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Washington University in St. Louis News & Information > University Groups > Arts & Sciences >
Psychology
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Double-edged Sword
Historical movies help students learn, but separating fact from fiction can be challenge
Aug. 4,
2009 --
Students who learn history by watching historically based blockbuster movies may be doomed to repeat the historical mistakes portrayed within them, suggests a new study from Washington University in St. Louis. Findings suggest showing popular history movies in a classroom setting can be a double-edged sword when it comes to helping students learn and retain factual information in associated textbooks.
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Minding your meds
A silly pat on the head helps seniors remember daily med, study suggests
July 28,
2009 --  Doing something unusual, like knocking on wood or patting yourself on the head, while taking a daily dose of medicine may be an effective strategy to help seniors remember whether they've already taken their daily medications, suggests new research from Washington University in St. Louis.
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Ring-nesia
Cell phone ringtones can pose major distraction, impair recall
May 28,
2009 --
A flurry of recent research has documented that talking on a cell phone poses a dangerous distraction for drivers and others whose attention should be focused elsewhere. Now, a new study in the Journal of Environmental Psychology finds that just the ring of a cell phone may be equally distracting, especially when it comes in a classroom setting or includes a familiar song as a ringtone.
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Imagine this
Study suggests power of imagination is more than just a metaphor
April 14,
2009 -- We've heard it before: "Imagine yourself passing the exam or scoring a goal and it will happen." We may roll our eyes and think that's easier said than done, but a new study from psychologists at Washington University in St. Louis suggests imagination may be more effective than we think in helping us reach our goals. "The imagination has the extraordinary capacity to shape reality," say co-authors of a study suggesting that merely imagining something close to our hands will cause us to pay more attention to it.
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Businesses increase innovation spending in recession
Downturn presents opportunity for successful innovation, says expert
April 9,
2009 --
Even as the United States faces the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, businesses are spending more money on innovation, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report. Keith Sawyer, Ph.D., assistant professor of education and psychology in Arts & Sciences and one of the country's leading experts on the science of creativity, says that investing in innovation is one of the best ways to beat the recession.
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The reading mind
Readers build vivid mental simulations of narrative situations, brain scans suggest
Jan. 26,
2009 --
A new brain-imaging study is shedding light on what it means to "get lost" in a good book — suggesting that readers create vivid mental simulations of the sounds, sights, tastes and movements described in a textual narrative while simultaneously activating brain regions used to process similar experiences in real life.
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Classroom cognition
McDonnell Foundation grant harnesses cognitive science to improve student learning
Dec. 2,
2008 -- Using what cognitive psychologists are discovering in the laboratory to improve learning in the classroom is the goal of a $6.47 million collaborative activity grant to Washington University from the James S. McDonnell Foundation.
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The world in six songs
Multi-talented psychologist and musician at Assembly Series
Sept. 26,
2008 -- Session musician, commercial recording engineer, live sound engineer, record producer, bestselling author and psychologist, Daniel Levitin visits the WUSTL campus at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, October 8 in Graham Chapel for the next installment of the Assembly Series.
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Holiday tipping
Holiday giving season complicated by shifting norms on gratuities, psychologist suggests
July 17,
2008 --
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| Photo by Mary Butkus / WUSTL Photo |
| Study finds that the larger the bill, the smaller the tip percentage. |
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As Americans are stuggling to make ends meet with rising gas and food costs, they are grappling more than ever with what's appropriate when it comes to rewarding service providers with tips, gifts and other token gratuities, suggests Leonard Green, Ph.D., a psychology professor in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis who studies tipping behavior. Video available.
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Hands-free bonus
Keeping hands where you can see 'em alters perception, study finds
July 9,
2008 --
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| Image courtesy of Richard Abrams |
| To see objects better, take matters into your own hands. |
WUSTL psychologists have shown that to see objects better, you should take the matter into your own hands. Humans are compelled to closely analyze objects near our hands, they suggest, because we have a non-conscious, almost reflexive need to figure out how to handle nearby items or to provide protection against them. Recognizing that the location of your hands influences what you see is a new insight into the wiring of the brain, one that may even offer scientific support for California's new ban on driving with hand-held cell phones.
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