached, both by LGB and heterosexual people.

Peer Status Position within School-Based Hierarchies and Excessive Fat Accumulation in Adulthood—A 30 Year Follow up of a Stockholm Cohort

Rojas, Y.; Almquist, Y.B. Peer Status Position within School-Based Hierarchies and Excessive Fat Accumulation in Adulthood—A 30 Year Follow up of a Stockholm Cohort. Behav. Sci. 2019, 9, 85. August 9 2019. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs9080085

Abstract: Disadvantaged socioeconomic status is arguably the one exposure that has most consistently been linked to obesity, even more strongly so than diet and physical inactivity, which are the two main perceived root causes of weight gain. However, we still know very little about the relationship between having a disadvantaged social position and excessive fat accumulation, particularly when it comes to whether the relationship in question can also be seen as a long-term one, i.e., spanning from childhood to adulthood. By making use of the unique Stockholm Birth Cohort Multigenerational Study, the present study uses generalized ordered logistic regressions to examine the association between sociometrically assessed peer status position in school at age 13 and excessive fat accumulation at age 32. The results suggest that the odds of having excessive fat accumulation are about 0.5 times lower among popular and accepted children (ORs = 0.52 and 0.56, respectively), compared to those with a marginalized peer status position, independent of other obesogenic risk factors measured both prior and subsequent to peer status position. Our results give support to the notion that improved weight status may be another positive consequence of policies aiming to increase social inclusion within schools.

Keywords: body mass index (BMI); peer status; school; overweight; obesity; Sweden

Lizards prefer to defecate on the largest rock in the territory

Where to do number two: Lizards prefer to defecate on the largest rock in the territory. Simon Baeckens et al. Behavioural Processes, August 7 2019, 103937. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2019.103937

Highlights
•    In the lab, we examined defecation behaviour of wild-caught Dalmatian wall lizards
•    Lizards preferred to defecate on the largest rock around
•    Defecation site preference did not differ between sexes and among populations
•    Faecal pellets deposited on large rocks may increase visual detectability of faeces

Abstract: Many animals use their excrements to communicate with others. In order to increase signal efficacy, animals often behaviourally select for specific defecation sites that maximize the detectability of their faecal deposits, such as the tip of rocks by some lizard species. However, the field conditions in which these observations are made make it difficult to reject alternative explanations of defecation site preference; rock tips may also provide better opportunities for thermoregulation, foraging, or escaping predators, and not solely for increasing the detectability of excrements. In addition, we still know little on whether lizard defecation behaviour varies within-species. In this laboratory study, we take an experimental approach to test defecation site preference of Podarcis melisellensis lizards in a standardized setting, and assess whether preferences differ between sexes, and among populations. Our findings show that in an environment where all stones provide equal thermoregulatory advantage, prey availability, and predator pressure, lizards still select for the largest stone in their territory as preferred defecation site. Moreover, we demonstrate that lizards’ defecation preference is a strong conservative behaviour, showing no significant intraspecific variation. Together, these findings corroborate the idea that lizards may defecate on prominent rocky substrates in order to increase (visual) detectability of the deposited faecal pellets.

Despite being frequently classified as a “basic” emotion, full-fledged disgust develops considerably later than all other basic emotions; being disgusting is heavily contingent upon cultural learning

Developing Disgust: Theory, Measurement, and Application. Joshua Rottman, Jasmine DeJesus, Heather Greenebaum. Handbook of Emotional Development pp 283-309, July 5 2019. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-17332-6_12

Abstract: Disgust is a complex and uncharacteristic emotion. Despite being frequently classified as a “basic” emotion, disgust has a wide range of elicitors, many competing functional theories, and a protracted developmental trajectory. This chapter first reviews several ultimate explanations of disgust, highlighting how scholars historically privileged symbolic explanations, while most contemporary researchers believe disgust to be an adaptive pathogen avoidance mechanism. After a brief discussion of techniques for measuring disgust, we describe the current knowledge of the development of disgust, with special attention to the ways in which disgust influences food choice and contributes to contamination sensitivity. While certain aspects of disgust may be universal, its emergence is largely enculturated and its expression is highly variable. We conclude by discussing the ways in which the study of disgust carries practical implications for the diagnosis and treatment of psychopathologies, for nutrition, and for the implementation of public health initiatives. Although scholarly interest in disgust has greatly increased during recent years, there is still much room for further exploration of this enigmatic emotion.

Keywords: Disgust Development Childhood Avoidance Disease Emotion Food

How different type of comments (emotional/factual content, supportive/contradicting content, low/high number of likes) could influence the credibility of the associated information? Seems that nothing at all

Martončik, Marcel, and Matus Adamkovic. 2019. “Comments' Influence on Message Credibility.” PsyArXiv. July 31. doi:10.31234/osf.io/euj9m

Abstract: In the present era full of hoaxes, conspiracies, and fake news, the credibility of information is a necessary and important attribute that internet media, and especially news publishers, strive to achieve. It is natural that readers evaluate the trustworthiness of information they read. According to the previous research, such an evaluation could be influenced by many cues, for example, the presence of discussion comments, likes or shares. In the present article, we examine how different type of comments (emotional/factual content, supportive/contradicting content, low/high number of likes) could influence the credibility of the associated information. The research sample consisted of 924 participants from Slovakia. Using a path analysis and MANCOVA, none of the experimental conditions had a substantial effect on the perceived message credibility. The obtained results contradict the existing empirical evidence. One of the explanations of the null results might dwell in the underpowered design of the existing studies. Many of them have low sensitivity to detect even medium effects or are absenting any form of corrections of the family-wise error rate.

Spider monkeys are more sensitive to the taste of ethanol than rats and humans, and they prefer ecologically relevant suprathreshold concentrations of ethanol over water

Taste responsiveness of spider monkeys to dietary ethanol. Daniel Dausch Ibañez, Laura Teresa Hernandez Salazar, Matthias Laska. Chemical Senses, August 11 2019, bjz049, https://doi.org/10.1093/chemse/bjz049

Abstract: Recent studies suggest that frugivorous primates might display a preference for the ethanol produced by microbia in overripe, fermenting fruit as an additional source of calories. We therefore assessed the taste responsiveness of eight spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) to the range of ethanol concentrations found in overripe, fermenting fruit (0.05-3.0%) and determined taste preference thresholds as well as relative taste preferences for ethanol presented in sucrose solutions and in fruit matrices, respectively. Using a two-bottle preference test of short duration (1 min) we found that spider monkeys are able to detect ethanol concentrations as low as 0.5%, that they prefer ethanol concentrations up to 3% over water, and that they prefer sucrose solutions and pureed fruit spiked with ethanol over equimolar sucrose solutions and pureed fruit without ethanol. However, when presented with an ethanol-spiked sucrose solution and a higher-concentrated sucrose solution without ethanol the animals clearly preferred the latter, even when the sucrose-ethanol mixture contained three times more calories. These results demonstrate that spider monkeys are more sensitive to the taste of ethanol than rats and humans, and that they prefer ecologically relevant suprathreshold concentrations of ethanol over water. Tests with sucrose solutions and pureed fruits that were either spiked with ethanol or not suggest that sweetness may be more important for the preferences displayed by the spider monkeys than the calories provided by ethanol. The present results therefore do not support the notion that dietary ethanol might be used by frugivorous primates as a supplemental source of calories.

Keywords: dietary ethanol, taste preference threshold, relative taste preference, spider monkeys, Ateles geoffroyi

Orgasm, gender, and responses to heterosexual casual sex

Orgasm, gender, and responses to heterosexual casual sex. Jennifer L. Piemonte, Terri D. Conley, Staci Gusakova. Personality and Individual Differences, Volume 151, 1 December 2019, 109487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2019.06.030

Abstract: There is a persistent gender difference in how positively young adults react to casual sex, with men reporting slightly more positive responses than women. Multiple factors have been studied as possible explanations for the gender difference, but nothing has completely accounted the variance between women and men's responses to casual sex. Although prior research identifies sexual pleasure as a primary factor associated with positive responses, women and men may understand or report on this construct differently due to gendered socialization, making it difficult to compare responses across groups. One measure that is less subject to subjective interpretation or response bias may be whether a person orgasms during a given casual sex encounter. In the present research, we test the relationships between gender, orgasm, and reactions following most recent casual sex encounter across three samples of young adults. Results indicate that orgasm mediates the gender difference in how positively participants respond to casual sex. Specifically, men are more likely to orgasm during casual sex, and people who orgasm during casual sex are more likely to experience positive reactions afterwards. Therefore, while gender may be one way to describe the discrepancy in how positive people feel following casual sex, orgasm explains it.

Keywords: Casual sexGender differencesEmotional reactionsOrgasmEmerging adults

Parrots Voluntarily Help Each Other to Obtain Food Rewards

Brucks, Désirée and von Bayern, Auguste, Parrots Voluntarily Help Each Other to Obtain Food Rewards (July 26, 2019). CURRENT-BIOLOGY-D-19-01163. SSRN: http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3427278

Abstract: Helping others to obtain benefits, even at a cost to oneself (altruism), poses an evolutionary puzzle (Clutton-Brock 2009). While kin selection explains such ‘selfless’ acts amongst relatives, only reciprocity (paying back received favours) entails fitness benefits for unrelated individuals (Taborsky et al. 2016). So far, experimental evidence for both altruistic helping and reciprocal altruism has been reported in a few mammals but no avian species (Massen et al. 2015). In order to gain insights into the evolutionary origin of altruistic helping and reciprocity, the capacity for altruism of non-mammalian species needs to be investigated. We tested two parrot species in an instrumental helping paradigm involving ‘token transfer’. Here, actors could provide tokens to their neighbour, who could exchange them with an experimenter for food. To verify whether the parrots understood the task’s contingencies, we systematically varied the presence of a partner and the possibility for exchange. We found that African grey parrots voluntarily and spontaneously transferred tokens to conspecific partners, whereas significantly fewer transfers occurred in the control conditions. Additionally, transfers were affected by the strength of the dyads’ affiliation and partially by the receivers’ attention-getting behaviours. Furthermore, the birds reciprocated the help once the roles were reversed. Blue-headed macaws, in contrast, transferred hardly any tokens. Species differences in social tolerance might explain this discrepancy. These findings show that altruistic helping based on a prosocial attitude, accompanied but not necessarily sustained by reciprocity, is present in parrots, suggesting that this capacity evolved convergently in this avian group and mammals.

Keywords: altruism, altruistic helping, prosociality, parrots, reciprocity, social tolerance

School Enjoyment at Age 6 Predicts Later Educational Achievement as Strongly as Socioeconomic Background and Gender

Morris, Tim, Danny Dorling, Neil M. Davies, and George D. Smith. 2019. “School Enjoyment at Age 6 Predicts Later Educational Achievement as Strongly as Socioeconomic Background and Gender.” SocArXiv. August 10. doi:10.31235/osf.io/e6c37

Abstract: Education is influenced by a broad range of factors including socioeconomic background, cognitive ability, and the school environment. However, there has been limited research into the role that school enjoyment, particularly at the start of schooling, plays in the development of pupil’s education and their final attainment. In this study we used data from a UK cohort, the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children to answer three related research questions. Is school enjoyment patterned by gender, socioeconomic background of cognitive ability? How well does school enjoyment explain later educational attainment? Does early school enjoyment at age 6 explain social or gender differences in later educational attainment at age 16? Our results show that school enjoyment measured at age 6 associates with gender and cognitive ability, but not with family socioeconomic background. For example, girls were over two and half times more likely to report enjoying school than boys (OR: 2.62; 95% Confidence Interval: 2.11, 3.24). School enjoyment and later attainment were also associated, whereby pupils who reported enjoying school at both ages scored on average 29.9 (20.2, 39.6) more points, equivalent to a 5-grade increase across all GCSE’s, and were 72% more likely to obtain 5+ A*-C GCSE’s including Maths and English (OR: 1.69; 95% CI: 1.38, 2.08) than those who did not enjoy school. Differences in school enjoyment helped to statistically explain the gender attainment gap, with boys’ GCSE attainment more strongly linked to school enjoyment than girls. These results highlight the importance of school enjoyment for educational attainment. As a potentially more modifiable factor than socioeconomic background, cognitive ability or gender, school enjoyment may represent a promising intervention target for reducing educational inequalities and future experimental designs are required to test causation.

Neural Responses to Sexual Stimuli in Heterosexual and Homosexual Men and Women: Men’s Responses Are More Specific

Neural Responses to Sexual Stimuli in Heterosexual and Homosexual Men and Women: Men’s Responses Are More Specific. Adam Safron et al. August 9 2019. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-019-01521-z

Abstract: Patterns of genital arousal in response to gendered sexual stimuli (i.e., sexual stimuli presenting members of only one sex at a time) are more predictive of men’s than of women’s sexual orientations. Additional lines of evidence may shed light on the nature of these differences. We measured neural activation in homosexual and heterosexual men and women using fMRI while they viewed three kinds of gendered sexual stimuli: pictures of nude individuals, pictures of same-sex couples interacting, and videos of individuals self-stimulating. The primary neural region of interest was the ventral striatum (VS), an area of central importance for reward processing. For all three kinds of stimuli and for both VS activation and self-report, men’s responses were more closely related to their sexual orientations compared with women’s. Furthermore, men showed a much greater tendency to respond more positively to stimuli featuring one sex than to stimuli featuring the other sex, leading to higher correlations among men’s responses as well as higher correlations between men’s responses and their sexual orientations. Whole-brain analyses identified several other regions showing a similar pattern to the VS, and none showed an opposite pattern. Because fMRI is measured identically in men and women, our results provide the most direct evidence to date that men’s sexual arousal patterns are more gender specific than women’s.

Keywords: Sexual orientation Sexual arousal fMRI Sex differences Ventral striatum Reward Category specificity

Singles of both sexes expedite reproduction: Shifts in sexual-timing strategies before and after the typical age of female menopause

Singles of both sexes expedite reproduction: Shifts in sexual-timing strategies before and after the typical age of female menopause. Samantha E. Cohen et al. Evolution and Human Behavior, August 10 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2019.08.001

Abstract: How do singles' strategies for engaging in sexual activity with a new partner vary across the adult lifespan? Using three large and independent demographically representative cross-sectional samples of heterosexual single adults in the U.S., we found that females approaching the typical age of menopause became less likely to establish relationship exclusivity prior to sexual activity with a new partner. However, after the typical age of menopausal onset, females returned to earlier levels of commitment choosiness. These changes in commitment choosiness surrounding the age of menopause were consistent across two studies (including a larger dataset combining two samples). Findings suggest that single females approaching menopause—a major life history milestone—alter their behavior to achieve reproductively relevant partnering goals but abandon this mating strategy once the typical reproductive period has ended. Males exhibited similar, though attenuated, changes in expected relationship commitment before sexual activity during midlife as well. Age-related changes in commitment corresponded with the amount of stress expressed regarding one's “biological clock”. However, reduced commitment choosiness did not vary with frequency of sexual thoughts, frequency of sexual behaviors, or external pressures to find a romantic partner. Results are discussed in terms of life history theory and sex differences in sexuality.

Keywords: Reproduction expeditingLife history theorySexual behaviorSexual timingMating strategiesMenopause

Mate choice is generally regarded as an independent event; there is a growing evidence that it can be influenced by social information provided by conspecifics, including to copy mate choice or rejection

Factors that affect non-independent mate choice. Ryan C Scauzillo, Michael H Ferkin
Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, blz112, August 6 2019, https://doi.org/10.1093/biolinnean/blz112

Abstract: Mate choice is generally regarded as an independent event, but a growing body of evidence indicates that it can be influenced by social information provided by conspecifics. This is known as non-independent mate choice. Individuals use information gathered by observing interactions between conspecifics to copy or not copy the mate choice of these conspecifics. In this review, we examine the factors that affect non-independent mate choice and mate choice copying and how it is influenced by social and environmental information that is available to the subject or focal individual. Specifically, we discuss how non-independent mate choice and whether individuals copy the choices of conspecifics can be influenced by factors such as habitat and differences in ecology, mating system and parental care. We focus on the social information provided to the focal animal, the model and the audience. Nearly all studies of non-independent mate choice and mate copying have focused on individuals in species that use visual cues as the source of social information. Nevertheless, we highlight studies that indicate that individuals in some species may use chemical cues and signals as sources of social information that may affect non-independent mate choice and mate copying.

Keywords: audience effect context, focal individuals, mate choice copying, non-independent mate choice, social information

Religiosity significantly correlated with self-report measures of prosociality (r = .15), but among samples using a behavioral measure of prosociality, the effect was only marginally significant (r = .04)

A meta-analysis of religious prosociality. Kelly, John Michael. Thesis, Univ of California at Irvine, 2019. https://escholarship.org/uc/item/74r7n99q

Abstract: This meta-analysis explores the longstanding and heavily debated question of whether religiosity is associated with prosocial and antisocial behavior. In an analysis of 179 effects across 89 samples, encompassing 167,508 participants, a significant relationship of r = .10 was found between religiosity and prosociality. However, substantial heterogeneity of methods was identified, and several potential moderators of this relationship were explored. The effect was most powerfully moderated by the type of measurement used to assess prosocial or antisocial behavior. Religiosity significantly correlated with self-report measures of prosociality at r = .15, but among samples using a behavioral measure of prosociality, the effect was only a marginally significant r = .04. Three possible explanations of this moderation are discussed, namely that 1) lab-based methods do not accurately capture religious prosociality; 2) the self-report effect is explained by religious self-enhancement; or 3) both religiosity and self-reported prosociality are explained by self-enhancement. Recommendations for future research are discussed that may help resolve these possible explanations. Other potential moderators are analyzed, including whether religiosity is differently related to prosocial and antisocial behavior.

Users seek to maintain favorable impressions by balancing personal vs public information, maintaining a sense of authenticity; resending inspirational news seems to threaten that in Twitter

Spreading the Good News: Analyzing Socially Shared Inspirational News Content. Qihao Ji et al. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, December 11, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077699018813096

Abstract: Past research indicates that people often share awe-inspiring news online. However, little is known about the content of those stories. In this study, more broadly defined “inspirational” articles shared through The New York Times website over a 6-month period were analyzed, with the goals of describing the content and identifying characteristics that might predict inspirationality and measures of retransmission. The results provided a snapshot of content found within inspirational news stories; they also revealed that self-transcendent language use predicted the inspirationality of a news story, as well as how long an article appeared on a most shared list.

Keywords: self-transcendent media experiences, inspirational media, news sharing, news retransmission, content analysis

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Twitter was the least likely platform for inspirational news retransmission [...] users generally seek to maintain favorable impressions by balancing the disclosure of personal versus public information, avoiding certain topics of discussion, and maintaining a sense of authenticity. Many inspirational stories might challenge that balance, perhaps being viewed as “too personal” for broadcasting platforms by some users. Such concerns would seemingly be minimized—or perhaps virtually nonexistent—when private or narrowcast communication means (like email) are used to share such content with specific individuals. Additional studies empirically testing these propositions are encouraged.

Why We Verify a News Report? Lower intent to verify when we believe the headline is not true (because of low trust in the source or because it goes against our politics); we verify to win debates

When Do Audiences Verify? How Perceptions About Message and Source Influence Audience Verification of News Headlines. Stephanie Edgerly et al. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, August 5, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077699019864680

Abstract: In today’s media landscape, people are encouraged to verify the news and information they encounter. Using an online experiment, this study explores audience’s intent to verify a news headline by manipulating whether the headline is true or false, from a source that varies in credibility, and perceived to be congruent or incongruent with participants’ partisanship. Results show that participants exhibit a higher intent to verify when they believe the headline is true, which is predicted by perceived congruency with preexisting ideological leanings. We discuss these findings in terms of the normative limitations of audience verification.

Keywords: audience verification, partisanship, news evaluations, motivated reasoning

Côté et al. argue that societies with a higher level of inequality foster a sense of entitlement in high-income individuals, which in turn leads them to be less generous; this last is not reproducible

Does economic inequality moderate the effect of class on prosocial behavior? A large-scale test of a recent hypothesis by Côté et al. Hagen von Hermanni, Andreas Tutić. PLOS, August 9, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0220723

Abstract: Empirical research has provided mixed evidence regarding the question of whether higher social class promotes prosocial behavior. Recently, Côté et al. [1] hypothesized that these conflicting evidences might result from a hitherto neglected interaction between the individual’s level of income and the degree of inequality in one’s society. They argue that societies with a higher level of inequality foster a sense of entitlement in high-income individuals, which in turn leads them to be less generous. We put this reasoning to a large-scale test using observational data from the European Social Survey (ESS) and push the scope of our investigation towards a broader conception of social class, using next to income two additional measures of class. First, we examine whether high-class individuals in societies with high levels of inequality do in fact feel more entitled than their counterparts in more equal societies. While we find that an individual’s class and the disposition towards entitlement are strongly correlated, our results show a negative interaction with inequality, i.e. the effect of class on the personal sense of entitlement is weaker in societies with high levels of inequality. Second, we test whether the effect of class on prosocial behavior is moderated by economic inequality with respect to two real-life acts of prosocial behavior, namely engaging in volunteer work and donating money to a humanitarian organization. Our results indicate a substantial positive effect of class on prosocial behavior throughout, as well as a moderate, yet positive, interaction effect of class and inequality.

One proposed function of imagery is to make thoughts more emotionally evocative through sensory simulations; novel test of this theory utilizing a special population with no visual imagery: Aphantasia

The critical role of mental imagery in human emotion: insights from Aphantasia. Marcus Wicken, Rebecca Keogh, Joel Pearson. bioRxiv, Aug 6 2019. https://doi.org/10.1101/726844

Abstract: One proposed function of imagery is to make thoughts more emotionally evocative through sensory simulations. Here we report a novel test of this theory utilizing a special population with no visual imagery: Aphantasia. After using multi-method verification of aphantasia, we show that this condition, but not the general population, is associated with a flat-line physiological response to frightening written, but not perceptual scenarios, supporting imagery’s critical role in emotion.

Intelligence is a well-studied construct that has correlations with many educational, employment, & health outcomes; there is a lack of education in the area, & so incorrect beliefs about intelligence are widespread

Warne, Russell T., and Jared Z. Burton. 2019. “The Neglected Intelligence Course: Needs and Suggested Solutions.” PsyArXiv. January 8. doi:10.31234/osf.io/epu2s (https://psyarxiv.com/epu2s/)

Abstract: Intelligence is a well-studied construct in psychology that has correlational relationships with many educational, employment, and health outcomes. However, prior research indicates that incorrect beliefs about intelligence are widespread. In an effort to discern the degree to which the psychology curriculum is responsible for these inaccuracies, we collected course descriptions and catalog information from 303 American colleges and universities. We found that college courses dedicated to mainstream intelligence science are rare. Because the lack of intelligence education within psychology is a plausible contributor to incorrect beliefs about intelligence, we present an outline for a college-level course on intelligence. We also provide advice for implementing a course, including course readings and advice for handling controversies.

The human imagination: the cognitive neuroscience of visual mental imagery

The human imagination: the cognitive neuroscience of visual mental imagery. Joel Pearson.
Nature Reviews Neuroscience (2019). August 5 2019. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41583-019-0202-9

Abstract: Mental imagery can be advantageous, unnecessary and even clinically disruptive. With methodological constraints now overcome, research has shown that visual imagery involves a network of brain areas from the frontal cortex to sensory areas, overlapping with the default mode network, and can function much like a weak version of afferent perception. Imagery vividness and strength range from completely absent (aphantasia) to photo-like (hyperphantasia). Both the anatomy and function of the primary visual cortex are related to visual imagery. The use of imagery as a tool has been linked to many compound cognitive processes and imagery plays both symptomatic and mechanistic roles in neurological and mental disorders and treatments.

Among tens of thousands of camgirls (seen 35+ mn times per day), competition is won by those clothed with their face fully shown; it seems men prefer some slow-building 'courtship'

Laura Johnsen, Isaac Cormier, Maryanne L. Fisher (2019). An Ethological Study of Camgirls: Plentiful, Sexually Available Virtual Women for Hire. Human Ethology, 34(Suppl.), HES39, Aug 2019. https:// doi.org/10.22330/he/34/suppl

ABSTRACT: Camgirls are defined as “young women that operate their own webcams to communicate with a broad audience online, often engaging in explicit behaviour in real-time in return for financial compensation” (Bleakley, 2014, p. 893). The number of camgirls is staggering; LiveJasmin.com reported over 2000 models at any given moment, with 35-40 million daily visitors in 2017. The unfettered access to live-action explicit performances can be overwhelming for viewers, and given that there are numerous websites, and therefore tens of thousands of camgirls, there is competition amongst the performers to solicit interest from viewers. We examined the various behaviours camgirls use to obtain viewers and explore whether their appearance and behaviors reflect evolutionary themes regarding mate preferences. Data were collected from the models featured on the homepage of a popular live streaming adult webcam platform. Over seven days, we took screenshots of the first 15 camgirls on the homepage of the site twice a day. We coded their behaviors (ranging from clothed with no stimulation to fully nude with stimulation), facial appearance (e.g., full face shown, partial face shown, face not shown), and body type. Number of views per show were also recorded. Preliminary analysis suggests that camgirls that are clothed and have their face fully shown have a higher number of viewers than those with full nudity or partial face covering.  This may indicate that an appealing aspect of camgirls is related to the viewer engaging in a slow-building ‘courtship’ that ends with a sexual interaction as opposed to viewing the camgirls in mid-performance for a brief sexual release.

Is the global prevalence rate of adult mental illness increasing? Systematic review and meta‐analysis says no.

Is the global prevalence rate of adult mental illness increasing? Systematic review and meta‐analysis. Dirk Richter, Abbie Wall, Ashley Bruen, Richard Whittington. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, August 8 2019. https://doi.org/10.1111/acps.13083

Abstract
Objectives: The question whether mental illness prevalence rates are increasing is a controversially debated topic. Epidemiological articles and review publications that look into this research issue are often compromised by methodological problems. The present study aimed at using a meta‐analysis technique that is usually applied for the analysis of intervention studies to achieve more transparency and statistical precision.

Methods: We searched Pubmed, PsycInfo, CINAHL, Google Scholar and reference lists for repeated cross‐sectional population studies on prevalence rates of adult mental illness based on ICD‐ or DSM‐based diagnoses, symptom scales and distress scales that used the same methodological approach at least twice in the same geographical region. The study is registered with PROSPERO (CRD42018090959).

Results: We included 44 samples from 42 publications, representing 1,035,697 primary observations for the first time point and 783,897 primary observations for the second and last time point. Studies were conducted between 1978 and 2015. Controlling for a hierarchical data structure, we found an overall global prevalence increase odds ratio of 1.179 (95%‐CI: 1.065 – 1.305). A multivariate meta‐regression suggested relevant associations with methodological characteristics of included studies.

Conclusions: We conclude that the prevalence increase of adult mental illness is small and we assume that this increase is mainly related to demographic changes.

Compared to fictional agents, religious agents were ascribed a higher proportion of abilities that violated folk psychology & fewer abilities that violated folk physics and biology

The Mickey Mouse problem: Distinguishing religious and fictional counterintuitive agents. Thomas Swan, Jamin Halberstadt. PLOS, August 8, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0220886

Abstract: The Mickey Mouse problem refers to the difficulty in predicting which supernatural agents are capable of eliciting belief and religious devotion. We approached the problem directly by asking participants to invent a “religious” or a “fictional” agent with five supernatural abilities. Compared to fictional agents, religious agents were ascribed a higher proportion of abilities that violated folk psychology or that were ambiguous–violating nonspecific or multiple domains of folk knowledge–and fewer abilities that violated folk physics and biology. Similarly, participants rated folk psychology violations provided by the experimenter as more characteristic of religious agents than were violations of folk physics or folk biology, while fictional agents showed no clear pattern. Religious agents were also judged as more potentially beneficial, and more ambivalent (i.e., similar ratings of benefit and harm), than fictional agents, regardless of whether the agents were invented or well-known to participants. Together, the results support a motivational account of religious belief formation that is facilitated by these biases.

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Discussion

Cognitive scientists of religion still don’t know why only some counterintuitive agents are believable and worthy of devotion. We examined the characteristics of religious and nonreligious supernatural agents directly and found four ways in which they differ. First, counterintuitive abilities that violate folk psychology were more salient for participant-invented religious agents than for nonreligious agents and were more closely associated with religious agents than other types of violations. Second, counterintuitive abilities that were ambiguous–violating nonspecific or multiple folk domains–were more salient for invented religious agents than for nonreligious agents. Third, both invented and well-known religious agents were rated more of a potential benefit than their nonreligious counterparts. Fourth, both invented and well-known religious agents were more ambivalent (i.e., the difference between a religious agent’s threat and benefit rating was relatively small) than nonreligious agents, which were more valenced towards extremes of heroism (high benefit, low threat) or villainy (low benefit, high threat).
We suggest that these biases collectively provide a template for predicting which counterintuitive agents can become objects of religious devotion. In particular, the biases for more beneficial and less threatening abilities (the latter only for well-known agents) suggest that “successful” agents must also be motivationally compelling: minimally counterintuitive traits make agents memorable, but memorable agents must satisfy psychobiological needs to become gods. Such gods are not necessarily more “powerful” or “fitness relevant” overall; it is the beneficial traits that distinguish religious agents, while threatening traits may often be higher for nonreligious agents.
Religious agents’ tendency to violate folk psychology over other folk beliefs is also consistent with this motivational interpretation. In a previous study, we found that agents with abilities that violate folk psychology were rated more of a potential opportunity (i.e., more beneficial) than agents violating folk physics or biology [35]. We surmised that agents violating folk psychology represent an opportunity to gain access to socially strategic knowledge—an opportunity that is particularly salient given our recent evolutionary history in which social threats have become increasingly costly and ubiquitous [54]. Indeed, the fact that agents have greater scope to violate folk psychology expectations may account for why agents feature prolifically in religious narratives [55], and appear more than other ontological categories (e.g., objects) in statements rated religious [14].
Nevertheless, these data only provide partial support for the motivational hypothesis. A motivation to believe in agents with beneficial abilities would not necessarily culminate in the formation of religious beliefs via motivated reasoning (i.e., biased strategies for accessing, constructing, and evaluating beliefs [28]). Belief formation also likely depends on an individual’s personality, cultural environment, and/or developmental history, among other factors. For example, people with a strong or temporarily elevated “fear of death” might possess a stronger motivation to believe in immortal beings than people with less fear [37, 38]. We consider it likely that at least some people form religious beliefs via a motivational path [37–45], however, widespread belief would depend on the commonality and thresholds of these individual and cultural factors.
The ambiguous traits used to describe religious agents, while not necessarily motivationally compelling in and of themselves, may interact with other motivational states to facilitate belief. When traits are defined ambiguously, abstractly [56], or metaphorically [57, 58] it becomes easier to attribute them in motivationally attractive ways. For example, the “better than average effect,” in which people rate themselves above average on positive traits and below average on negative traits [28, 59], is smaller when traits are precisely defined (e.g., neat, athletic, sarcastic, clumsy) than when they are ambiguous (e.g., idealistic, sophisticated, impractical, insecure) [29, 60], suggesting that ambiguity allows people to reason their way toward favored conclusions more easily. Similarly, the ambiguous content attributed to religious agents may facilitate motivated reasoning, making it easier to reason toward a belief in these agents. Counterintuitive abilities that can be demonstrated in a variety of ways (violating nonspecific or multiple folk domains), might permit gods to influence manifold situations of motivational significance [24], without precluding or disconfirming their involvement in any [26]. A god’s omnipotence, control of nature, magical powers, or “mysterious ways”, for example, can be applied in whatever manner a believer deems necessary.
A common argument against motivation-based theories of religion is that some gods are not comforting–they’re scary–and why would anyone want to believe in a scary god? We suggest that, like ambiguity, ambivalence facilitates the motivated reasoning process. We think anxiety and uncertainty attributed to threat-capable gods [61] can motivate belief-reinforcing behaviors, such as rituals and other deferential practices [45, 46, 62, 63], and that these behaviors become more intuitively compelling if the agent to whom they are directed is ambivalent. For example, rituals and prayers often depict a transaction in which a god is requested to perform a counterintuitive act in return for worship, good behavior, or a tangible offering. An entirely malevolent god would have little interest in accepting requests, just as an entirely benevolent god would have little interest in refusing them. Thus, an ambivalent god is the only god for whom transactional prayers and rituals make sense. Furthermore, an ambivalent god with whom we can communicate and occasionally extract positive outcomes may be more appealing, and more plausible, than a valenced god, or a god that acts capriciously or randomly. Thus, ambivalence should help make rituals and prayers an intuitively compelling avenue through which gods can deliver benefits (see [64] for other intuitively compelling ritual content), facilitating motivated reasoning towards a belief in these gods.
One anomalous finding is that well-known fictional agents were rated more threatening than well-known religious agents, but this wasn’t the case for invented agents. Negative information, such as about threatening agents, is more cognitively attractive than positive information [65]. A cultural unfolding of this negativity bias, constrained by the motivation to disbelieve overly threatening agents, may explain why it was restricted to culturally popular fictional agents. Such agents might share or even surpass the cognitive attractiveness of religious agents, in being counterintuitive and threatening, but may lack motivational attractiveness, resulting in popular but unbelievable beings. In other cases, threat may be lacking while benefit is not, which might result in motivationally attractive beings that don’t demand our attention for long enough to become religiously established (e.g., Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny). The cognitive attractiveness of threat may therefore be an alternative or additional reason why ambivalence appears to be a key feature of religious beings.
Nevertheless, it is adaptive to pay attention to threats, and possibly also to believe the reality of those threats in some contexts. In evolutionary terms, the cost of falsely believing a threatening agent is absent should be greater than falsely believing it is present, and this negative credulity bias [66] may explain why (an apparent minority of) religious agents deviate from ambivalence into malevolence [67]. Some cultural environments may require and activate our agency detection device more than others [68], making malevolent deities more likely.
Although American participants, mostly Christian, provided our data, we would expect similar results in other cultural contexts to the extent that they afford and foster similar motivations that are natural to the human mind (e.g., to avoid negative affective states). Conversely, cultural differences in the characteristics of religious agents may reflect motivations that arise or are more salient as a consequence of particular environments. Similarly, individual differences within cultures may reflect idiosyncratic motivations (e.g., for more social contact) associated with particular traits (e.g., death anxiety). This essentially motivational account of the characteristics of religious agents has the advantage of catering to the existence of atheists: despite observing the same content and contexts as everyone else, they lack belief, presumably because they lack a motivation for which this content is relevant.
Although the current study contributes to the development of a “belief template” that could, eventually, predict which agents are most likely to inspire religious devotion, it is just a start, with several acknowledged limitations. For example, we did not measure levels of belief in the well-known agents cited by participants, which could provide a better understanding of the role of individual differences. In addition, our distinction between religious and fictional entities neglects some counterintuitive agents, such as ghosts and spirits, that many people believe exist, but that are not necessarily objects of religious devotion. Future work might present participants with specific beings, entities, and other paranormal phenomena with a diverse range of a-priori plausibility before measuring belief and their perceived features. Similarly, our request for supernatural abilities restricted the number of intuitive features that participants attributed to their invented agents. Although we found no difference in rated intuitiveness or the number of intuitive abilities listed, the trend was towards religious agents being more intuitive, as found in other work [16, 17]. Finally, our proposed template neglects some religious agents, such as Satan and Loki, that are apparently neither beneficent nor ambivalent. It could be argued that belief in such agents (and polytheism in general) is declining, in line with the template’s proposed optimum, however, in less optimal settings, the ambivalence criterion might also be applied to groupings or entire pantheons of agents. Thus, we acknowledge that cultural and environmental factors may affect the reliability of the template, which is more a measure of cultural evolutionary success than a strict set of exclusionary criteria.
These limitations notwithstanding, we suggest a religious agent template, tentatively comprising beneficent yet ambivalent agents with ambiguous and folk-psychology-violating abilities, goes some way to solving the Mickey Mouse problem. Mickey Mouse lacks the necessary beneficence, ambivalence, and ambiguity, and we therefore lack the motivation and latitude to believe he is real.

Do emotions affect the decision between change and the status quo? Data on more than 870,000 municipal vote outcomes in Switzerland: Rain decreases the share of votes for political change

Rain, Emotions and Voting for the Status Quo. Armando N. Meier, Lukas Schmid, Alois Stutzer. European Economic Review, August 8 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euroecorev.2019.07.014

Abstract: Do emotions affect the decision between change and the status quo? We exploit exogenous variation in emotions caused by rain and analyze data on more than 870,000 municipal vote outcomes in Switzerland to address this question. The empirical tests are based on administrative ballot outcomes and individual postvote survey data. We find that rain decreases the share of votes for political change. Our robustness checks suggest that this finding is not driven by changes in the composition of the electorate and changes in information acquisition. In addition, we provide evidence that rain might have altered the outcome of several high-stake votes. We discuss the psychological mechanism and document that rain reduces the willingness to take risks, a pattern that is consistent with the observed reduction in the support for change.

Suicide by abdominal wounds suggesting seppuku: Case reports from Romania and an international literature review

Suicide by abdominal wounds suggesting seppuku: Case reports from Romania and an international literature review. Claudia Judea-Pusta, Alexandru Rusu, Andreea Camarasan. Aggression and Violent Behavior, Volume 47, July–August 2019, Pages 68-73. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2019.03.006

Highlights
•    In Romania this type of suicide is rarely practiced, commonly seen in older males.
•    Frequently the victims suffer from a mental illness, or are alcohol users.
•    The tool used is the knife; the lesions are located in the middle abdominal axis.
•    The mortality rate is higher in cases of abdominal wounds suggesting seppuku.
•    It is important to establish a differential diagnosis between suicide and homicide.

Abstract: Seppuku is a traditional suicide method practiced by honorable Japanese samurai. Today this method of suicide is rarely used in Japan or worldwide and may be exceptionally encountered in patients suffering from psychiatric disorders, the majority of them being older men. It is well known that clinical and cultural factors also play a role in practicing this method of suicide. The mortality rate is significantly higher in cases of abdominal wounds suggesting seppuku, compared to the mortality rate caused by simple stab wounds. Death can occur immediately through massive external or/and internal hemorrhage as well as later on through complications, often septic. In the Romanian forensic literature files, suicide by abdominal stabbing suggesting seppuku is rarely encountered and documented. When investigating violent deaths owing to sharp force, the role of the forensic pathologist is not only to establish the cause of death and the mechanism used for creating the lesions, but also to identify the object used for inflicting the injuries, the type of the injuries, allowing thus to formulate a conclusion from legal perspective upon the act itself: suicide or homicide? The present paper reviews the international literature and presents three cases of suicide by self- inflected abdominal stab wounds suggesting seppuku, autopsied at the Bihor County Forensic Service, Romania, during 2013–2017.

The role of media exposure on relational aggression: Exposure to relational aggression has the strongest effect on subsequent relational aggression; these results support cross-over effect

The role of media exposure on relational aggression: A meta-analysis. Nicole Martins, Andrew Weaver. Aggression and Violent Behavior, Volume 47, July–August 2019, Pages 90-99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2019.03.001

Highlights
•    Exposure to relational aggression has the strongest effect on subsequent relational aggression
•    Exposure to non-specific media content has the weakest effect on relational aggression
•    Exposure to physical aggression fell in the middle of the two content types; supports cross-over effect
•    Future research should study these issues among heterogeneous populations so moderating variables can be further examined.

Abstract: We conducted a meta-analysis of 33 studies that examined the effects of media exposure on relationally aggressive behaviors and cognitions (a total of 66 effect sizes, N = (20,990). Across all types of aggressive content, there was a small positive effect (r = 0.15) on relational aggression. However, a comparison of effects sizes demonstrate that exposure to relational aggression had the strongest effect (r = 0.21), whereas exposure to non-specific media content had the weakest effect (r = 0.08). Exposure to physical aggression fell in the middle of the two content types (r = 0.15). Potential explanations for these effects as well as moderators that could influence the results are considered, and the practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Homicide and suicide appear to be more prevalent in democracies

Government political structure and violent death rates: A longitudinal analysis of forty-three countries, 1960–2008. PhillipMarotta et al. Aggression and Violent Behavior, August 8 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.avb.2019.07.008

Abstract
Objectives: Currently, little is known regarding the effect of regime type on mortality on a global level. The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of regime type on the rates of violent deaths (homicide, suicide, and combined rates).

Methods: Three measures of democracy were used to quantify regime type, the independent variable. Homicide and suicide rates were obtained from the World Health Organization. Multivariate conditional fixed-effects models were run to examine associations between regime characteristics and logged rates of homicide, suicide, and violent deaths. Models were adjusted for unemployment and economic inequality.

Results: Nations that scored higher on democracy indices, especially emerging democracies, experienced increased mortality due to violence. Homicide and suicide were divergent, showing a different time course and decreasing statistical power as a combined variable. Unemployment and inequality were associated with higher violence-related mortality.

Conclusions: Homicide and suicide appear to be more prevalent in democracies. Future analyses should examine which aspects of democracies lead to higher rates of violent death and should seek to use independently collected mortality data.

From the neuroimaging data, we conclude that we cannot define the content of our thoughts during "mind blanking" because our inner speech system does not work at that time

The neural correlates of “mind blanking”: When the mind goes away. Toshikazu Kawagoe  Keiichi Onoda  Shuhei Yamaguchi. Human Brain Mapping, August 7 2019. https://doi.org/10.1002/hbm.24748

Abstract: Mind blanking (MB) is the state where our minds are seemingly “nowhere,” and attention calls no perceptual input into conscious awareness. It is little investigated, perhaps partly because it is difficult to detect the mysterious periods of blanking. In this study, we found that our participants could intentionally produce a state of MB whose neural correlates were deactivation of Broca's area and parts of the default mode network (namely, the hippocampus) which would be active during mind wandering (MW), in addition to activity in another region in the default mode network (namely, anterior cingulate cortex). Because the behavioral finding replicates a previous report of ours, we suggest that the simple instructions that we used to induce MB should be effective. From the neuroimaging data, we conclude that we cannot define the content of our thoughts during MB because our inner speech system does not work at that time. Another possibility is that we actually think of nothing in the MB state. Although more sophisticated studies would be needed to uncover the mechanism of such a phenomenon, the present study provides a methodology and clues for understanding MB and related concepts such as MW, awareness, and metacognitive ability.

Death anxiety and death acceptance in atheists and other nonbelievers: The more certainty of Atheism, the less fear of death

Death anxiety and death acceptance in atheists and other nonbelievers. Jacob S. Sawyer, Melanie E. Brewster & Melissa M. Ertl. Death Studies, Aug 7 2019. https://doi.org/10.1080/07481187.2019.1648339

Abstract: This study explores how age, certainty of belief, belief in science and gender is related to death anxiety and death acceptance. Results from a sample of atheists and other nonbelievers (N = 270) in the United States suggested that age and certainty of belief were significantly related to death anxiety and death acceptance, while belief in science was not a significant predictor. In addition, women reported higher levels of death anxiety compared to men. Implications and directions for future research in death perspectives for atheists and other nonbelievers are discussed.

Check also Menzies, Ross G and Menzies, Rachel E. Fear of death: Nature, development and moderating factors [online]. In: Menzies, RE (Editor); Menzies, RG (Editor); Iverach, L (Editor). Curing the Dread of Death Theory, Research and Practice. Samford Valley, QLD: Australian Academic Press, 2018: 21-39. https://www.bipartisanalliance.com/2018/12/fear-of-death-nature-development-and.html

Also Monastic Tibetan Buddhists showed significantly greater fear of death than any other group. The monastics were also less generous than other groups about the prospect of giving up a slightly longer life in order to extend the life of another:

Nichols, S., Strohminger, N., Rai, A. and Garfield, J. (2018), Death and the Self. Cogn Sci. doi:10.1111/cogs.12590. https://www.bipartisanalliance.com/2018/01/monastic-tibetan-buddhists-showed.html

Do Relatives With Greater Reproductive Potential Get Help First?: A Test of the Inclusive Fitness Explanation of Kin Altruism

Do Relatives With Greater Reproductive Potential Get Help First?: A Test of the Inclusive Fitness Explanation of Kin Altruism. Jordan Schriver et al. Evolutionary Psychology, August 8, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1177/1474704919867094

Abstract: According to inclusive fitness theory, people are more willing to help those they are genetically related to because relatives share a kin altruism gene and are able to pass it along. We tested this theory by examining the effect of reproductive potential on altruism. Participants read hypothetical scenarios and chose between cousins (Studies 1 and 2) and cousins and friends (Study 3) to help with mundane chores or a life-or-death rescue. In life-or-death situations, participants were more willing to help a cousin preparing to conceive rather than adopt a child (Study 1) and a cousin with high rather than low chance of reproducing (Studies 2 and 3). Patterns in the mundane condition were less consistent. Emotional closeness also contributed to helping intentions (Studies 1 and 2). By experimentally manipulating reproductive potential while controlling for genetic relatedness and emotional closeness, we provide a demonstration of the direct causal effects of reproductive potential on helping intentions, supporting the inclusive fitness explanation of kin altruism.

Keywords: altruism, inclusive fitness, reproduction, emotional closeness, family relationships

Aesthetic empowerment through music

Aesthetic empowerment through music. Elvira Brattico, Ulrika Varankaitė. Musicae Scientiae, July 20, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1177/1029864919850606

Abstract: This article describes how aesthetic enjoyment accompanying musical activities can empower individuals in health and disease. First, we explain the biological determinants of music enjoyment and how they can be studied. In doing so, we distinguish between core sensory pleasure and conscious liking, and we illustrate their respective contributions to aesthetic appreciation and expressive interaction with music. Second, we review findings illustrating the long-term impact of listening to favourite music on the brains of healthy musicians as well as on the brains and behaviour of individuals with pathological symptoms. Based on these findings, we propose a set of putative neural mechanisms underlying aesthetic empowerment through music. We also emphasize the importance of considering individual differences in sensitivity to aesthetic experiences of music, as evidenced, for instance, by neuroimaging and imaging genetics studies, drawing the connections between dopamine neurotransmission and dopaminergic genes with the reactivity of music–brain functions.

Keywords: Aesthetics, neuroaesthetics, liking, pleasure, enjoyment, clinical applications