All – Learning psychology: Recent Episodes
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For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptThe Psychology Trick You’re Probably Already Falling For…
In this video, we explore the intriguing concept of the “ego trap”—an influence technique that leverages the idea that people are more likely to agree when it affirms their positive qualities. We examine the recent study “Egotistic Trap as a Social Influence Technique” by Dolinski, Grzyb, and Kulesza (2023), which provides a detailed analysis of this approach.
The study highlights just how powerful this technique can be: In one experiment, 52.4% of participants agreed to take part in a survey when they were told it was aimed at intelligent people—a significant increase compared to 32.7% in the control group. In another experiment, the willingness to have cars inspected at official workshops rose from 56.7% to 71.7% when participants were told, “reasonable customers have their cars officially inspected.” There’s also an alternative version of the ego trap that might be even more effective…
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptYoga is not just about physical fitness—it’s a powerful tool for mental health. A 2024 study by Yadla et al. explored the effectiveness of yoga as an addition to traditional treatments for panic disorders. This randomized controlled trial revealed fascinating insights.
The study involved 64 participants divided into two groups. One group followed standard treatments like medication and cognitive-behavioral therapy, while the other incorporated a structured 12-week yoga program. The yoga sessions included breathing techniques (Pranayama), mindfulness meditation, and physical postures (Asanas), all designed to address both mental and physical symptoms of panic disorders.
Results showed that participants in the yoga group experienced significantly greater reductions in anxiety (measured by the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale) and improvements in quality of life (evaluated using the WHOQOL-BREF). The yoga group demonstrated substantial progress in psychological resilience, social engagement, and environmental satisfaction. This research highlights how integrating yoga into conventional therapy can provide a holistic approach to managing panic disorders (Yadla et al., 2024).
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptCan simply imagining a better future truly attract your dream partner, wealth, and happiness? While the idea of manifestation has taken the world by storm, the science behind it tells a different story. New research by Dixon, Hornsey, and Hartley (2023) reveals a shocking truth: believing in the power of manifestation may actually increase your risk of going bankrupt. And that’s not all—earlier studies by Gabriele Oettingen (2016) suggest that while positive fantasies can make you feel good in the short term, they might lead to depression in the long run.
Discover the hidden dangers of manifesting your dreams, backed by hard science. Watch now before you make your next vision board!
Featured Studies:
– Dixon, L. J., Hornsey, M. J., & Hartley, N. (2023). “The Secret” to Success? The Psychology of Belief in Manifestation. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.
– Oettingen, G. (2016). Positive Fantasies: A Fast Track to Depression? Psychological Science.
– Pham, L. B., & Taylor, S. E. (1999). From Thought to Action: How Mental Simulations Impact Performance. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.
Dive into the research and uncover the truth behind the manifestation craze.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptEvery good anxiety therapy is based on numerous important learning processes. In classic behavioral therapy in particular, new learning experiences are constantly being made, which help to build up neuronal “safety networks”. The more often we learn that we are much safer in a feared situation than we thought, the deeper the corresponding safety memory traces become in our brain. So getting rid of fear actually means unlearning fear.
In this respect, it is not surprising that classic learning laws from learning psychology play a very important role in anxiety therapy…
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Studies (just a small selection):
Bandarian-Balooch, S., Neumann, D. L., & Boschen, M. J. (2015). Exposure treatment in multiple contexts attenuates return of fear via renewal in high spider fearful individuals. Journal of behavior therapy and experimental psychiatry, 47, 138-144.
Baggs, K., & Spence, S. H. (1990). Effectiveness of booster sessions in the maintenance and enhancement of treatment gains following assertion training. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 58(6), 845.
Burck, E. (2019). Angst-Was hilft wirklich gegen Angst und Panikattacken?: Die effektivsten Strategien gegen Angst und Panik aus Sicht der Forschung. BoD–Books on Demand.
Craske, M. G., Treanor, M., Conway, C. C., Zbozinek, T., & Vervliet, B. (2014). Maximizing exposure therapy: An inhibitory learning approach. Behaviour research and therapy, 58, 10-23.
Craske, M. G., Kircanski, K., Zelikowsky, M., Mystkowski, J., Chowdhury, N., & Baker, A. (2008). Optimizing inhibitory learning during exposure therapy. Behaviour research and therapy, 46(1), 5-27.
Mineka, S., Mystkowski, J. L., Hladek, D., & Rodriguez, B. I. (1999). The effects of changing contexts on return of fear following exposure therapy for spider fear. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 67(4), 599.
Gearing, R. E., Schwalbe, C. S., Lee, R., & Hoagwood, K. E. (2013). The effectiveness of booster sessions in CBT treatment for child and adolescent mood and anxiety disorders. Depression and anxiety, 30(9), 800-808.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptA thought experiment:
Imagine you had to write down the following sentence:
“My mother will win a million euros in the lottery tomorrow.”
So far so simple. Now imagine you have to write down another sentence:
“My mother will die tomorrow.”
You probably found the second idea much more difficult. Because you shouldn’t write something like that. It’s best not to think something like that in the first place. Because thoughts are powerful, aren’t they?
But more and more studies suggest that the conviction (metacognition) that thoughts are powerful and uncontrollable contributes to the development and maintenance of mental disorders such as depression, generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, etc. For example, anyone who is convinced that a thought such as “My mother/father could die soon.” is not just a thought, but a dark premonition that will materialize because we had this thought, with most likely feelings of anxiety, guilt and depression. If, on the other hand, we realize that thoughts are often nothing more than insignificant “brain farts”, of which we produce thousands every day, we remain relaxed and unimpressed. modern psychotherapy – especially metacognitive therapy – also makes use of these insights and achieves sometimes unprecedented therapeutic success…
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptEmbodied cognition explains how physical states and actions can influence our thoughts and feelings. One example is how our voice can impact our well-being. Speaking in a deeper voice, for instance, can make us feel more relaxed and confident.
A study by Stel et al. (2012) supports this idea. Their research found that adopting physical characteristics associated with confidence and relaxation, such as a deeper voice, can indeed lead to an increase in those feelings. This phenomenon illustrates the powerful interplay between our physical expressions and emotional states.
In the video you will get to know several Tips, that will help you to train your voice to sound deeper and relaxed.
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Studies (just a small selection):
Costa, J., Jung, M. F., Czerwinski, M., Guimbretière, F., Le, T., & Choudhury, T. (2018, April). Regulating feelings during interpersonal conflicts by changing voice self-perception. In Proceedings of the 2018 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-13).
Jin, W. J., & Park, S. H. (2023). Your voice pitch speaks volumes about you: How voice pitch affects mind perception of the speakers. British Journal of Social Psychology, 62(3), 1230-1250.
Motoki, K., Saito, T., Nouchi, R., Kawashima, R., & Sugiura, M. (2019). A sweet voice: The influence of cross-modal correspondences between taste and vocal pitch on advertising effectiveness. Multisensory research, 32(4-5), 401-427.
Stel, M., Dijk, E. V., Smith, P. K., Dijk, W. W. V., & Djalal, F. M. (2012). Lowering the pitch of your voice makes you feel more powerful and think more abstractly. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 3(4), 497-502.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptFor a long time, I suffered from severe exam anxiety. As a result, I either didn’t take important exams at all, put them off for a long time or only got through them under enormous stress (+ panic attacks). It was only when my brain understood some things better (cognitive restructuring) that exam situations became much more bearable, sometimes even downright relaxed. Watch the video to find out six of the best tips that have helped me (and many others)…
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Studies (just a small selection):
Brooks, A. W. (2014). Get excited: reappraising pre-performance anxiety as excitement. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 143(3), 1144.
Bruehlman-Senecal, E., & Ayduk, O. (2015). This too shall pass: temporal distance and the regulation of emotional distress. Journal of personality and social psychology, 108(2), 356.
Bruehlman-Senecal, E., Ayduk, Ö., & John, O. P. (2016). Taking the long view: Implications of individual differences in temporal distancing for affect, stress reactivity, and well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 111(4), 610.
Gao, Y., Zhang, Q., He, R., Liao, J., Feng, H., Deng, H., … & Mo, L. (2022). The Influences of Social Distance on Anxiety Caused by Spatial and Temporal Distance.
Rinaldi, L., Locati, F., Parolin, L., & Girelli, L. (2017). Distancing the present self from the past and the future: Psychological distance in anxiety and depression.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptCountless studies show: If you want to overcome your fear, you would do well to face it. Whether it’s a fear of spiders, dogs, lectures, heights, thunderstorms, small rooms, dental treatment, etc., as soon as we manage to shed our avoidance behavior, we can make the important experience that the feared situations are nowhere near as dangerous as we originally feared (or sometimes even fun).
But what mindset allows us to get the maximum therapeutic benefit from a confrontation? A classic study by Southworth and Kirsch (1988) with subjects suffering from agoraphobia provides exciting answers…
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Studies (small sample only):
Southworth, S., & Kirsch, I. (1988). The role of expectancy in exposure-generated fear reduction in agoraphobia. Behavior Research and Therapy, 26(2), 113-120.
Burck, E. (2019). Angst-Was hilft wirklich gegen Angst und Panikattacken?: The most effective strategies against anxiety and panic from a research perspective. BoD Books on Demand.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptCan the stars reveal our destiny?
The belief in the wisdom of the stars is on the rise once again (Andersson et al., 2022). And who could blame them? The idea that our fate is planned long in advance and can be read in the stars is both fascinating and romantic.
However, many astrological predictions can be tested easily. Some researchers have gone to the trouble of analyzing large data sets. Is there perhaps a spark of truth in the predictions after all? Are zodiac signs really a reflection of our inner traits? Or is there nothing more than a myth behind the horoscopes?
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Studies (just a small selection):
Helgertz, J., & Scott, K. (2020). The validity of astrological predictions on marriage and divorce: a longitudinal analysis of Swedish register data. Genus, 76(1), 34.
Steyn, R. (2013). Astrological Planetary Alignment and Personality Differences: Saving us from Ignorance. International Journal of Science in Society, 4(1).
Reichardt, C. S. (2010). Testing astrological predictions about sex, marriage, and selfishness. Skeptic (Altadena, CA), 15(4), 40-46.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptOvercoming fears can be a transformative experience, and sometimes it is helpful to endure maximum fear in order to conquer it. In everyday life, this often happens naturally, without psychotherapy. For example, when we face a challenging situation that triggers our fears, we allow ourselves to grow and build self-confidence. By enduring the fear and not avoiding it, we gain control over our reactions and can gradually overcome our fears. This process can be slow, but it can make us feel braver and more confident without having to rely on professional help…
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Studies (just a small selection):
Abramowitz, J. S., Deacon, B. J., & Whiteside, S. P. (2019). Exposure therapy for anxiety: Principles and practice. Guilford Publications.
Bandarian-Balooch, S., Neumann, D. L., & Boschen, M. J. (2015). Exposure treatment in multiple contexts attenuates return of fear via renewal in high spider fearful individuals. Journal of behavior therapy and experimental psychiatry, 47, 138-144.
Craske, M. (2015). Optimizing exposure therapy for anxiety disorders: an inhibitory learning and inhibitory regulation approach. Verhaltenstherapie, 25(2), 134-143.
Mystkowski, J. L., Craske, M. G., Echiverri, A. M., & Labus, J. S. (2006). Mental reinstatement of context and return of fear in spider-fearful participants. Behavior Therapy, 37(1), 49-60.
Nelson, E. A., Deacon, B. J., Lickel, J. J., & Sy, J. T. (2010). Targeting the probability versus cost of feared outcomes in public speaking anxiety. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 48(4), 282-289.
Wolitzky, K. B., & Telch, M. J. (2009). Augmenting in vivo exposure with fear antagonistic actions: A preliminary test. Behavior Therapy, 40(1), 57-71.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptMany believe in them. Many have one. Lucky charms are objects that have accompanied us through many difficult situations and to which we attribute that we have survived these dangerous situations because they have brought us luck. But can talismans also be used therapeutically? Can they be used as reminders of anxiety situations that have already been successfully overcome? Do they give us the peace of mind we need to overcome new scary situations with ease? Or is carrying lucky charms ultimately even a counterproductive safety behavior that slows down progress?
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Studies (just a small selection):
Culver, N. C., Stoyanova, M., & Craske, M. G. (2011). Clinical relevance of retrieval cues for attenuating context renewal of fear. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 25(2), 284-292.
Dibbets, P., Moor, C., & Voncken, M. J. (2013). The effect of a retrieval cue on the return of spider fear. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 44(4), 361-367.
Dibbets, P., Moor, C., & Voncken, M. J. (2013). The effect of a retrieval cue on the return of spider fear. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 44(4), 361-367.
Shin, K. E., & Newman, M. G. (2018). Using retrieval cues to attenuate return of fear in individuals with public speaking anxiety. Behavior therapy, 49(2), 212-224.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptWhen my heart started to stumble for the first time 10 years ago, I went into a state of psychological shock. Due to an “unfortunate” statement from a doctor, my anxiety increased so much at the beginning that I hardly left my homes and practically stopped doing any sport. As a result, the heart palpitations occurred even more frequently (or at least I noticed them more often). Today, 10 years later – and after reading many, many studies – I have a good idea of how extrasystoles can be reduced and what helps against anxiety, at least in my case. I hope this video helps some people who suffer as well. 🙂
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Studies (just a small selection): Alijaniha, F., Naseri, M., Afsharypuor, S., Fallahi, F., Noorbala, A., Mosaddegh, M., … & Sadrai, S. (2015). Heart palpitation relief with Melissa officinalis leaf extract: double blind, randomized, placebo controlled trial of efficacy and safety. Journal of ethnopharmacology, 164, 378-384.
EDÉLL-GUSTAFSSON, U. M. (2002). Sleep quality and responses to insufficient sleep in women on different work shifts. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 11(2), 280-288.
Lown, BERNARD, TYKOCINSKI, M., GARFEIN, A., & BROOKS, P. (1973). Sleep and ventricular premature beats. Circulation, 48(4), 691-701.
Monahan, K., Storfer-Isser, A., Mehra, R., Shahar, E., Mittleman, M., Rottman, J., … & Redline, S. (2009). Triggering of nocturnal arrhythmias by sleep-disordered breathing events. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 54(19), 1797-1804.
Pickering, T. G., Johnston, J., & Honour, A. J. (1978). Comparison of the effects of sleep, exercise and autonomic drugs on ventricular extrasystoles, using ambulatory monitoring of electrocardiogram and electroencephalogram. The American journal of medicine, 65(4), 575-583.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptIs it possible to rewrite old traumatic fear memories and thus significantly reduce the suffering of many patients? The discovery of memory reconsolidation suggests that this could be much easier than many researchers have long assumed. This is because new research has shown that our memory hovers in a changeable, protein synthesis-dependent state after each recall. During this time window, it is possible to “update” the memory through interventions (e.g. preventing protein synthesis with anisomycin). (Nader & Hardt, 2009; Nader, Schafe, & Le Doux, 2000). Our memory is therefore much more modifiable than we realize. This opens up many new possibilities for the psychotherapy of anxiety disorders (panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, social anxiety, phobias, agoraphobia, etc.).
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Studies (just a small selection): Elsey, J. W., & Kindt, M. (2017). Tackling maladaptive memories through reconsolidation: From neural to clinical science. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 142, 108-117.
Mallet, C., Chick, C. F., Maatoug, R., Fossati, P., Brunet, A., & Millet, B. (2022). Memory reconsolidation impairment using the β-adrenergic receptor blocker propranolol reduces nightmare severity in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder: a preliminary study. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 18(7), 1847-1855.
Pigeon, S., Lonergan, M., Rotondo, O., Pitman, R. K., & Brunet, A. (2022). Impairing memory reconsolidation with propranolol in healthy and clinical samples: a meta-analysis. Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, 47(2), E109-E122.
Soeter, M., & Kindt, M. (2011). Disrupting reconsolidation: pharmacological and behavioral manipulations. Learning & Memory, 18(6), 357-366.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptMany people (especially people with anxiety of negative social evaluation) have the impression to be the focus of attention. But is that really true? Is the spotlight really focused on us?
Some very exciting studies provide answers:
The Spotlight Effect, as explored by Gilovich, Medvec, and Savitsky (2000), refers to the tendency of individuals to believe that others notice and scrutinize their actions and appearance more than they actually do. This social perceptual bias can be advantageous in addressing social anxieties. By recognizing that others pay less attention to perceived flaws or shortcomings, individuals can alleviate their anxieties and develop a more realistic view of their social interactions.
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Studies (just a small selection):
Crosby, J. R., King, M., & Savitsky, K. (2014). The minority spotlight effect. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 5(7), 743-750.
Gilovich, T., & Savitsky, K. (1999). The spotlight effect and the illusion of transparency: Egocentric assessments of how we are seen by others. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 8(6), 165-168.
Gilovich, T., Medvec, V.H., & Savitsky, K. (2000). The spotlight effect in social judgment: An egocentric bias in the salience of one’s own actions and appearance. Journal of personality and social psychology, 78 (2), 211.
Gilovich, T., Kruger, J., & Medvec, V.H. (2002). The spotlight effect revisited: Overestimating the manifest variability of our actions and appearance. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology,
38 (1), 93-99.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptPeople with OCD tend to evaluate their thoughts as overly significant and influential. The belief that certain thoughts could have catastrophic consequences leads to compulsive behaviors. Metacognitive therapy starts here and recognizes the need to break through this excessive evaluation. It is about teaching those affected to look at their thoughts more realistically and to understand that not every thought has the same power.
While behavioral therapy aims to directly influence mental disorders by changing behaviors, metacognitive therapy focuses on the meta-level of cognitive processes. For example, behavioral therapy can aim to interrupt compulsive behavior, while metacognitive therapy directly addresses the underlying thought patterns and beliefs.
The video provides insights into metacognitive therapy and presents a new study (Melchior et al., 2023) in which the effectiveness of metacognitive therapy was compared with the effectiveness of behavioral therapy.
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Studies (just a small selection):
Andouz, Z., Dolatshahi, B., Moshtagh, N., & Dadkhah, A. (2012). The efficacy of metacognitive therapy on patients suffering from pure obsession. Iranian journal of psychiatry, 7(1), 11.
Ferrando, C., & Selai, C. (2021). A systematic review and meta-analysis on the effectiveness of exposure and response prevention therapy in the treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Journal of Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders, 31, 100684.
Glombiewski, J. A., Hansmeier, J., Haberkamp, A., Rief, W., & Exner, C. (2021). Metacognitive therapy versus exposure and response prevention for obsessive-compulsive disorder–A pilot randomized trial. Journal of Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders, 30, 100650.
Hansmeier, J., Haberkamp, A., Glombiewski, J. A., & Exner, C. (2021). Metacognitive change during exposure and metacognitive therapy in obsessive-compulsive disorder. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 12, 722782.
Melchior, K., van der Heiden, C., Deen, M., Mayer, B., & Franken, I. H. (2023). The effectiveness of metacognitive therapy in comparison to exposure and response prevention for obsessive-compulsive disorder: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders, 36, 100780.
Melchior, K., Franken, I. H., & van der Heiden, C. (2018). Metacognitive therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder: A case report. Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, 82(4), 375-389.
Reid, J. E., Laws, K. R., Drummond, L., Vismara, M., Grancini, B., Mpavaenda, D., & Fineberg, N. A. (2021). Cognitive behavioural therapy with exposure and response prevention in the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Comprehensive psychiatry, 106, 152223.
Yan, J., Cui, L., Wang, M., Cui, Y., & Li, Y. (2022). The Efficacy and Neural Correlates of ERP-based Therapy for OCD & TS: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Integrative Neuroscience, 21(3), 97.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptThe Power of cogntive reappraisal in anxiety therapy can be very strong. If we find good cognitive reappraisals anxiety can be overcome. For example we can try to speak of protection attacks instead of panic attacks…
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Studies (just a small selection):
Goldin, P. R., Ziv, M., Jazaieri, H., Hahn, K., Heimberg, R., & Gross, J. J. (2013). Impact of cognitive behavioral therapy for social anxiety disorder on the neural dynamics of cognitive reappraisal of negative self-beliefs: randomized clinical trial. JAMA psychiatry, 70(10), 1048-1056.
Goldin, P. R., Manber-Ball, T., Werner, K., Heimberg, R., & Gross, J. J. (2009). Neural mechanisms of cognitive reappraisal of negative self-beliefs in social anxiety disorder. Biological psychiatry, 66(12), 1091-1099.
Goldin, P. R., Ziv, M., Jazaieri, H., Werner, K., Kraemer, H., Heimberg, R. G., & Gross, J. J. (2012). Cognitive reappraisal self-efficacy mediates the effects of individual cognitive-behavioral therapy for social anxiety disorder. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 80(6), 1034.
Kivity, Y., & Huppert, J. D. (2016). Does cognitive reappraisal reduce anxiety? A daily diary study of a micro-intervention with individuals with high social anxiety. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 84(3), 269.
Picó-Pérez, M., Radua, J., Steward, T., Menchón, J. M., & Soriano-Mas, C. (2017). Emotion regulation in mood and anxiety disorders: a meta-analysis of fMRI cognitive reappraisal studies. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry, 79, 96-104.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptIn this video we explore the nuanced impact of one-sided questions on your child’s emotional and psychological development video. We delve into research findings that shed light on why consistently asking simple questions like “Do you feel sick?” may inadvertently influence a child’s perception of their well-being.
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Study:
Kunda, Z., Fong, G. T., Sanitioso, R., & Reber, E. (1993). Directional questions direct self-conceptions. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 29(1), 63-86.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptBased on a pilot study, we delve into the results of a virtual reality exposure treatment for spider phobia. The study involved 40 participants undergoing a single session of therapy, followed by either 90 minutes of sleep or staying awake.
The findings are remarkable — sleep following exposure therapy demonstrated superior reductions in self-reported fear and catastrophic spider-related cognitions compared to staying awake (p = 0.045, d = 0.47; p = 0.026, d = 0.53, respectively), both measured one week after the therapy session. Notably, these reductions were correlated with higher percentages of stage 2 sleep.
Join us as we explore the conclusions drawn from this study, suggesting that post-therapy sleep enhances therapeutic effectiveness. The potential mechanism lies in the reinforcement of new, non-fearful memory traces established during the psychotherapeutic intervention. These results unveil a non-invasive alternative to traditional approaches, offering valuable insights into optimizing therapeutic memory processes without the need for pharmacological or behavioral interventions.
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Studies (just a small selection):
Kleim, B., Wilhelm, F. H., Temp, L., Margraf, J., Wiederhold, B. K., & Rasch, B. (2014). Sleep enhances exposure therapy. Psychological medicine, 44(7), 1511-1519.
Sara, S. J. (2010). Reactivation, retrieval, replay and reconsolidation in and out of sleep: connecting the dots. Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience, 4, 185.
Simon, K. C., Gómez, R. L., & Nadel, L. (2020). Sleep’s role in memory reconsolidation. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 33, 132-137.
Stickgold, R., & Walker, M. P. (2005). Memory consolidation and reconsolidation: what is the role of sleep?. Trends in neurosciences, 28(8), 408-415.
Woud, M. L., Cwik, J. C., Blackwell, S. E., Kleim, B., Holmes, E. A., Adolph, D., … & Margraf, J. (2018). Does napping enhance the effects of cognitive bias modification-appraisal training? An experimental study. PloS one, 13(2), e0192837.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptWhen should you face your anxiety? Does the time of day have an influence on the success of therapy? And what role does cortisol play in this? Researchers at the University of Saarbrücken conducted a very interesting study on this…
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Studies (small sample only):
Lass-Hennemann, J., & Michael, T. (2014). Endogenous cortisol levels influence exposure therapy in spider phobia. Behaviour research and therapy, 60, 39-45.
Is it possible to simulate the medical effect of pills by simply imagining taking one? A fascinating new study published in the journal Nature provides answers and could help to finally harness the placebo effect. However, the idea of an imaginary "hypnosis pill" is decades old and was developed in [...]
Psychological trauma refers to the lasting emotional and psychological impact resulting from distressing events or experiences. While trauma can be debilitating, individuals have the remarkable capacity to heal and recover from these wounds. When individuals confront traumatic experiences, they often develop coping mechanisms and resilience to manage the associated distress. [...]
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptWhat makes people “successful” in life?
For decades, researchers have been trying to answer this question in numerous studies. In the process, they have indeed come across some personality traits that can be used to predict at least a large part of some people’s success (e.g., intelligence, self-control, conscientiousness, openness, extroversion, self-efficacy expectations, etc.). However, even when these “best” predictors are combined and statistically corrected for measurement error, a very large amount of variance remains unexplained in many studies.
Apparently, there is another major success factor that is drastically underestimated by many people. There is some evidence to suggest that this is the “chance” factor. And some researchers – such as today’s guest speaker Professor Dr. Christian Busch – are convinced that we can learn to make better use of the success factor of chance by adopting the right mindset. And so we can possibly turn a trivial coincidence into luck.
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Studies (small sample only):
Busch, C. (2020). The serendipity mindset: The art and science of creating good luck. Penguin.
Busch, C. (2022). Towards a Theory of Serendipity: A Systematic Review and Conceptualization. Journal of Management Studies.
Busch, C., & Barkema, H. (2022). Planned luck: How incubators can facilitate serendipity for nascent entrepreneurs through fostering network embeddedness. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 46(4), 884-919.
Busch, C., & Barkema, H. (2021). From necessity to opportunity: Scaling bricolage across resource‐constrained environments. Strategic Management Journal, 42(4), 741-773.
Duckworth, A. L., & Seligman, M. E. (2005). Self-discipline outdoes IQ in predicting academic performance of adolescents. Psychological science, 16(12), 939-944.
Moffitt, T. E., Arseneault, L., Belsky, D., Dickson, N., Hancox, R. J., Harrington, H., … & Caspi, A. (2011). A gradient of childhood self-control predicts health, wealth, and public safety. Proceedings of the national Academy of Sciences, 108(7), 2693-2698.
PLUTINO, A., BIONDO, A., & Rapisarda, A. (2018). Talent vs Luck: the role of randomness in success and failure.
Schmidt, F. L., Oh, I. S., & Shaffer, J. A. (2016). The validity and utility of selection methods in personnel psychology: Practical and theoretical implications of 100 years. Fox School of Business Research Paper, 1-74.
Strömbäck, C., Lind, T., Skagerlund, K., Västfjäll, D., & Tinghög, G. (2017). Does self-control predict financial behavior and financial well-being?. Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, 14, 30-38.
Wiseman, R. (2004). The luck factor. Random House.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptIt is not uncommon for an individual’s mental illness to be “doctored”, although the cause and maintenance of the problem can be traced back to the system (e.g. family, school, workplace). In psychology, therefore, there has been for many years the so-called “systemic therapy”, in which the individual is not isolated, but understood as embedded in his system. It is not the individual who is pathological, but the system in which he or she is located. But how effective is systemic therapy? For example, how effective is systemic therapy compared to cognitive behavioral therapy for people with social anxiety?
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Studies (small sample only):
Huang, Y., Li, Y., Haun, M. W., Xie, R., Yang, L., Retzlaff, R., & Qian, Y. (2023). Systemic therapy for children and adolescents with depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Current Psychology, 1-13.
Hunger, C., Hilzinger, R., Klewinghaus, L., Deusser, L., Sander, A., Mander, J., … & Schweitzer, J. (2020). Comparing Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Systemic Therapy for Social Anxiety Disorder: Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial (SOPHO-CBT/ST). Family process, 59(4), 1389-1.
406.
Pinquart, M., Oslejsek, B., & Teubert, D. (2016). Efficacy of systemic therapy on adults with mental disorders: A meta-analysis. Psychotherapy Research, 26(2), 241-257.
Riedinger, V., Pinquart, M., & Teubert, D. (2017). Effects of systemic therapy on mental health of children and adolescents: A meta-analysis. Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 46(6), 880-894.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptEducational psychology: are there effective alternatives to “yelling and scolding”?
A recently published meta-analysis, in which quite a few studies were summarized and analyzed, provides impressive evidence:
Leijten, P., Gardner, F., Melendez-Torres, G. J., Van Aar, J., Hutchings, J., Schulz, S., … & Overbeek, G. (2019). Meta-analyses: key parenting program components for disruptive child behavior. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 58(2), 180-190.
The researchers concluded that parenting training programs in which natural or logical consequences had been taught were significantly more effective on average. But what do we mean by “natural” or “logical” consequences? And what are the advantages over some other common parenting methods?
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Studies (small sample only):
Azoulay, D. (1999). Encouragement and logical consequences versus rewards and punishment: A reexamination. Individual Psychology, 55(1), 91.
Dinkmeyer, D., & Dinkmeyer, D. (1976). Logical consequences: A key to the reduction of disciplinary problems. The Phi Delta Kappan, 57(10), 664-666.
Leijten, P., Gardner, F., Melendez-Torres, G. J., Van Aar, J., Hutchings, J., Schulz, S., … & Overbeek, G. (2019). Meta-analyses: key parenting program components for disruptive child behavior. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 58(2), 180-190.
Robichaud, J. M., Lessard, J., Labelle, L., & Mageau, G. A. (2020). The role of logical consequences and autonomy support in children’s anticipated reactions of anger and empathy. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 29, 1511-1524.
Robichaud, J. M., Mageau, G. A., & Soenens, B. (2020). The role of logical consequences in adolescents’ cognitive precursors of compliance and internalization. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 192, 104777.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptFor decades, scientists have been searching for differences in the bodies of depressed and healthy people. For many years, however, the hoped-for breakthrough failed to materialize. However, a flood of recent research provides reason for hope. The hottest current clue is that depression could be caused by inflammations in the body. Even if the causal question has not yet been fully clarified, this could lead to promising new therapeutic approaches in the coming years. But some things can already be implemented now…
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Research (just a small selection):
Berk, M., Williams, L. J., Jacka, F. N., O’Neil, A., Pasco, J. A., Moylan, S., … & Maes, M. (2013). So depression is an inflammatory disease, but where does the inflammation come from?. BMC medicine, 11(1), 1-16.
Beurel, E., Toups, M., & Nemeroff, C. B. (2020). The bidirectional relationship of depression and inflammation: double trouble. Neuron, 107(2), 234-256.
Burck, E. (2021). Naturtherapie bei Angst und Depression: Die erstaunliche Wirkung von Heilkräutern, gesunder Ernährung und anderen natürlichen Therapien auf Gehirn und Stimmung im Vergleich zu herkömmlichen Antidepressiva. BoD–Books on Demand.
Fisker, L., Köhler-Forsberg, O., & Hageman, I. (2018). The relation between depression and inflammation. Ugeskrift for laeger, 180(20).
Halaris, A. (2013). Inflammation, heart disease, and depression. Current psychiatry reports, 15(10), 400.
Halaris, A. (2019). Inflammation and depression but where does the inflammation come from?. Current opinion in psychiatry, 32(5), 422-428.
Jokela, M., Virtanen, M., Batty, G. D., & Kivimäki, M. (2016). Inflammation and specific symptoms of depression. JAMA psychiatry, 73(1), 87-88.
Kohler, O., Krogh, J., Mors, O., & Eriksen Benros, M. (2016). Inflammation in depression and the potential for anti-inflammatory treatment. Current neuropharmacology, 14(7), 732-742.
Majd, M., Saunders, E. F., & Engeland, C. G. (2020). Inflammation and the dimensions of depression: A review. Frontiers in neuroendocrinology, 56, 100800.
Miller, A. H., & Raison, C. L. (2016). The role of inflammation in depression: from evolutionary imperative to modern treatment target. Nature reviews immunology, 16(1), 22-34.
Patel, A. (2013). The role of inflammation in depression. Psychiatr Danub, 25(Suppl 2), S216-23.
Raison, C. L., Capuron, L., & Miller, A. H. (2006). Cytokines sing the blues: inflammation and the pathogenesis of depression. Trends in immunology, 27(1), 24-31.
Strawbridge, R., Arnone, D., Danese, A., Papadopoulos, A., Vives, A. H., & Cleare, A. J. (2015). Inflammation and clinical response to treatment in depression: a meta-analysis. European Neuropsychopharmacology, 25(10), 1532-1543.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptMany people who suffer from sleep disorders try to force themselves to sleep by taking sleeping pills. In doing so, they accept the side effects of medication, although there is an extremely effective alternative in the form of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (ICBT). The good news is that many therapy elements can be easily integrated into everyday life (even without a therapist). Apps can also help with this (e.g. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=gov.va.mobilehealth.ncptsd.cbti)… (You can find the app under the name “CBT-I Coach”).
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Studies (only small selection):
Chow, P. I., Ingersoll, K. S., Thorndike, F. P., Lord, H. R., Gonder-Frederick, L., Morin, C. M., & Ritterband, L. M. (2018). Cognitive mechanisms of sleep outcomes in a randomized clinical trial of internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia. Sleep Medicine, 47, 77-85.
Gee, B., Orchard, F., Clarke, E., Joy, A., Clarke, T., & Reynolds, S. (2019). The effect of non-pharmacological sleep interventions on depression symptoms: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Sleep medicine reviews, 43, 118-128.
Hasan, F., Tu, Y. K., Yang, C. M., Gordon, C. J., Wu, D., Lee, H. C., … & Chiu, H. Y. (2022). Comparative efficacy of digital cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. Sleep medicine reviews, 61, 101567.
Lowe, C. J., Safati, A., & Hall, P. A. (2017). The neurocognitive consequences of sleep restriction: a meta-analytic review. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 80, 586-604.
Soh, H. L., Ho, R. C., Ho, C. S., & Tam, W. W. (2020). Efficacy of digital cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Sleep medicine, 75, 315-325.
Staines, A. C., Broomfield, N., Pass, L., Orchard, F., & Bridges, J. (2022). Do non-pharmacological sleep interventions affect anxiety symptoms? A meta-analysis. Journal of Sleep Research, 31(1), e13451.
van Straten, A., & Cuijpers, P. (2009). Self-help therapy for insomnia: a meta-analysis. Sleep medicine reviews, 13(1), 61-71.
Van Straten, A., van der Zweerde, T., Kleiboer, A., Cuijpers, P., Morin, C. M., & Lancee, J. (2018). Cognitive and behavioral therapies in the treatment of insomnia: a meta-analysis. Sleep medicine reviews, 38, 3-16.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptThe research is clear: the more we embrace fear (exposure, confrontation), the more it will release us from its grip. But how can therapeutic anxiety confrontation be made even more effective? Studies have been able to show that in the treatment of anxiety disorders, it is more effective in the long run not to confront the same situation over and over again, but to master different anxiety-provoking situations. By confronting different challenges, one learns that anxiety is not always justified in every situation and that one can gain control over anxiety. However, one-sided confrontation with a particular situation can lead to stagnation and contribute to the likelihood of a return of fear. The video highlights the exciting research on this topic….
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Studies (small sample only):
Bandarian-Balooch, S., Neumann, D. L., & Boschen, M. J. (2015). Exposure treatment in multiple contexts attenuates return of fear via renewal in high spider fearful individuals. Journal of behavior therapy and experimental psychiatry, 47, 138-144.
Burck, E. (2019). Angst-Was hilft wirklich gegen Angst und Panikattacken?: Die effektivsten Strategien gegen Angst und Panik aus Sicht der Forschung. BoD–Books on Demand.
Craske, M. G., Treanor, M., Conway, C. C., Zbozinek, T., & Vervliet, B. (2014). Maximizing exposure therapy: An inhibitory learning approach. Behaviour research and therapy, 58, 10-23.
de Jong, R., Lommen, M. J., de Jong, P. J., & Nauta, M. H. (2019). Using multiple contexts and retrieval cues in exposure-based therapy to prevent relapse in anxiety disorders. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 26(1), 154-165.
Gunther, L. M., Denniston, J. C., & Miller, R. R. (1998). Conducting exposure treatment in multiple contexts can prevent relapse. Behaviour research and therapy, 36(1), 75-91.
Mineka, S., Mystkowski, J. L., Hladek, D., & Rodriguez, B. I. (1999). The effects of changing contexts on return of fear following exposure therapy for spider fear. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 67(4), 599.
Shiban, Y., Schelhorn, I., Pauli, P., & Mühlberger, A. (2015). Effect of combined multiple contexts and multiple stimuli exposure in spider phobia: A randomized clinical trial in virtual reality. Behaviour research and therapy, 71, 45-53.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptPsychologists (especially social psychologists) have been researching manipulation techniques for decades. It is becoming increasingly apparent that sometimes it only takes a single phrase to increase the likelihood that another person will comply with our request. The following techniques seem to be particularly effective:
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“Evoking freedom” technique
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“This is my only request” technique.
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Legitimization of a paltry contribution technique.
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“You will probably refuse…” technique
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Foot-in-the-mouth technique
Since these manipulation techniques can be easily incorporated into everyday speech and many people do this automatically anyway, they are difficult for us to recognize. Nevertheless, as is often the case, the more familiar we are with these techniques, the better we can protect ourselves against them.
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Studies (small sample only):
Andrews, K. R., Carpenter, C. J., Shaw, A. S., & Boster, F. J. (2008). The legitimization of paltry favors effect: A review and meta-analysis. Communication Reports, 21(2), 59-69.
Bolkan, S., & Rains, S. A. (2017). The legitimization of paltry contributions as a compliance-gaining technique: A meta-analysis testing three explanations. Communication Research, 44(7), 976-996.
Carpenter, C. J. (2013). A meta-analysis of the effectiveness of the “but you are free” compliance-gaining technique. Communication Studies, 64(1), 6-17.
Guéguen, N. (2016). “You will probably refuse, but…”: When activating reactance in a single sentence increases compliance with a request. Polish Psychological Bulletin.
Dolinski, D., Grzyb, T., Olejnik, J., Prusakowski, S., & Urban, K. (2005). Let’s Dialogue About Penny: Effectiveness of Dialogue Involvement and Legitimizing Paltry Contribution Techniques 1. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 35(6), 1150-1170.
Fointiat, V. (2000). “Foot-in-the-Mouth” versus “Door-in-the-Face” requests. The Journal of Social Psychology, 140(2), 264-266.
Grzyb, T., & Doliński, D. (2017). “This is my only request”–using the ‘Omega’strategy to boost the success of charity drives. European Review of Applied Psychology, 67(4), 181-185.
Howard, D. J. (1990). The influence of verbal responses to common greetings on compliance behavior: The foot‐in‐the‐mouth effect. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 20(14), 1185-1196.
Farley, S. D., Kelly, J., Singh, S., Thornton Jr, C., & Young, T. (2019). “Free to Say No”: Evoking freedom increased compliance in two field experiments. The Journal of social psychology, 159(4), 482-489.
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About: Social Psychological Influence Techniques
Social psychological influence techniques are behaviors aimed at influencing the opinions or actions of others. They are used in many areas of daily life, from sales promotion to political campaigning. Some of the most well-known social psychological influence techniques are the foot-in-the-door technique, the door-in-the-face technique, the low-ball technique, and the that’s-not-all technique.
The “foot-in-the-door” technique is based on the assumption that people are more willing to fulfill a larger request after they have already fulfilled a smaller request. A well-known study that examined this technique is that of Freedman and Fraser (1966). In this study, the researchers first asked for a small favor (e.g., to hang a small sign) before asking for a larger favor (e.g., huge sign in the front yard). The results showed that those who had initially performed the small favor were more willing to perform the larger favor as well.
The door-in-the-face technique is based on the assumption that people are more willing to fulfill a smaller request after refusing a larger request. A well-known study that examined this technique is that of Cialdini et al. (1975). In this study, researchers first asked for a very large favor (e.g., to participate in a study for a week) before asking for a smaller favor (e.g., to complete a questionnaire). The results showed that those who had initially refused the large favor were more willing to perform the smaller favor as well.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptBy now, almost everyone has understood: We pay for the free use of services like Facebook, Tiktok, Google and Co. with our personal data. But what can the big tech companies do with this data? In a groundbreaking study researchers at Stanford University were able to provide a (somewhat creepy) answer: it is easy to predict the most important personality traits (including the Big Five: openness, agreeableness, conscientiousness, extraversion and neuroticism) using only Facebook likes (Youyou et al., 2015).
The results of this study show that Facebook Likes are a valuable source for predicting personality traits and that machine learning models are capable of predicting these traits with high accuracy (Kosinski, Stillwell, & Graepel, 2013). However, there are also ethical concerns about privacy and the possibility that this technology could be abused (keyword: Cambridge Analytica).
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Studies (small sample only):
Kosinski, M., Stillwell, D., & Graepel, T. (2013). Private traits and attributes are predictable from digital records of human behavior. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 110(15), 5802-5805.
Markovikj, D., Gievska, S., Kosinski, M., & Stillwell, D. (2013). Mining facebook data for predictive personality modeling. In Proceedings of the International AAAI Conference on Web and Social Media (Vol. 7, No. 2, pp. 23-26).
Matz, S. C., Kosinski, M., Nave, G., & Stillwell, D. J. (2017). Psychological targeting as an effective approach to digital mass persuasion. Proceedings of the national academy of sciences, 114(48), 12714-12719.
Matz, S., Kosinski, M., Stillwell, D., & Nave, G. (2017). Psychological framing as an effective approach to real-life persuasive communication. ACR North American Advances.
Matz, S. C., Kosinski, M., Nave, G., & Stillwell, D. J. (2018). Reply to Eckles et al.: Facebook’s optimization algorithms are highly unlikely to explain the effects of psychological targeting. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 115(23), E5256-E5257.
Matz, S., & Kosinski, M. (2019). Using consumers’ digital footprints for more persuasive mass communication. NIM Marketing Intelligence Review, 11(2), 18-23.
Matz, S. C., Kosinski, M., Nave, G., & Stillwell, D. J. (2018). Reply to Sharp et al.: Psychological targeting produces robust effects. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 115(34), E7891-E7891.
Youyou, W., Kosinski, M., & Stillwell, D. (2015). Computer-based personality judgments are more accurate than those made by humans. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 112(4), 1036-1040.
For privacy reasons YouTube needs your permission to be loaded. For more details, please see our Site Notice.I AcceptNo matter if we are in the supermarket or shopping online: Every day we are manipulated by strategies from sales and price psychology. Extensive research has shown how we are seduced into buying by different price presentations. Not only the well-known nine prices play a central role, but we are also influenced by the color and the relative size of the price presentation. As is so often the case, those who know the marketing strategies can more easily protect themselves from them.
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Studies (small sample only):
Coulter, K. S., & Coulter, R. A. (2005). Size does matter: The effects of magnitude representation congruency on price perceptions and purchase likelihood. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 15(1), 64-76.
Felser, G. (2015). Werbe-und Konsumentenpsychologie. Springer-Verlag: Berlin.
Puccinelli, N. M., Chandrashekaran, R., Grewal, D., & Suri, R. (2013). Are men seduced by red? The effect of red versus black prices on price perceptions. Journal of Retailing, 89(2), 115-125.
Schindler, R. M., & Kibarian, T. M. (1996). Increased consumer sales response though use of 99-ending prices. Journal of Retailing, 72(2), 187-199.
Thomas, M., & Morwitz, V. (2005). Penny wise and pound foolish: the left-digit effect in price cognition. Journal of Consumer Research, 32(1), 54-64.
Thomas, M., Simon, D. H., & Kadiyali, V. (2007). Do consumers perceive precise prices to be lower than round prices? Evidence from laboratory and market data. Evidence from Laboratory and Market Data (September 2007). Johnson School at Cornell University Research Paper, (09-07).
Van Droogenbroeck, E., Van Hove, L., & Cordemans, S. (2018). Do red prices also work online?: An extension of Puccinelli et al.(2013). Color Research & Application, 43(1), 110-113.
Wu, C., & Cosguner, K. (2020). Profiting from the decoy effect: A case study of an online diamond retailer. Marketing Science, 39(5), 974-995.
Xiao, Q., Zeng, S., & Feldman, G. (2020). Revisiting the decoy effect: replication and extension of Ariely and Wallsten (1995) and Connolly, Reb, and Kausel (2013). Comprehensive Results in Social Psychology, 4(2), 164-198.
Yang, S. S., Kimes, S. E., & Sessarego, M. M. (2009). Menu price presentation influences on consumer purchase behavior in restaurants. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 28(1), 157-160.
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Definition “psychology of pricing” – what is it?
The psychology of pricing refers to the study of how people perceive and respond to different prices for goods and services. It involves understanding the psychological factors that influence people’s decisions to purchase or not purchase a product, as well as the ways in which prices can be used to influence people’s perceptions and behaviors.
One example of the psychology of pricing is the concept of “anchoring,” which refers to the tendency for people to rely on initial information as a reference point when making decisions. For example, if a person sees a product for sale at a high price, they may perceive it as being of higher quality or value, even if similar products are available at lower prices. This can lead people to pay more for a product than they otherwise might, simply because they are anchored to the initial high price.
Even though our lives would certainly be dull and boring without emotions, everyone has probably wished at some point that he or she no longer had to bear a negative emotion (e.g., fear, sadness, or anger) or at least to be able to mitigate it. Fortunately, after decades of research, [...]
What can be done when children simply do not listen? Are there effective alternatives to yelling and scolding? Educational psychology provides a variety of effective tips (supported by intensive research) that make it possible to give children guidance without having to use verbal or non-verbal violence. Three of these tips [...]
Is personality irrelevant? - The Big Five and Career Success (Psychology, Personnel Selection, Business Psychology, Recruitment) More than 100 years of research have impressively shown: Based on the Big Five personality factors, career success can be predicted surprisingly poorly on average (Schmidt, Oh & Shaffer, 2016). For example, a huge [...]
Can you overcome depression by climbing to new mood heights? A brand new study by German researchers aims to answer this question. To do this, subjects with depression were randomly assigned to three different groups: 1. BOULDERING THERAPY 2. COGNITIVE BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY 3. EXERCISE PROGRAMME (AT HOME) The results are [...]
Do 9-ending prices really work? Are people really so stupid that they perceive a price of 99.99 euros as so much cheaper than a price of 100 euros? And do 99-ending prices really lead to more sales and profits? These questions have been studied for many years by researchers in [...]
Approximately 5% of all people in Europe suffer from agoraphobia at least once in their lives (the 12-month prevalence is about 2%; Wittchen and Hoyer, 2011). Due to fear (of panic attacks or other symptoms), sufferers avoid e.g. department stores, cinemas, public transport, crowds, confined or enclosed spaces, and car [...]
Anyone who successfully confronts his fear (e.g., in the context of cognitive behavioral therapy) builds neuronal "safety networks" in his brain. However, in many situations these safety networks still compete with the old "fear networks". Depending on which network has the upper hand, our organism reacts with fear or composure. [...]
Does your smartphone make you dumb? Can the mere presence of a smartphone affect our intelligence? Does a smartphone that is next to us on the desk make it harder for us to concentrate? A very interesting study delivers amazing results: Ward, A.F., Duke, K., Gneezy, A., & Bos, M.W. [...]
The Evoking Freedom Technique is one of the simplest and at the same time most effective influencing techniques that have been investigated by psychologists in studies so far. In most cases it is enough to add one of the following sentences to a request: "..., but you are free to [...]
Whether it is social anxiety, animal phobia, agoraphobia or generalized anxiety disorder, some strategies from emotion regulation research can be successfully applied to almost all fears. The video presents helpful perspective shifts and thought patterns that have helped subjects reduce or completely overcome anxiety in a number of studies: 1. [...]
When someone asks us for a favor and provides a valid reason, we are more inclined to help. But in some situations it is already sufficient to present a quite dumb reason...
How we can be influenced by the "just one more"-technique. www.learningpsychology.net Author: Eskil Burck (degreed psychologist)
Should you touch a woman softly on her forearm when you ask her for a date? Keywords: Touch, Education, Dating, Willpower, Social Psychology, mind, Brain, Influence, Psychology Author: Eskil Burck (Degreed Psychologist) https://learningpsychology.net/
Can you improve the probabilty of getting help by others when you touch them on their arm?
Keywords:
Touch, Education, Delay of Gratification, Willpower, Social Psychology, mind, Brain, Influence, Psychology
Author: Eskil Burck (Degreed Psychologist)
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Can you earn more Tips by touching the customer?
Keywords:
Touch, Education, Delay of Gratification, Willpower, Social Psychology, mind, Brain, Influence, Psychology
Author: Eskil Burck (Degreed Psychologist)
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Do customers stay longer in a shop and spend more money when you touch them on their arm?
Keywords:
Touch, Education, Delay of Gratification, Willpower, Social Psychology, mind, Brain, Influence, Psychology
Author: Eskil Burck (Degreed Psychologist)
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Can you improve cooperativeness with a 10-Cent-Coin? We review a classic experiment from social psychology: The “Phonebooth Study”.
Keywords:
Touch, Education, Delay of Gratification, Willpower, Social Psychology, mind, Brain, Influence, Psychology
Author: Eskil Burck (Degreed Psychologist)
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For many people their birthday is a very special date. Good friends are calling. We get a lot of presents. And maybe we plan to go to an exciting event. So probably we are in a quite good mood. Is it possible that other people use this to their advantage to persuade us?
Keywords:
Touch, Education, Delay of Gratification, Willpower, Social Psychology, mind, Brain, Influence, Psychology
Author: Eskil Burck (Degreed Psychologist)
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