36 readings with original sources
Mind and behavior
An everyday action can raise a research question: how we repeat a routine, what we remember about an experience, or how we describe our emotions. These readings explore specific studies behind those questions.
What to look for in these studies
Look at whether researchers observed what people did, asked how they felt, or compared conditions in an experiment. Those differences change what can be concluded. A laboratory finding does not automatically describe everyone's everyday life.
- What did the study measure, and who took part?
- Did it observe a relationship or test an intervention?
- How far can the finding apply beyond the study?
Explore the research
- Without saying a word, their steps already showed whether they hit it off
- A short break: less fatigue, but no improvement in performance
- One-third of reported moments included both pleasant and difficult emotions
- Remembering who helped you brought warmth and a wish to give back
- Reappraisal and distraction eased feelings similarly, but with different patterns of attention
- People who found meaning in boring tasks said they felt more motivated
- More procrastination went along with more stress and less satisfaction
- A phone sound slowed responses by about three milliseconds
- Social media and gaming, not total screen time, went along with preferring the immediate option
- People with a firm opinion chose more texts that supported it
- Students chose to view more scenes of harm between people
- Optimism and pessimism were not mirror images of each other
- Refuting the claim did not fully erase it; counterarguments helped
- Before attention lapsed, slow waves like those in sleep appeared
- Future scenes imagined from rewarded words felt somewhat more vivid
- More money at stake did not make visual memory more accurate
- Experts and machines recognized faces similarly but made different errors
- Faces instead of distorted letters: people were correct about 94% of the time
- When they heard a real recording alongside it, people were better at spotting the fake voice
- Reviewing one complete option before moving to the next led to more correct answers
- Two studies, two timelines: 59 and 66 days for a habit to become automatic
- Viewing social media content did not predict well-being a year later
- Browsing social media was followed by slightly more negative emotion
- Two weeks of gratitude lists led to more positive emotion
- After a task that reduced their sense of control, students bet differently
- An apology after an offensive comment increased willingness to forgive
- Stress fell in both groups, whether they used a digital program or a book
- They slept well, but negative emotions weighed more heavily in their dreams
- Three weeks of doing favors did not lift mood
- In London, most people sustained support to reconnect with others
- Nurse visits left modest improvements at age five
- With a breathing cushion, students reported less anxiety before an exam
- In appearance comparisons, feeling worse off went with negative emotions
- A year and a half of meditation improved one part of well-being, not all of it
- Five online lessons showed no advantage among health workers
- After one night without sleep, it was harder to calm reactions to distressing images