Research Methods with Dr. Bob

"A growing body of research demonstrates that trigger warnings may not serve their intended purpose."

Do Trigger Warnings Work? Research finds trigger warnings may not help reduce negative emotions.

"The systematic review, published in Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, reviewed data from more than 25 countries, across four of the six World Health Organization (WHO) regions.

It found that there was no increase in rates of su***de between two time periods, before (prior to February 2020) and during (from March 2020 to June 2021) the COVID-19 pandemic. The pooled su***de rate in the studied period before the pandemic was 11.38 per 100,000 and in the period during the pandemic was 10.65 per 100,000."

Researchers find no immediate increase in rates of su***de globally during first 15 months of the pandemic A new study published by researchers in the School of Public Health at University College Cork and the National Su***de Research Foundation has shown that there was no increase in su***de rates in the initial months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"After standing and looking at an urban lake for just two or three minutes, youth scores on a validated anxiousness scale decreased by nine per cent. On the other hand, their anxiousness scores were 13 per cent higher when standing in a busy downtown location for the same length of time. This is after adjusting for several other factors, including age, gender, ethnicity, mental health diagnosis, and social status."

Teens benefit from 'forest bathing' -- even in cities Youth mental health in urban environments is significantly better when more nature is incorporated into city design. A new study suggests that forest bathing, the simple method of being calm and quiet amongst the trees, observing nature around you while breathing deeply, can help youth de-stress and...

"Without accounting for temporal dynamics, the results indicate ingroup favoritism, such that White viewers prefer White models and Black viewers prefer Black models. But by controlling for the publication year, it is possible to observe a time-dependent trend: Historically, White consumers preferred endorsers of the same race, but this preference has significantly shifted toward Black endorsers in recent years. In contrast, the level of Black consumers’ reactions to endorsers of the same race remains largely unchanged over time."

White Americans’ preference for Black people in advertising has increased in the past 66 years: A meta-analysis | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences This study investigates Black and White consumers’ preferences for Black versus White people in United States advertising contexts over 66 y, from ...

"Good personality tests can predict average behavioral tendencies over time, but they cannot predict specific behaviors in specific situations."

Do Personality Trait Tests Predict What You’ll Do? Corporations frequently use personality tests in hiring. Are they useful?

Experiments are all about slow improvements and rarely about eureka... or at least mine are

"Governments increasingly rely on large amounts of data to provide services ranging from mobility and air quality to child welfare and policing programs. While governments have always relied on data, their increasing use of algorithms and artificial intelligence has fundamentally changed the way they use data for public services.

These technologies have the potential to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of public services. But if data is not handled thoughtfully, it can lead to inequitable outcomes for different communities because data gathered by governments can mirror existing inequalities. To minimize this effect, governments can make inclusion an element of their data practices."

How governments handle data matters for inclusion Governments can exclude certain groups of people in policies and services not only by the type of data they collect but also how they collect, store, analyze and use the data.

“There’s something about engaging the fine motor system and production activities that really impacts learning.”

Why Writing by Hand Is Better for Memory and Learning Engaging the fine motor system to produce letters by hand has positive effects on learning and memory

"Researchers should acknowledge that, despite the thousands of research papers with the term “s*x differences” in their title, there is little or no consistent and conclusive evidence that any brain differences found can be solely attributed to biological s*x."

Are male and female brains really that different? Surely, there are better questions to ask | Gina Rippon Arguments about s*x differences in the brain have raged for centuries. As intriguing as they are, it’s time we changed focus, says Ginna Rippon, an emeritus professor at the Aston Brain Centre, Aston University

"Discover how one anthropologist studied family dialogue and interactions that shape mental wellness, relationships, and the mind, along with the impact it has had."

Speak Your Mind, but Not Like That: The Double Bind Theory Bateson's theory shows communication affects mental health and relationships.

"The effort to upgrade instruction standards for research methods emanates from the rising focus on rigor and the adoption of open science practices. These advances are poorly reflected in psychology curricula, which have seen few updates over the past 2–3 decades, research has shown. One study, for example, found that few courses focus on effect sizes, confidence intervals, and alternatives to null-hypothesis significance testing, which has shortcomings that many scientists blame for the replication problems in psychological science."

Scientists Propose Upgrades to Research-Methods Education for Psychology Students Many undergraduate psychology courses fail to ensure students fully understand research design and analysis. An international team of psychological scientists have recommended some systemic steps to remedy that shortcoming.

"Today, more and more research shows that even one drink per day can increase your chances of developing conditions like high blood pressure and an irregular heart rhythm, both of which can lead to stroke, heart failure or other health consequences."

How Red Wine Lost Its Health Halo For a glorious decade or two, the drink was lauded as good for the heart. What happened?

Believing without evidence doesn’t make you open-minded.

Requiring evidence to believe doesn’t make you close-minded.

To paraphrase Walter Kotschnig, we want to have an open mind, but not so open our brains fall out.

Note: Apparently this meme was originally created by The Questionist. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find the original and didn’t realize that someone had removed their name and logo. My apologies!

"Although this is well-documented and discussed, the honoring and centering of Black people’s experiences continues to be ignored. As a result, Black people’s everyday experiences are commonly absent from psychological studies on emotions, happiness, and well-being."

How Well Do Happiness Practices Serve Black Communities? We interviewed Black people about where happiness comes from and whether 15 typical happiness practices work for them.

"Despite its popularity, decades of research do not support the basic tenets of love languages."

Empirical Evidence Is My Love Language The idea of love languages has become hugely popular and the term itself is pervasive in popular culture. This article provides teaching materials to encourage students to think critically about psychological science and popular self-help advice.

"Questionnaires that rate ADHD in dogs are experimental, and while there were control groups of dogs with and without ADHD, there were no control groups of dogs with high levels of anxiety or ADHD with anxiety. Thus, dogs high in anxiety might score high on ADHD scales."

The ADHD Dog: Assessing ADHD Do canine rating scales give a clue what underlies my dog’s reactive behavior?

"Dozens of health officials, civil rights groups, individuals and businesses have weighed in about how the statistical agency should ask about s*xual orientation and gender identity for the first time on its most comprehensive survey of American life."

The Census Bureau is thinking about how to ask about s*x. People have their opinions The U.S. Census Bureau is thinking about how to ask about s*x

CARL SAGAN’S “THE DRAGON IN MY GARAGE”: LESSONS IN SKEPTICISM AND FALSIFIABILITY

In “The Demon-Haunted World,” Sagan explains skeptical thinking with a story of someone who claims there’s a fire-breathing dragon that lives in his garage.
While the skeptic repeatedly asks for evidence to back up the claim, the non-skeptic consistently replies with excuses to explain away observations that might disprove the claim.

In other words, instead of subjecting the dragon hypothesis to real-world tests, excuses are used to protect the dragon belief and keep it from being falsified.

Sagan concludes by asking: "Now what's the difference between an invisible, incorporeal, floating dragon who spits heatless fire and no dragon at all? If there's no way to disprove my contention, no conceivable experiment that would count against it, what does it mean to say that my dragon exists? Your inability to invalidate my hypothesis is not at all the same thing as proving it true. Claims that cannot be tested, assertions immune to disproof are veridically worthless, whatever value they may have in inspiring us or in exciting our sense of wonder. What I’m asking you to do comes down to believing, in the absence of evidence, on my say-so.”

When beliefs are important to us, we often protect them by explaining away evidence that would prove them wrong. But if we want to believe in things that are true, we need to be skeptical and demand evidence.

If it’s true, it will withstand the scrutiny.

Note: The dragon in my garage comes from Carl Sagan’s masterful “The Demon-Haunted World”. If you’ve never read it, or it’s been a long time, do yourself a favor and put it at the top of your reading list: https://amzn.to/3o0xyzj

Learn more about falsifiability: https://thinkingispower.com/why-trying-to-prove-yourself-wrong-is-the-key-to-being-right/

"The results confirm that caffeine intake is associated with an elevated risk of anxiety in healthy individuals without psychiatric disorders, especially when the intake dose is greater than 400 mg."

Caffeine intake and anxiety: a meta-analysis The results from studies on relationship between caffeine intake and risk of anxiety remains controversial, so we conducted a meta-analysis to summarize the evidence about the association between caffeine intake and risk of anxiety. Relevant articles were identified by researching PubMed, Web of Sci...

"Experiencing consistent feelings of loneliness—defined as a lack of a meaningful or close relationship or sense of belonging—is common among U.S. adults, suggest the findings of APA’s latest Healthy Minds Monthly Poll. In early January, 30% of adults reported that they had experienced feelings of loneliness at least once a week over the past year, while 10% said they were lonely every day."

1 in 4 Americans Lonelier Now Than Before Pandemic, APA Poll Finds Experiencing consistent feelings of loneliness—defined as a lack of a meaningful or close relationship or sense of belonging—is common amon...

"Occam’s Razor, a principle suggesting that the simplest explanation that aligns with the facts should be chosen when confronted with multiple hypotheses, is more than just a scientific tool. According to a distinguished molecular geneticist at the University of Surrey, Occam’s Razor is science."

What Is Science? Geneticist Sheds Light on Science’s True Nature With Occam’s Razor Occam's Razor, a principle suggesting that the simplest explanation that aligns with the facts should be chosen when confronted with multiple hypotheses, is more than just a scientific tool. According to a distinguished molecular geneticist at the University of Surrey, Occam's Razor is science. I

Handouts and Guides The following are instructional aids for the seventh edition Publication Manual. They can be used in homes, classrooms, libraries, or anywhere you are learning or teaching APA Style.

"Some of the biggest names in behavioral science stand accused of faking their results. Last year, an astonishing 10,000 research papers were retracted. We talk to whistleblowers, reformers, and a co-author who got caught up in the chaos."

Why Is There So Much Fraud in Academia? - Freakonomics Why Is There So Much Fraud in Academia? - Freakonomics

"Misinformation can be fought by identifying it, locating sources and motives, and using critical thinking and motivational interviewing."

How to Stop Misinformation Misinformation can be fought with 8 effective procedures.

The peer review process is a flawless system that has no issues whatsoever /s

"Even if lawmakers avoid a shutdown and pass a budget, America’s future competitiveness could suffer because federal research investments are on track to be billions of dollars below targets Congress set for themselves less than two years ago."

Congress is failing to deliver on its promise of billions more in research spending, threatening America's long-term economic competitiveness The latest government showdown over the budget risks not only a shutdown but jobs, regional economies and America’s competitiveness in AI and other advanced fields.

"Much of the research on social robots in schools is done in very restricted ways. Children and social robots are not allowed to freely interact with each other without the assistance, or intervention, of researchers. Only a few studies have used social robots in real-life classroom settings."

What social robots can teach America's students Social robots can be useful tools to help students learn about programming, but here’s why they won’t be replacing classroom teachers anytime soon.

"An Oxford researcher measured the effect of popular workplace mental health interventions, and discovered little to none."

Workplace Wellness Programs Have Little Benefit, Study Finds An Oxford researcher measured the effect of popular workplace mental health interventions, and discovered little to none.

TODAY’S BIAS: SUNK COST FALLACY

DEFINITION AND EXPLANATION: The sunk cost fallacy describes our tendency to stick with a decision we’ve invested resources into, regardless of the increasing negative consequences of that decision. If you’ve ever wondered why you continue watching a boring movie, or why you proceed through a terribly uninteresting book, it might be because of the sunk cost fallacy. The better we understand the sunk cost fallacy, the more likely we are to catch ourselves committing it and thus the better positioned we are to prevent ourselves from continuing on with a losing course of action.

For many of us, once we’ve invested into something, it can be really difficult to cut our losses, and instead, we end up “throwing good money after bad.” For instance, if you’ve ever tried to bluff your way through a hand of poker, you know just how hard it can be to fold once you’re “pot committed.” However, instead of folding, you up the ante, hoping that an even bigger bluff will prevent an impending loss. But in life, the stakes are much higher than they are in poker.

If the consequences of our actions have a negative impact, the rational thing to do is stop engaging in that action. The problem is, when we’ve spent time, money, or effort pursuing a decision, rather than rationally looking at the negative consequences of continuing to pursue that decision, we tend to look at it from the perspective of “losing” that time, money, or effort. Of course, that time, money, or effort is already gone (they are, after all, sunk costs), and continuing with our commitment is unlikely to bring any of it back. Typically, we commit the sunk cost fallacy because we don’t want to “lose” our investment, even if we wind up more damaged than if we had simply cut our losses. Put another way, it makes no rational sense to continue losing simply because you’ve already lost, especially since you can’t protect an investment you can’t get back anyway.

The sunk cost fallacy can dramatically affect us as individuals, and can hugely impact the course of our lives. For example, we might stay in a relationship that isn’t good for us, or one we no longer want to be in, because of how much we’ve invested into the relationship. We might remain at a job we can’t stand, simply because of how much work we’ve done for the company. We might continue spending money fixing a run-down car, when it would clearly be cheaper to buy a new one. Or we might remain in the same social circle because of how much history we have with the people in it, even though we no longer share the same interests or values.

Additionally, the sunk cost fallacy has a number of systemic effects. Oftentimes, government projects that don’t meet expectations continue receiving funding simply because so much has already been invested into them. Both Lyndon B. Johnson and George W. Bush continued sending soldiers into losing wars, and spent billions of dollars on what they both knew were hopeless causes. Thus, when it comes to fallacious thinking, sometimes lives are literally at stake.

Another pressing danger of the sunk cost fallacy is that it leads to the snowball effect, wherein we try to protect our investments by investing even more. The more we invest into something, the more we feel like we need to commit to it, which means we’ll likely expend more resources pursuing the endeavor.

HOW TO OVERCOME THE SUNK COST FALLACY: Sometimes, when we find ourselves in a hole, the best thing we can do is stop digging. However, in order to do so, we must first recognize that we’re in a hole. Therefore, awareness is our first line of defense against the sunk cost fallacy. If you find yourself focused on prior losses rather than current or future costs, you can use this awareness as a signal to don your skeptical spectacles and think critically about your situation.

In addition, we should also carefully consider whether the investment we’re trying to protect is actually recoverable, or if it truly is just a sunken cost. Therefore, it’s good practice to ask yourself, “If there’s no way to get back what I’ve already put into something, am I better off investing further, or is cutting my losses the better option?”

Lastly, we should try to recognize the difference between making a decision that’s based on our emotions, and making a decision that’s based on reason. Emotions are both powerful and important drivers of our decision-making, and, like it or not, we are emotionally tied to the investments we make. Therefore, since decisions that are based on emotions are not always in our best interest, thinking critically about our investments becomes especially important.

MORE ON THIS AND OTHER BIASES: thinkingispower.com/guide-to-the-most-common-cognitive-biases-and-heuristics/ -sunk-cost-fallacy

Thanks to Jon Guy from Think Straight for writing this post!