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Psychology

32 Articles

Philosophy

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18 Nov 2014

Is Envy Always Malicious? (Part One)

This post originally appeared on November 18, 2014 Imagine you check your email and find a congratulatory message from your boss announcing that your colleague has just been promoted. This colleague joined the company at approximately the same time as you did, and works in your sector. You were in line for the same promotion … Continue reading "Is Envy Always Malicious? (Part One)"

Philosophy

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7 Oct 2014

Can moral laws exist without God? A brief introduction to "Robust Ethics"

Last week we published the abstract of Erik Wielenberg’s new book, Robust Ethics: The Metaphysics and Epistemology of Godless Normative Realism. In this guest post, Wielenberg, Professor of Philosophy at DePauw University, follows up with a more in-depth discussion of the book and some of the philosophers that have influenced his thinking on moral realism and God’s existence. In … Continue reading "Can moral laws exist without God? A brief introduction to “Robust Ethics”"

All Psychology Stories

The FDA and Banning Shock Therapy

The FDA is currently debating whether skin shocking devices should be banned for use on patients with autism and developmental/intellectual disabilities that display self-harmful or violent behaviors. The only treatment center to use skin shocks, the Judge Rotenburg Center in Caton, Mass., treats 55 patients with skin shocks. The center and some families claim that … Continue reading "The FDA and Banning Shock Therapy"

23 Sep 2014

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Should We All Take a Bit of Lithium?

Lithium is classically associated with extreme mental illness, and has a somewhat negative connotation in the public. In its concentrated form, it has been documented to alleviate several symptoms of mental illness. But it also can (and has had) severe negative health consequences for people taking it in high doses. But this op-ed raises the … Continue reading "Should We All Take a Bit of Lithium?"

19 Sep 2014

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Prindle News Hound

Would Knowledge of God Undermine Morality?

Helen De Cruz draws on some interesting insights from the cognitive science of religion to examine a popular response to an argument against God’s existence called The Problem of Divine Hiddenness. The basic argument is that a loving God would make his/her presence obviously known to us. Why? Because a loving God would want a loving personal relationship … Continue reading "Would Knowledge of God Undermine Morality?"

15 Sep 2014

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Prindle Institute

The Politics of Morality: Can Good Deeds be Controlled?

From sharing posts on social media sites to spreading germs of the common cold, it seems that many things in life are contagious. But does this trend toward contagion apply to morality in the form of good deeds? Innovations in technology have allowed us to track, research, and study human interactions in a way that … Continue reading "The Politics of Morality: Can Good Deeds be Controlled?"

15 Sep 2014

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Rachel Hanebutt

How Social Media Might Silence Debate

According to this study, social media may have a negative impact on political debate. As the opening of the study notes, in the pre-internet era, there is a well documented phenomenon called “The Spiral of Silence” in which people tend not to voice opinions that differ from their friends and family. The intro also notes that: … Continue reading "How Social Media Might Silence Debate"

27 Aug 2014

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Prindle Institute

A diverse group of young children walking down a path through a forest

Epistemology and Affirmative Action

Whatever your views about affirmative action are, this is well worth watching. Jonathan Jenkins Ichikawa, a philosophy professor at University of British Columbia, argues that recent psychological evidence about implicit bias may yield an argument in favor of affirmative action policies that is purely merit based. What is interesting and novel about his argument is that affirmative … Continue reading "Epistemology and Affirmative Action"

27 Aug 2014

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Prindle Institute

An Ancient and Modern Anxiety

It’s pretty commonplace nowadays to hear arguments either defending or condemning the integration of technology into our everyday lifestyle. Proponents of this integration often stress the convenience and connectedness that technology makes possible, while critics commonly claim that it can distract us and cause us to become cognitively lazy. We can easily apply these arguments to current innovations pertaining to … Continue reading "An Ancient and Modern Anxiety"

30 Jul 2014

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Morning People Are Less Ethical At Night

And Night Owls are more likely to cheat in the morning. According to this recent study, people who are early risers tend to behave more unethically as the day goes on. By nightfall, they are much more likely to behave unethically than they are in the morning. Conversely, people who have a hard time getting … Continue reading "Morning People Are Less Ethical At Night"

13 Jul 2014

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Prindle Institute