#psychotherapy — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #psychotherapy, aggregated by home.social.
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 12:31PM
SOURCE: PSYCHIATRIC TIMESDirect article link at end of text block below.
The Lindsay Clancy trial may be setting a dangerous precedent for psychiatry. Can the mental health system be responsible for a patient’s criminal behavior? https://t.co/IaIemQlh6b
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Articles can be found by scrolling down the page at Articles can be found at https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/news".
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #psychotherapist #LindsayClancy # PsychiatryPrecedence #MentalHealth #CriminalBehavior #LegalEthics
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 12:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: The hallucinogenic plant Salvia divinorum relieves facial pain, study finds
URL: https://www.psypost.org/a-hallucinogenic-mint-plant-relieves-facial-pain-in-mice/
A compound extracted from a hallucinogenic mint plant reduces facial pain in mice by interacting with specific receptors in the nervous system. The research provides a biological basis for the plant’s historical use in indigenous medicine and suggests new avenues for treating persistent nerve pain. The study was published in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology.
Trigeminal pain, also known as orofacial pain, originates in the sensory nerves of the face and can be highly disruptive to daily life. For a large portion of the population, this type of discomfort persists despite standard medical treatments and pain relievers. In the Cañada region of Oaxaca, Mexico, traditional healers address this condition by preparing an infusion from the leaves of the *Salvia divinorum* plant.
The plant is a member of the mint family and is widely known for its fast-acting hallucinogenic effects. During spiritual ceremonies, healers use large quantities of the fresh leaves to induce visions. However, when treating physical ailments like headaches or rheumatism, they prepare a much weaker tea from only a few leaves. This ethnobotanical history inspired scientists to take a closer look at how the plant acts on the body’s pain pathways.
To understand how this plant alters pain perception without inducing heavy hallucinations, researchers Geovanna Nallely Quiñonez-Bastidas, Andrés Navarrete, and their colleagues investigated its primary active compound. The chemical, called salvinorin A, is known to produce mind-altering effects by binding to specific opioid receptors in the brain. The research team suspected the chemical might also interact with two other prominent sensory structures in the nervous system.
One target is the cannabinoid type 1 receptor, which is part of the system that responds to the active ingredients in cannabis. The other is the transient receptor potential vanilloid 1, a cellular channel involved in sensing heat and pain. Both of these receptors are heavily concentrated in the sensory nerves of the face. This makes them logical targets for investigating how a traditional plant medicine might soothe orofacial pain.
To test the plant’s pain-relieving properties, the researchers conducted a small study using laboratory mice. They prepared a concentrated extract from dried *Salvia divinorum* leaves and also isolated the purified salvinorin A compound. They then injected a mild chemical irritant called formalin into the upper lip of the mice to simulate trigeminal pain. This minor irritation prompts the animals to repeatedly rub their faces, providing a measurable behavioral sign of discomfort.
The researchers observed the animals after administering varying doses of either the whole plant extract or the purified chemical. Both the plant extract and the purified salvinorin A reduced the amount of time the mice spent rubbing their faces. The purified chemical was highly potent, requiring only about one-tenth the dose of the full extract to achieve the exact same level of pain relief. This indicates that salvinorin A is the primary component driving the plant’s biological effects on pain.
The team wanted to isolate the specific biological pathways involved in this response. They injected a new group of mice with chemical blockers that temporarily disable specific nervous system receptors. Some mice received a blocker designed specifically for the cannabinoid receptor. Other mice received a blocker targeted at the vanilloid receptor. After disabling these specific cellular targets, the scientists administered the plant compound and exposed the mice to the lip irritant.
When either the cannabinoid or vanilloid receptors were chemically blocked, salvinorin A lost its ability to relieve the facial pain. The researchers also tested blockers for two other common nervous system pathways, but disabling those did not stop the compound from working. These outcomes demonstrate that the compound relies directly on the cannabinoid and vanilloid receptors to suppress pain signals in the face.
The researchers then performed a laboratory test using isolated tissue to biologically confirm these receptor interactions. They extracted the esophagus and its connected vagus nerve from rats. By applying mild electrical pulses, they prompted the nerve to trigger rhythmic muscle contractions in the esophagus tissue. The team then applied salvinorin A to the tissue bath to observe its effect on nerve transmission.
Applying the compound effectively stopped the nerve from triggering the muscle contractions. When the scientists added the same chemical blockers used in the live mouse experiment, the nerve impulses and muscle contractions returned to normal. This isolated tissue test provided direct physical evidence that salvinorin A alters nerve activity through the specified sensory receptors.
Finally, the researchers evaluated whether the pain-relieving doses of salvinorin A produced other behavioral side effects. They subjected the mice to a battery of tests designed to measure anxiety, motor coordination, sedation, and depression-like behavior. To measure anxiety, they observed how much time the mice spent exploring open areas versus hiding in enclosed spaces. For motor skills, they tracked the animals’ ability to walk on a rotating cylinder.
The compound did not alter the animals’ anxiety levels. Changes in the amount of time the mice spent in open areas were not statistically significant compared to untreated mice. The animals treated with the compound also performed just as well on the rotating cylinder, showing no signs of physical impairment. However, the animals did exhibit certain noticeable behavioral changes in other environments.
In a test that involves placing the mice in a cylinder of water, the treated animals spent more time floating motionlessly rather than actively swimming. In a separate observation test, the treated mice were less likely to rear up on their hind legs to explore a new enclosure. The researchers interpreted these reduced activity levels as signs of mild depressive and sedative side effects.
While the compound demonstrates a powerful ability to block facial pain, its sedative and depressive side effects present hurdles for daily medical use. The mind-altering properties of the plant, which are heavily documented at higher doses, also complicate its potential development into a standard therapeutic drug.
Future research will likely focus on evaluating the chemical in different models of nerve damage. Scientists will also need to test modifications of the compound to see if they can isolate the pain-relieving benefits while reducing the unwanted psychological effects.
The study, “Antinociceptive effect of salvinorin A from the extract of Salvia divinorum in formalin-evoked trigeminal pain behavior in mice: Underlying mechanisms,” was authored by Geovanna Nallely Quiñonez-Bastidas, Eva Daysi Tixta-Ramírez, José Luis Balderas-López, Paola Andrea Vargas-Durán, Araceli Pérez-Vásquez, and Andrés Navarrete.
URL: https://www.psypost.org/a-hallucinogenic-mint-plant-relieves-facial-pain-in-mice/
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #SalviaDivinorum #SalvinorinA #FacialPainRelief #TrigeminalPain #PainResearch #CannabinoidReceptor #VanilloidReceptor #Ethnopharmacology #NervePainTreatment #MiceStudy
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 11:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Enlarged amygdala linked to a distinct social anxiety profile in autistic adults
Autism and social anxiety frequently occur together, but it has been difficult to tell whether this combination simply reflects more severe autistic traits or represents a distinct condition. Recent research published in Translational Psychiatry indicates that autistic adults with social anxiety tend to show more compliant social behaviors and possess larger amygdalas compared to those without social anxiety. The findings suggest that social anxiety in autism may constitute a unique behavioral and biological profile rather than just an overlap of symptoms.
Autistic individuals often experience social anxiety, with some estimates suggesting up to half of autistic adults face these challenges. This rate is far higher than what is seen in the general population. In everyday life, autistic people might avoid social situations because they struggle to interpret social cues or tolerate unpredictability, which can look very similar to standard social anxiety.
Because the two conditions can look so similar on the surface, “social anxiety can be missed or mischaracterized,” explained lead author Yu (Hannah) Hao, a professor of psychology at Ningbo University who conducted the research alongside Daniela Schiller at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. “Existing treatments may also be less effective when they do not address autism-specific experiences, such as difficulty interpreting social situations and coping with unpredictability.”
A major focus of recent science has been mapping how the brain processes these complex social interactions. For example, a 2025 study of autistic adults mapped out how participants navigate social scenarios, establishing a way to measure behaviors related to social closeness and interpersonal power.
At the center of the brain’s social behavior network sits the amygdala, a small almond-shaped structure that helps people process emotions and detect threats. Prior work covered by PsyPost in 2023 indicated that autistic individuals tend to have an unusually sensitive threat-processing system involving the amygdala when looking at faces.
Tracking this brain region over time has provided more clues about its role in social development. A 2021 study of adolescents tracked amygdala development and noted that changes in the size of specific amygdala regions are linked to the core social and communication challenges seen in autism.
These findings laid the groundwork for testing how brain structure and social behavior interact. Hao and the research team wanted to find out if autistic adults with social anxiety display a distinct set of social behaviors and brain features. By answering this question, they hoped to provide evidence that social anxiety in autism is a specific subtype that requires tailored diagnostic tools and treatments.
The research involved two complementary studies to examine both behavior and brain structure. The first study took place online and focused on behavioral differences. The research team recruited 575 young adults diagnosed with autism and a comparison group of 357 non-autistic adults. Within the autistic group, 145 participants reported having a professional diagnosis of social anxiety disorder.
Participants completed a naturalistic role-playing game designed to simulate everyday social decisions. As players navigated a storyline about joining a new school or exploring a new town, they interacted with virtual characters. The researchers measured two main dimensions of social behavior: affiliation, which involves seeking social closeness, and power, which involves taking control or asserting dominance in an interaction.
The results of this first study pointed to a specific behavioral pattern. Autistic adults with social anxiety were less likely to assert power in social situations compared to autistic adults without social anxiety. Instead, they tended to be more acquiescent, meaning they were more prone to yield control and comply with the requests of others.
“Acquiescent behavior should not be interpreted as an inherent weakness in autistic people; it may be an adaptive response to confusing interactions, previous negative experiences, or a desire to avoid conflict,” Hao told PsyPost. “The goal should not simply be to make autistic individuals more dominant, but to help them recognize manipulation, establish boundaries, and feel safer and more in control.”
This compliant pattern was unique to the autistic participants. Non-autistic individuals with social anxiety did not show the same tendency to surrender social power. The researchers also checked whether other common mental health conditions, like depression or generalized anxiety disorder, could explain the results. The tendency to yield power was linked exclusively to social anxiety, pointing to a distinct behavioral profile.
In the second study, the researchers brought participants into the laboratory to look for biological markers that might match these behavioral differences. This phase included 72 autistic adults and 72 non-autistic adults who underwent magnetic resonance imaging brain scans. Among the autistic participants, 15 had a co-occurring diagnosis of social anxiety.
The brain scans provided evidence that social anxiety in autism is associated with structural changes in the brain. Autistic participants with social anxiety possessed larger amygdala volumes than both the autistic participants without social anxiety and the non-autistic control group. The brain sizes of autistic adults without social anxiety did not differ from those of the non-autistic adults.
Just as in the behavioral study, this enlarged amygdala volume was specifically associated with social anxiety. The researchers did not find similar brain differences in autistic participants who had depression or generalized anxiety. In fact, these findings suggest that combining autism and social anxiety creates a unique biological signature that is not found when looking at autism alone.
When the researchers combined the data from the behavioral task and the brain scans, they found a connection between the two. Autistic individuals with larger amygdalas tended to display more acquiescent, lower-power behaviors during the role-playing game. This suggests that the physical structure of the amygdala and the tendency to yield control in social situations are closely linked features of social anxiety in autism.
Interestingly, participants who yielded power did not report feeling a lack of power. “One striking finding was that behavioral differences emerged during the social task even though participants’ own perceptions of their relationships during the task did not differ according to social anxiety,” Hao said. “In other words, autistic adults with social anxiety behaved more acquiescently without necessarily perceiving the interaction differently.”
As with all research, there are some caveats. The study design makes it impossible to definitively know how these brain and behavioral differences develop over time. Because the research measured participants at a single point in their lives, it is not known whether yielding social power leads to social anxiety, or if social anxiety causes individuals to avoid asserting dominance.
“The brain findings reflect group-level associations and should not be interpreted as a diagnostic marker for any individual,” Hao cautioned. The neuroimaging sample sizes were also relatively small, and the participants generally had high levels of education and intelligence test scores, which means the results might not apply to all autistic individuals.
“We also want to understand how experiences involving social ambiguity, unequal power, or interpersonal victimization contribute to social anxiety over time,” Hao said. Future research tracking people over several years could help clarify how the amygdala changes as these dynamics unfold.
“Ultimately, this work could inform autism-specific interventions that strengthen boundary-setting, assertive communication, and confidence in navigating social situations,” the researcher concluded. “It is equally important to create social environments that are more predictable, inclusive, and responsive to autistic people’s needs.”
The study, “Autism with social anxiety is associated with acquiescent behaviors and enlarged amygdala volume,” was authored by Yu Hao, Sarah M. Banker, Matthew Schafer, Ember Zhang, Sarah Barkley, Jadyn Trayvick, Arabella W. Peters, Abigaël A. Thinakaran, Christopher McLaughlin, Xiaosi Gu, Jennifer H. Foss-Feig, and Daniela Schiller.
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #AutismAndSocialAnxiety #AmygdalaSize #AcquiescentBehavior #AutisticAdults #SocialPowerDynamics #NeurobiologyOfAnxiety #AutismResearch #MentalHealthSubtype #TailoredInterventions #SocialCuesUnderstanding
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 10:11AM
SOURCE:
NEW YORK TIMES PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOLOGISTS FEEDTITLE: “Anxious Generation” Author Jonathan Haidt on the Meta Settlement
URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/27/style/meta-jonathan-haidt-anxious-generation.html
In “The Anxious Generation,” the sociologist laid out the evils of social media for kids. The landmark Meta settlement seems to agree.
URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/27/style/meta-jonathan-haidt-anxious-generation.html
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #AnxiousGeneration #JonathanHaidt #SocialMediaImpact #MetaSettlement #KidsAndTech #OnlineSafety #DigitalWellbeing #SocialMediaCritique #TechPolicy #YouthMentalHealth
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 10:02AM
SOURCE:
NEW YORK TIMES PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOLOGISTS FEEDTITLE: The author of the “Anxious Generation,” Jonathan Haidt, on the Meta Settlement
URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/27/style/jonathan-haidt-was-right.html
In “The Anxious Generation,” the sociologist laid out the evils of social media for kids. The landmark Meta settlement seems to agree.
URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/27/style/jonathan-haidt-was-right.html
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #AnxiousGeneration #JonathanHaidt #MetaSettlement #SocialMediaImpact #KidsAndTech #DigitalWellbeing #TechMediation #OnlineSafety #SocialMediaCritique #YouthWellbeing
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 10:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Abacus training is linked to better math and memory skills in elementary students
Elementary school students who learn to calculate using a mental abacus tend to perform better on math tests than their peers. A recent study published in Learning and Individual Differences suggests that this educational technique is associated with stronger arithmetic performance. The research indicates that this math advantage is partly explained by enhanced numerical processing skills alongside improved attention and memory.
Abacus-based mental calculation is a distinct educational strategy popular in many East Asian classrooms. Students first learn to solve arithmetic problems by manipulating the beads of a physical abacus. An upper bead represents the number five, while lower beads represent the number one. Moving beads toward a central beam indicates addition, while moving them away indicates subtraction.
As students gain proficiency with the physical tool, they are taught to visualize the abacus in their minds. They begin to perform mental calculations by moving their fingers in the air, mimicking the physical manipulation of the beads. Eventually, the students rely entirely on this internal visual representation to solve complex math problems without any physical aids.
Educational psychologists generally divide the cognitive foundations of math into two categories. Domain-specific skills involve direct numerical processing, such as recognizing magnitudes and sequencing numbers. Domain-general skills encompass broader mental abilities, such as short-term memory, attention control, and spatial reasoning, which help a person maintain focus and juggle information during calculations.
Prior research has shown that abacus instruction is linked to better math scores, but the underlying cognitive pathways have remained somewhat ambiguous. To investigate how these specific and general mental skills contribute to the abacus advantage, an investigative team designed a new evaluation. The research was led by Fan Liu and Xuelian Ge of Zhejiang University, alongside colleagues from the University of Texas at Austin.
The researchers evaluated 441 elementary school children across grades one through five at three different schools in Qiqihar, China. Within each grade level, the researchers randomly selected intact classrooms to compare. Half of the participants were in classes that received two hours of abacus instruction each week, while the control group received standard math and reading exercises.
The evaluation process began with a series of arithmetic and numerical processing assessments. The students completed timed paper-and-pencil tests involving addition, subtraction, and finding missing terms in an equation. Students in the third grade and above also completed multiplication and division problems. The numerical processing portion asked children to count figures within a time limit, connect randomly distributed numbers in ascending order, and compare numerical values.
The results showed that students in the abacus group outperformed the control group in overall arithmetic skills. This advantage was observable across all five grade levels. Even first-grade students, who had only received three months of abacus instruction at the time of testing, displayed a measurable advantage in math scores over their peers. The abacus students also performed better on the numerical processing tasks, demonstrating a heightened ability to connect and compare numbers.
The researchers also looked at the students’ end-of-semester mathematics exam scores. These school-administered exams covered broader math applications, basic geometry, and complex problem-solving. The abacus group outperformed the control group on these real-world exams in grades two through five, mirroring the experimental test results and providing additional context for their academic achievement.
Next, the researchers administered a battery of nine online tests to measure domain-general cognitive abilities. These interactive tasks evaluated a wide range of mental functions. For example, spatial ability was measured by asking children to mentally rotate three-dimensional objects on a screen to find a matching shape. Cognitive flexibility was tested using a card-sorting game where students had to adapt to changing categorization rules based on color, shape, or number.
The online battery also heavily tested memory and attention. Short-term memory was evaluated by having students memorize picture pairs or repeat a sequence of flashing squares on a grid. To assess attention, students completed cancellation tasks where they had to quickly scan hundreds of numbers and cross out specific target digits within a tight time limit.
The abacus students exhibited distinct advantages in short-term memory and attention compared to the control group. However, these specific cognitive benefits did not appear uniformly across all ages. The advantages in sustained attention and memory were most pronounced in the fourth and fifth graders. This suggests that domain-general cognitive benefits might require several years of sustained abacus practice to fully emerge as an observable trait.
To understand how these different skill sets interacted, the researchers conducted statistical mediation analyses. This mathematical modeling technique helps determine whether an observed effect, like better math scores, is explained by intermediate variables, such as memory or number sense. The researchers wanted to see if the enhanced cognitive and numerical skills directly accounted for the arithmetic advantage seen in the abacus group.
The models revealed that numerical processing skills partially explained the math advantage for abacus students in grades two through five. This means the abacus training likely boosted their foundational number sense, which in turn improved their math test scores. In contrast, general cognitive skills like attention and short-term memory only acted as explanatory bridges for students in the fourth and fifth grades.
These patterns suggest a shifting developmental pathway for students learning mental abacus calculation. In the early years of elementary school, the math benefits appear strictly tied to an improved understanding of numbers and magnitudes. For first-grade students, the math advantage was not explained by these intermediate variables, suggesting that their early benefits might stem from basic physical familiarity with numbers rather than internalized cognitive changes.
As students accumulate more years of practice, the continuous mental visualization required by the abacus begins to heavily engage broader cognitive functions. Holding a mental image of shifting beads in the mind’s eye requires a robust working memory and sustained attention. Those enhanced general mental capacities then provide an additional boost to their arithmetic performance.
There are a few caveats to consider when interpreting these results. The study relied on a cross-sectional design, meaning it compared different cohorts of students at a single point in time rather than tracking the same individuals over several years. Because of this design, the researchers cannot definitively prove a causal sequence where prolonged training directly alters cognitive development over time. A longitudinal study tracking the same children from kindergarten through fifth grade would provide firmer evidence.
Additionally, the researchers compared intact classrooms rather than randomly assigning individual students to different training groups. The researchers noted that baseline testing was not conducted prior to the start of the first grade. While the first-grade control and abacus groups were comparable on most initial measures, the lack of baseline data means pre-existing differences or teacher-specific variables cannot be entirely ruled out as contributing factors to the observed outcomes.
The study, “Enhancing children’s arithmetic skills through abacus learning: contributions of numerical processing skills and domain-general cognitive abilities,” was authored by Fan Liu, Xuelian Ge, Peng Peng, Tianyong Xu, Tengfei Wang, and Feiyan Chen.
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #AbacusLearning #MathSkills #ElementaryEducation #NumericalProcessing #WorkingMemory #AttentionControl #MentalMath #EducationalResearch #CognitiveDevelopment #STEMEducation
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 09:30AM
SOURCE: PSYCHIATRIC TIMESDirect article link at end of text block below.
In our latest CME article, learn how to identify the diagnostic features of migraine and recognize common psychiatric comorbidities that may complicate assessment, prognosis, and treatment. https://t.co/o9kn6zcgnN
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Articles can be found by scrolling down the page at Articles can be found at https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/news".
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #psychotherapist #MigraineDiagnosis #PsychiatricComorbidities #CMEarticle #Neuropsychiatry #MigraineAssessment
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 09:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Religion’s mental health benefits are largely tied to existential meaning and digital habits
People who are more religious tend to report better mental health and lower rates of substance use, but new research suggests this might be largely due to how they find meaning in life and how much time they spend on social media. The findings indicate that when existential meaning and digital habits are taken into account, the direct protective effects of religion remain for substance use but disappear for general mental health symptoms. The research was published in the International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction.
Religious involvement has often been associated with favorable mental health outcomes. For instance, a 2021 review noted that religious beliefs and practices frequently correspond to lower rates of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse. However, the exact reasons behind this connection are not always apparent. Religion often involves a complex mix of shared beliefs, community norms, and daily practices that shape how people live and cope with stress.
One common psychological pathway is the sense of meaning in life, defined as the feeling that one’s existence is important and purposeful. A feeling of purpose tends to buffer against anxiety and promotes general well-being. Additionally, religious communities often promote norms that restrict certain behaviors, such as how much time people spend online. A wide body of evidence, including a 2020 meta-analysis, provides evidence that problematic social media habits are consistently linked to higher psychological distress and poorer overall well-being.
By restricting idle time or discouraging the use of certain technologies, religion might naturally limit a person’s exposure to potentially harmful online content. This is particularly relevant during times of conflict, when social media often circulates graphic imagery or hate speech. Substance use, behavioral addictions, and general mental health symptoms frequently co-occur in the same individuals. Mental health experts suggest that a substantial portion of these overlaps comes from a shared underlying vulnerability rather than entirely separate conditions.
“Given the unique salience of religious identity in Israeli society, and the fact that meaning in life and social media use are both major, modifiable factors that hadn’t really been examined together in this context, it felt like a natural and timely gap to address,” said Aaron D. Cherniak, a postdoctoral researcher at the Israel Center for Addiction and Mental Health at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. “Especially during a period, the ongoing war, when digital exposure to distressing content was unusually high and psychologically consequential.”
The research involved a sample of 2,907 Jewish adults in Israel. The participants completed an online survey in February 2025. This population provided an ideal setting to study religious identity, as Israeli Jews generally categorize themselves into four distinct groups: secular, traditional, religious, and ultra-Orthodox. These categories correspond to observable differences in lifestyle, daily behavioral norms, and social environments. For the analysis, the researchers grouped the secular and traditional participants into one category and the religious and ultra-Orthodox participants into another.
The survey measured each person’s sense of meaning in life, daily time spent on social media, and exposure to harmful online content, such as hate speech and uncensored war media. It also assessed participants for problematic substance use, including non-medical use of tobacco, alcohol, cannabis, and prescription medications. The researchers screened for behavioral addictions by asking participants about problematic gambling, gaming, compulsive sexual behavior, and pornography use. Finally, the survey measured symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, general anxiety, and depression.
Rather than looking at each problem individually, the researchers used statistical techniques to group the shared vulnerabilities across the three main categories: substance use, behavioral addictions, and mental health symptoms. To ensure the results reflected the variables in question rather than outside factors, the research team controlled for age, gender, educational attainment, economic level, marital status, and direct exposure to the ongoing war in Israel, which included how often participants experienced sirens, heard explosions, or felt their lives were in danger.
Initially, the data showed a broad protective effect of religion. Compared to the secular and traditional group, the religious and ultra-Orthodox participants reported lower levels of problematic substance use, fewer behavioral addictions, and fewer mental health symptoms. They also reported a higher sense of meaning in life, spent less time on social media, and had less exposure to harmful online content.
Across the entire sample, having a higher sense of meaning in life was linked to lower vulnerability scores in all three outcome categories: substance use, behavioral addictions, and mental health issues. In contrast, higher social media use and more frequent exposure to harmful online content were associated with worse outcomes in all three areas.
When the researchers adjusted their statistical models to account for meaning in life and digital habits, the relationship between religion and mental health shifted. The protective association between religion and general mental health symptoms disappeared completely.
“Religiosity can have an effect on mental health when it provides meaning in life and its values scaffold healthier digital habits,” Cherniak told PsyPost.
In the case of behavioral addictions, the relationship reversed. The data indicated that religious participants were more likely to report behavioral addictions than secular or traditional participants once meaning in life and internet habits were factored in. The researchers proposed that because behavioral addictions are often private, they might be less visible to a religious community and subject to fewer social sanctions than substance use. Certain religious prohibitions might also redirect coping strategies toward more private reward-seeking activities.
However, the protective effect of religion on problematic substance use remained intact even after accounting for existential meaning and social media use. The researchers noted that religious community norms and social structures might exert an independent protective influence against substance abuse that goes beyond basic psychological and digital pathways.
Because the data were collected during an ongoing war, this period of heightened collective trauma might amplify the effects of both digital exposure and psychological distress, meaning the patterns could look different during a time of peace.
“This is a cross-sectional study, so we can’t say religiosity or meaning in life causes better mental health, only that they’re associated,” Cherniak said.
However, he cautioned against misinterpreting the lack of a direct mental health effect in the adjusted models. “I’d also caution against reading this as ‘religion doesn’t matter’ — it clearly correlates with real protective factors. The nuance is that religiosity’s benefits seem to run through specific, identifiable pathways.”
The measurement of social media activity also focused primarily on the frequency of use. Future research tracking individuals over longer periods and accounting for how people actively or passively interact with specific online platforms would help clarify how these various factors influence one another over time.
“We are moving forward with longitudinal data to test directionality and use more multidimensional measures of religiosity—belief, practice, community involvement—rather than a single affiliation category,” Cherniak said. “I’m also interested in digging into the behavioral addiction finding specifically, since it raises real questions about how vulnerability shows up differently across visible and private behaviors.”
The study, “Association of Religiosity, Meaning in Life, and Social Media use with Common Mental Health Disorders,” was authored by Aaron D. Cherniak, Dvora Shmulewitz, Maor Daniel Levitin, Vera Skvirsky, Ariel Kor, Shaul Lev-Ran, and Mario Mikulincer.
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #ReligiosityMeaningLink #MentalHealthAndReligion #ExistentialMeaning #SocialMediaHabits #DigitalWellbeing #SubstanceUseProtection #BehavioralAddictions #ReligiousCommunitySupport #IsraelPsychologyStudy #MentalHealthEthics
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 01:52AM
SOURCE: SCIENCE DAILY MIND-BRAIN FEEDTITLE: Smart nanoparticles light up brain cancer and destroy what surgery misses
URL: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/08/260826060617.htm
Scientists created smart nanoparticles that can both illuminate hidden glioblastoma cells during surgery and destroy microscopic cancer left behind afterward. In mice, the treatment prevented recurrence and led to 100% survival at 60 days, though it has not yet been tested in humans.
URL: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/08/260826060617.htm
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 12:46AM
SOURCE: SCIENCE DAILY MIND-BRAIN FEEDTITLE: Scientists discover a brain “brake” that can shut down chronic pain
URL: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/08/260826055442.htm
Researchers discovered a brain-based “brake” that can shut down chronic nerve pain in mice by calming an overactive pain circuit. Targeting this system more precisely could one day lead to powerful pain relief without affecting opioid receptors throughout the entire body.
URL: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/08/260826055442.htm
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 08:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Persistent financial hardship is linked to later-life brain shrinkage
URL: https://www.psypost.org/persistent-financial-hardship-is-linked-to-later-life-brain-shrinkage/
Money worries can keep us up at night, but could decades of financial stress leave a lasting mark on the brain itself? That’s the question my colleagues and I set out to answer in a new study – and the answer, it turns out, is yes.
Most research on money and brain health looks at people’s financial circumstances at just one point in time. This makes it hard to know whether a few difficult years have the same effect as decades of enduring struggle. For our study, published in the journal Innovation in Aging, we tracked the same people throughout their adult lives to find out.
We used data from the MRC National Survey of Health and Development, also known as the 1946 British birth cohort study. A cohort study follows a group of people born in the same period throughout their lives. This is the world’s longest continuously running study of its kind, tracking thousands of people born in one week in March 1946 – participants who celebrated their 80th birthdays earlier this year.
The study’s origins go back to the economic anxieties of the 1930s, when the Great Depression left many families worrying about money and the cost of raising children – making it a fitting dataset to revisit those same questions decades later. Using this rich resource, we examined the financial circumstances of 2,759 participants at multiple points across adulthood.
Participants reported their household income at ages 26, 43 and 53. We classed those in the bottom 20% of the group on at least two of these occasions as having persistent low income – about one in six people. Separately, we measured financial hardship by asking whether people struggled to manage on their income or had trouble paying bills, at least twice between ages 36 and 53. This applied to about one in eight.
At age 53, participants took tests of verbal memory and processing speed. A smaller group also had brain scans between ages 69 and 71, which let us measure brain atrophy (shrinkage) and ventricular expansion – the widening of fluid-filled cavities within the brain, a recognised marker of poor brain health.
We found that people who had experienced more financial hardship and low income scored lower on the cognitive tests at age 53. These links held even after we accounted for their childhood thinking skills, education and childhood disadvantage. Among those who had brain scans, persistent low income was linked to greater brain shrinkage in later life.
When we looked at how memory changed from age 53 to 69, those who had faced persistent hardship actually showed slower decline over that period. We believe this is because they had already lost more ground by age 53 – they started from a lower point, so there was less left to lose.
We also found that the link between financial adversity and brain shrinkage was stronger for men, for those who grew up in disadvantaged homes, and for carriers of a gene that raises the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
For men of this generation – born in 1946, when the male breadwinner model was the norm – the pressure of being the main earner may have made financial stress more acute. Disadvantaged men also had higher rates of smoking and drinking than disadvantaged women.
The finding on genetic risk suggests that people who are already biologically vulnerable may be more susceptible to the effects of financial strain. These subgroup findings are based on smaller numbers within our sample, so we are treating them as suggestive rather than conclusive.
Why would money worries harm the brain?
How might financial hardship affect the brain over time? Chronic stress is known to increase inflammation, which accelerates brain ageing. There is also the simple fact that constantly worrying about money uses up mental energy, leaving less capacity for other thinking tasks – a cognitive load that competes with everything else the brain is trying to do.
We acknowledge that our study cannot prove cause and effect, and the results, drawn from a single generation of British adults, may not apply directly to other populations or countries. But following the same people over many years gives us a clearer picture than studies that only look at a single moment in time.
Financial hardship is increasingly recognised as one of several factors – alongside things such as hearing loss, smoking and physical inactivity – that may shape our risk of cognitive decline in later life. Our findings suggest that reducing chronic financial hardship among working-age adults, wherever they live, could help protect brain health and potentially reduce dementia cases in the future.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
URL: https://www.psypost.org/persistent-financial-hardship-is-linked-to-later-life-brain-shrinkage/
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 07:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Your psychological needs predict whether you will accept an AI companion or therapist
As artificial intelligence systems assume more socially important roles, people’s willingness to embrace these technologies depends heavily on their own psychological needs and cultural backgrounds. A recent study of over 35,000 individuals across 35 nations indicates that feelings of competence and autonomy shape whether people will allow an artificial agent to act as their doctor, teacher, or companion. Distinct patterns emerged across different regions of the world, highlighting the role of culture in technology adoption. The findings were published in Telematics and Informatics.
Researchers typically study technology acceptance by looking at factors like how useful or easy to use a new tool appears to be. “What interested us was the fact that AI is increasingly moving beyond being a tool that helps us with a task,” said study authors Magnus Liebherr of the University of Duisburg-Essen and Carnegie Mellon University Doha, Ala Yankouskaya of Bournemouth University, and Raian Ali of Hamad Bin Khalifa University. “We are beginning to consider AI for roles that have traditionally involved human responsibility and social interaction.”
“This made us wonder whether the factors that explain ordinary technology acceptance are sufficient to understand these much more consequential forms of AI use,” the researchers explained. Letting a computer program diagnose an illness or teach a child requires a transfer of trust that goes beyond simply adopting a new smartphone application. To understand what predicts this level of trust, scientists often look at fundamental human motivations.
Past research has established that a person’s cultural background systematically alters how readily they adopt new technologies. For example, a 2022 meta-analysis found that national cultural differences consistently influence technology acceptance models around the world. Building on this, researchers began testing how internal psychological needs encourage the use of specific technologies. A 2024 study showed that fulfilling basic psychological needs, like feeling independent and socially connected, predicts people’s willingness to use conversational artificial intelligence tools in educational settings.
Similarly, research covered by PsyPost in 2023 demonstrated that higher fulfillment of basic psychological needs through technology was associated with more positive attitudes toward artificial intelligence across several European countries. These earlier regional findings paved the way for a much broader global investigation. The new study aimed to see how these internal motivations predict the willingness to delegate sensitive social roles to artificial intelligence across multiple domains and diverse cultural landscapes.
The team drew on data from the 2023 Global Digital Wellbeing Survey, initiated by the Global Digital Wellbeing Program (SYNC) and the King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (Ithra), supported by Aramco. The researchers analyzed responses from 35,018 internet users aged 18 and older, spread across 35 countries. Participants answered questions about their basic psychological needs, specifically focusing on autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Autonomy involves feeling in control of one’s decisions, competence means feeling capable and effective, and relatedness refers to feeling connected to others.
To measure the readiness to delegate tasks to artificial intelligence, the survey presented four hypothetical scenarios. Participants rated their willingness to let an artificial intelligence system teach their child, diagnose a medical condition, provide advice for a minor mental health challenge, or act as a day-to-day companion. The researchers grouped the 35 nations into nine cultural clusters to see how cultural values might change the relationship between psychological needs and technology acceptance. The team applied statistical models that adjusted for regional demographics to ensure accurate comparisons.
The researchers found that competence was the most consistent predictor of a willingness to delegate tasks to artificial intelligence. People who felt highly capable in their own lives were more open to accepting an artificial agent as a doctor or teacher, which are considered high-stakes, expert-driven scenarios. Autonomy was positively associated with accepting artificial intelligence in more emotionally and socially oriented roles, such as a mental health advisor or daily companion. Relatedness, however, showed the weakest effect globally.
“One finding that we found particularly interesting was the role of relatedness,” the researchers said. “Globally, higher satisfaction of the relatedness need was not a reliable predictor of people’s willingness to delegate these roles to AI. However, relatedness became more important in some cultural contexts, particularly for socially embedded roles.”
Cultural context heavily influenced these decisions. Participants from Arab-Islamic, Confucian-Asian, Sub-Saharan African, and South Asian regions demonstrated a higher readiness to delegate roles to artificial intelligence compared to participants from Anglo-Individualist nations like the United States and the United Kingdom. In contrast, participants from Nordic and Germanic European regions showed the lowest readiness to accept artificial agents in these social roles.
“For example, 62.5% of participants in the Sub-Saharan African cluster indicated that they would use an AI-generated companion to support them in day-to-day tasks, compared with 32.9% in the Nordic cluster,” the researchers told PsyPost. “For an AI teacher, the corresponding figures were 38.1% in the Arab-Islamic cluster and only 17.5% in the Nordic cluster.”
In South Asian and certain European contexts, a strong sense of autonomy played a much larger role in predicting the acceptance of artificial intelligence for expert tasks. The findings are in line with research covered by PsyPost in 2025, which found that East Asian participants held more positive attitudes toward artificial companionship than Western participants. However, the new 35-nation study examined how psychological needs predict the willingness to delegate social roles, rather than focusing specifically on the expected conversational enjoyment of chatbots.
“We were also struck by the magnitude and consistency of the cultural differences across the different AI roles,” the researchers said. “They also remind us that assumptions about how people will respond to AI based primarily on findings from Western populations may not generalize well globally.”
The study relied on brief, single-sentence questions to measure complex psychological needs, which allowed the team to study a massive international sample but limited the depth of the psychological profiles. “We could not formally establish measurement equivalence across all cultures,” the researchers cautioned. “The cultural differences should therefore be interpreted as promising patterns rather than definitive evidence of cultural mechanisms.”
Additionally, the survey presented hypothetical scenarios. “Saying that someone would let an AI diagnose them is not necessarily the same as actually doing so when faced with a real medical decision,” the team noted. People might hesitate to entrust an algorithm with their child’s education or their own medical care when a real human alternative is available.
“The obvious next step for us is to move from hypothetical willingness to actual interaction and behavior,” the researchers explained. “We would like to examine how people’s psychological need satisfaction, trust, perceived agency, and emotional responses develop when they interact with real AI systems over time.”
They also hope to explore how specific design principles — such as giving users meaningful choices or creating appropriate forms of social connection — might support these underlying needs. A key question will be whether these design features work universally or require adaptation for different cultural contexts.
“Once we start giving AI roles that involve education, healthcare, mental health support, or assistance with everyday life, we are also deciding what kinds of human responsibilities we are willing to delegate to machines,” the researchers concluded.
The study, “Psychological Needs and AI Delegation Across Four Social Domains A Cross-Cultural Analysis of 35 Nations,” was authored by Magnus Liebherr, Ala Yankouskaya, Mohamed Basel Almourad, Justin Thomas, Guandong Xu, and Raian Ali.
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 06:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Brazilian study provides objective data on breast proportion preferences
A recent survey of medical students reveals a strong preference for symmetrical breast proportions and centrally located, smaller areolas. The findings aim to offer plastic surgeons objective data to guide patients seeking cosmetic breast procedures. The research was published in Revista Brasileira de Cirurgia Plástica.
Plastic surgeons regularly perform procedures to alter breast size and shape. However, surgical literature contains very few objective measurements regarding what constitutes an aesthetically pleasing breast. This lack of concrete data can make it difficult for doctors to advise patients and select the most appropriate surgical techniques.
Cosmetic surgery relies heavily on defined standards of beauty and proportion. For example, facial procedures often use precise geometric angles to plan a rhinoplasty. Gluteal surgeries follow established waist-to-hip ratios to produce consistent results. Historically, breast surgery has lacked similar standardized guidelines.
Researchers have long debated the ideal aesthetic parameters for breast reconstruction and augmentation. Earlier surgical pioneers proposed various proportional rules to help doctors achieve harmonious results. For instance, the renowned Brazilian surgeon Ivo Pitanguy helped establish early aesthetic principles for breast reconstruction, focusing heavily on proportional parameters.
Other specialists emphasized the geometry of the breast and the specific distances between the breast poles, which are the upper and lower halves of the breast mound. Previous studies have often suggested that a bottom-heavy breast is the most popular ideal. In these models, the lower pole carries slightly more volume than the upper pole.
To gather more contemporary and specific data, a team of researchers from the Universidade de Passo Fundo in Brazil initiated a new survey. Lead author Luís Gustavo Ramos Raupp Pereira and colleagues sought to evaluate visual preferences among medical students. They wanted to see if variables like gender influenced these aesthetic ideals. They aimed to provide updated information that could assist surgeons in preoperative planning.
The researchers conducted an observational, cross-sectional study. This type of research analyzes data from a specific population at a single point in time. They used an online questionnaire to gather responses.
The team sent the survey via institutional email to medical students at their university between May and September 2024. The questionnaire was based on parameters from previous international research on breast aesthetics. It asked participants to review a series of images and select their preferred breast shapes.
These visual aids displayed different volumetric ratios between the upper and lower poles of the breast. The options included a 40/60 ratio, a 50/50 ratio, and a 60/40 ratio. The images also showed variations in the position and size of the nipple and areola, known as the nipple-areola complex.
Alongside the visual choices, the researchers collected basic demographic information. They asked participants for their age and gender. They also inquired about education levels and physical exercise habits.
Participants were asked whether they had ever undergone breast surgery, such as augmentation or reduction. In total, 239 medical students completed the survey. The study group included 173 women and 66 men. The vast majority of respondents had no history of breast procedures, with only about eight percent reporting previous surgeries.
The group was also highly active. Nearly 90 percent reported participating in regular physical exercise. Almost half of the respondents stated they exercised up to five times a week.
The survey revealed a strong overall preference for symmetrical breast shapes. When asked to choose the most pleasing distribution of volume, 61.1 percent of participants selected a 50/50 ratio. This indicates they preferred an equal distribution of tissue between the upper and lower halves of the breast.
About 30 percent of the respondents preferred a 40/60 ratio. In this shape, the bottom half is slightly fuller than the top half. Less than 10 percent of the students preferred a 60/40 ratio, which features a fuller upper half.
Preferences regarding the placement of the nipple and areola were also consistent across the surveyed group. Nearly 60 percent of the students preferred a centrally located nipple-areola complex. About 26 percent chose a placement angled upward by 20 degrees.
Only 14 percent of the respondents favored a laterally positioned nipple. A lateral position means the nipple sits closer to the outside of the chest. When evaluating the size of the areola and nipple, the results leaned heavily toward smaller proportions.
Nearly 84 percent of all respondents selected the image depicting a smaller areola and nipple combination. Only 16 percent of the participants preferred the larger areola option presented in the survey. The researchers also compared the responses of male and female students to see if gender played a role in aesthetic preferences.
They found that the differences between men and women were not statistically significant. Both groups predominantly favored the 50/50 volume ratio, central nipple placement, and smaller areola size. Among women, roughly 63 percent preferred the symmetrical volume ratio. By comparison, 56 percent of men chose the exact same option.
Female respondents did show a slight preference for smaller areolas compared to men. About 85 percent of women chose the smaller size, versus 79 percent of men. However, the overall trends aligned closely between both sexes, showing a unified perspective on breast aesthetics.
The study authors noted a few limitations to their research. The sample size consisted entirely of medical students from a single university in southern Brazil. This specific population may possess a technical understanding of human anatomy.
This academic background could influence their visual preferences, potentially separating their views from standard cultural trends. Additionally, the participant group was unbalanced. The survey featured substantially more women than men.
This uneven distribution could affect how well the male preferences represent the broader population. A wider group of male respondents might have yielded slightly different percentages. The researchers suggest that future studies should include a broader variety of participants from different backgrounds and regions.
The study, “Breast Esthetic Preferences from the Perspective of Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study,” was authored by Luís Gustavo Ramos Raupp Pereira, Laura Librelotto Rubin Rodrigues, Maria Eduarda Caldato, Mateus Eduardo Giovelli, Karoline Scussel Ruhmke, Ana Luíza Fontana, and Eduardo Madalosso Zanin.
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 05:02AM
SOURCE:
NEW YORK TIMES PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOLOGISTS FEEDTITLE: Should I Tell My Daughter I Know About Her Abortion?
URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/27/well/mind/abortion-mother-daughter-advice.html
Our Ask the Therapist columnist, Lori Gottlieb, advises a reader who feels she let down her teenager when she needed support.
URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/27/well/mind/abortion-mother-daughter-advice.html
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 04:30AM
SOURCE: STAT NEWS MENTAL HEALTHTITLE: A state gave sheriffs 20% of its opioid settlement cash. We followed the money
STAT is co-publishing this article by KFF Health News.
Every state is receiving opioid settlement payouts from companies accused of flooding the nation with prescription painkillers and fueling overdose deaths. But only one state is directing 20% of those payouts to sheriffs — the largest carve-out for law enforcement nationwide.
Read the rest…
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 01:15PM
SOURCE: SOCIALPSYCHOLOGY.ORGTITLE: Bill Gates Issues Stark Warning About AI's Impact on Jobs and Biosecurity
Source: CBS News - U.S. News
In a nearly 6,000-word essay released Wednesday on his personal website, Bill Gates is sounding the alarm about artificial intelligence, warning that the technology will rapidly transform the U.S. labor market and put millions of jobs at risk. AI is changing the economy much faster than previous revolutions, he says, advancing at what the Microsoft co-founder called a "mind-blowing rate" and leaving less time to prepare for employment...
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DATE: August 27, 2026 at 01:15PM
SOURCE: SOCIALPSYCHOLOGY.ORGTITLE: Final Report Calls OpenAI Hacking Incident a "Warning Shot"
Source: United Press International - Health News
OpenAI released a final report Wednesday on a July incident in which its artificial intelligence agents hacked into another company's systems, saying it sees the episode as "a warning shot" for the company and the world. The incident is "evidence that, without proper safeguards, highly capable AI agents are now able to work around technical controls, collaborate through unapproved channels and take dangerous actions that no human directed," the...
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DATE: August 26, 2026 at 07:35PM
SOURCE:
NEW YORK TIMES PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOLOGISTS FEEDTITLE: Will Meta’s Changes Benefit Young Users’ Mental Health?
URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/26/well/family/meta-settlement-youth-mental-health.html
Psychologists said the changes were a symbolic victory, but warned their effectiveness might be limited.
URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/26/well/family/meta-settlement-youth-mental-health.html
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DATE: August 26, 2026 at 04:25PM
SOURCE: HEALTHCARE INFO SECURITYDirect article link at end of text block below.
Cyberattack Disrupts #BostonScientific's Global Operations: #Massachusetts-Based #Cardiac Device Maker Is Latest #Medtech Firm Hit by #Cyberattack https://t.co/muMmQduxJt
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DATE: August 26, 2026 at 04:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Innovative virtual reality treadmill therapy offers relief for treatment-resistant PTSD
A study involving Canadian military veterans, public safety personnel, and healthcare workers showed that their PTSD, depression, and anxiety symptoms decreased after 10 to 14 weeks of 3MDR therapy. Their difficulties with life functioning were also reduced. The improvements were still present 12 months after the treatments ended. The paper was published in Brain and Behavior.
Multimodal Motion-Assisted Memory Desensitization and Reconsolidation (3MDR) is an innovative psychotherapy developed for people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), particularly those who have not responded sufficiently to conventional trauma-focused treatments. It combines established principles of exposure therapy (a psychological treatment that helps people safely confront traumatic memories) and eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) with walking and an immersive virtual environment.
During treatment, patients walk on a treadmill toward personally selected images related to their traumatic experiences, while music and other cues are used to help evoke relevant memories and emotions. With the therapist’s guidance, patients describe the memories, thoughts, feelings, and bodily reactions that emerge rather than avoiding distressing traumatic material. An attention task involving eye movements is then used while the traumatic memory is active, with the aim of facilitating further processing and reducing its emotional intensity. The combination of movement, immersive stimulation, exposure, and memory-processing techniques is intended to make it easier for patients to approach memories that they might otherwise strongly avoid.
3MDR was initially developed for military personnel and veterans with combat-related and treatment-resistant PTSD (defined as having tried two or more previous therapies without success) but has subsequently been studied in other groups exposed to severe trauma. Overall, 3MDR represents a promising new approach for treating PTSD, especially in cases where avoidance or limited response to conventional therapy makes treatment particularly difficult.
Study co-first authors Matthew Robert Graham Brown and Phillip R. Sevigny, along with their colleagues, conducted a study in which they examined the effectiveness of 3MDR in Canadian military veterans. They also wanted to test it with public safety personnel (police, firefighters, paramedics, etc.) and frontline healthcare workers. Their general hypothesis was that 3MDR treatment would lead to improvements in mental health symptoms of participants and that the improvements would still be present a year after treatment.
Study participants were initially 56 Canadian military members and Veterans, public safety personnel, and healthcare workers. However, eight participants were excluded from the analysis for various reasons, making the total number of study participants 48. Twenty-four participants were women. Their average age was 45.4 years. Seventeen participants were Canadian military veterans or active members of the military, 21 were public safety personnel, and 21 were healthcare workers. All of them exhibited clinically relevant symptoms of PTSD. Twenty-two of them met criteria for treatment-resistant PTSD, and this included all 17 military members and Veterans.
Participants received 3MDR therapy at the Edmonton Operational Stress Injury Clinic (EOSIC), which partnered with the research team for this study, or at one of three clinical research sites: University of Alberta main campus in Edmonton, Alberta; Alberta Hospital Edmonton; or University of Alberta space rented at the University of Calgary’s downtown campus in Calgary, Alberta. The 3MDR treatment lasted 10 to 14 weeks.
At the start of the study and at the end of the treatment program, participants completed the CAPS-5 clinical interview (an assessment of PTSD symptoms). A smaller group of 30 participants who were available for the follow-up also completed it 3, 6, and 12 months after the end of the treatment. At the start of the study and after specific sessions during the treatment, participants also completed assessments of depression, anxiety, and difficulties with life functioning. Participants completed an assessment of resilience before the 3MDR treatment and after it was complete.
Results showed that participants’ PTSD symptoms, depression, anxiety, and difficulties with life functioning improved after the 3MDR treatment. These improvements were still present 12 months after the treatment ended. Resilience also showed improvement from before to after the treatment.
“These results support the growing body of literature illustrating 3MDR as an effective treatment for military-related PTSD as well as PTSD-related mental health conditions in public safety personnel and healthcare workers,” the study authors concluded.
The study sheds light on the effectiveness of 3MDR therapy as a treatment for PTSD. However, the study did not include a control group, although the study authors anticipated a natural waitlist control group to form due to expected scheduling delays, which ultimately did not occur. Because of this, it remains unclear how much of the reported improvements are a consequence of the treatment and how much can be attributed to natural reductions in symptoms over time or factors not related to the 3MDR treatment.
The paper, “3MDR Therapy Reduces Symptoms of PTSD and Related Conditions in Canadian Military Members and Veterans, Public Safety Personnel, and Clinical Personnel,” was authored by Matthew Robert Graham Brown, Phillip R. Sevigny, Katherine S. Bright, Helen Chau, Patricia Chai, Andrew J. Greenshaw, Lisa Burback, Olga Winkler, Chelsea Jones, and Suzette Brémault-Phillips.
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DATE: August 26, 2026 at 02:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Timing of maternal vocal responses linked to childhood ADHD in preliminary study
Babies whose mothers were less likely to respond vocally within one second were more likely to receive certain psychiatric diagnoses years later, particularly ADHD and other disruptive behaviour disorders, in a study published in PLOS One.
Early conversations between babies and caregivers do not resemble adult dialogue, but they still involve turn-taking. A baby makes a sound, a parent responds, and the child may answer again. This predictable back-and-forth has been linked with communication, emotion regulation and social development. Previous research has connected broad measures of parental responsiveness with later outcomes, but determining precisely what aspect of an interaction carries useful information has proved difficult.
The researchers therefore focused on timing rather than simply counting how much mothers and infants talked. They asked whether the probability of responding within a particular period could provide a measurable feature of early interaction associated with children’s mental health several years later.
Led by Bethany Stanley from the University of Glasgow, the study used data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children in England. At around 12 months of age, infants and caregivers had been video-recorded looking at a picture book together in a room designed to resemble a living room.
After excluding unsuitable recordings, the researchers analysed 158 mother-infant pairs. Of the children, 55 later received at least one psychiatric diagnostic classification and 103 served as controls. Diagnoses assessed around age seven included disruptive behaviour disorders such as ADHD and conduct disorder, autism and emotional disorders such as anxiety or depression.
Researchers identified the start and end of each vocalisation and calculated how likely each member of the pair was to respond within different time windows. Their data suggested that one second was the most informative threshold for mothers and eight seconds for children. Statistical models then tested whether these measures were associated with later diagnoses while considering characteristics such as birth weight and maternal age.
Maternal response timing produced the clearest result. For every 10-percentage-point increase in a mother’s probability of answering within one second, the researchers estimated a 17% reduction in the odds that her child later fell into the “any disorder” group. Associations were particularly evident for disruptive behaviour disorders and ADHD, but not for autism or emotional disorders.
Infants’ own eight-second response measure was much less consistent. One analysis suggested a higher probability of the child responding might be associated with ADHD, and a subgroup analysis produced a possible pattern among boys, but the researchers themselves characterised the latter as weak and requiring further investigation.
Stanley and colleagues concluded, “these findings demonstrate the potential clinical value of the analysis of caregiver–infant vocalisations in predicting later development of childhood psychiatric disorders.”
Limitations are to be noted. Diagnostic groups were small — only six children, for example, were in the autism category — and the researchers explicitly describe the results as preliminary. Additionally, old recordings had limited sound quality, preventing analysis of meaning, tone or whether one utterance was truly a direct response to another.
The study, “Probability of a timely vocal response in mother-infant interaction and later psychiatric diagnosis: A case-control study,” was authored by Bethany Stanley, Clare S. Allely, Jenna Charlton, Christopher Gillberg, James Law, Penny Levickis, Alex McConnachie, Christine Puckering, Lucy Thompson and Philip Wilson.
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DATE: August 26, 2026 at 02:14AM
SOURCE: SOCIALPSYCHOLOGY.ORGTITLE: Meta Reaches $17 Billion Settlement in Social Media Addiction Case
Source: United Press International - Health News
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, will pay $17 billion to settle a lawsuit brought by 29 state attorneys general over the mental health risks posed to children by its social media platforms. Court filings on Wednesday detail changes Meta must implement to safeguard its platform for the use of minors. Those requirements include limits on daily use, blocking access at night, more parental tools, and greater proof of age standards.
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DATE: August 26, 2026 at 02:14AM
SOURCE: SOCIALPSYCHOLOGY.ORGTITLE: Why Are European Leaders Silent After a Summer of Climate Shock?
Source: The Guardian - Climate Crisis
Despite four heatwaves that have scorched Europe this summer—shattering temperature records, fanning unprecedented fires, and causing thousands of excess deaths—few politicians want to talk about climate action. One exception is France's radical-left firebrand, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who warned recently that the term "climate change" may sound "almost reassuring," but its actual impact will feel like "landing on another planet whenever we...
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DATE: August 26, 2026 at 12:18PM
SOURCE: PSYCHIATRIC TIMESDirect article link at end of text block below.
Bipolar depression does not have a single face. Understanding this altered experience requires more than symptom recognition—it also requires a treatment approach that extends beyond pharmacotherapy. https://t.co/w2Brl7gQIO
Here are any URLs found in the article text:
Articles can be found by scrolling down the page at Articles can be found at https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/news".
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DATE: August 26, 2026 at 12:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Researchers quantify the rate of “mercy sex” among women with low sexual desire
Women experiencing a chronic lack of sexual desire still routinely engage in sexual activity with their partners, a behavior researchers have quantified as happening about two and a half times per month. These baseline events, often motivated by relationship obligations rather than personal arousal, could alter how medical treatments for low sexual desire are evaluated. The findings were published in the Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy.
Hypoactive sexual desire disorder is a condition where a person persistently lacks sexual thoughts or desire, leading to personal distress. Clinical trials for treatments often measure success by tracking an increase in sexually satisfying events. A sexually satisfying event is defined as any sexual activity, from intercourse to manual stimulation, that a participant considers fulfilling.
In 2015, the Food and Drug Administration approved the first drug for premenopausal women with this condition. During the evaluation process, the agency required pharmaceutical companies to measure success using criteria similar to those used for male erectile dysfunction. This meant focusing heavily on the frequency of sexual events. The disorder is fundamentally a cognitive dysfunction related to a lack of mental desire, whereas erectile dysfunction is often tied to vascular or anatomical issues. Using event frequency to measure a psychological lack of desire created a mismatch in the data.
Nikita Guptan and James A. Simon, researchers at IntimMedicine Specialists in Washington, D.C., noticed a pattern in these trials. Women diagnosed with a complete lack of sexual desire were still logging multiple sexual events before receiving any medication. Guptan and Simon sought to quantify this baseline activity, which they termed mercy sex.
The researchers define this behavior as consensual participation in sexual acts not for personal arousal, but to fulfill a perceived obligation. By examining these baseline numbers, the authors aimed to understand the prevalence of this behavior and explore the social and psychological reasons behind it.
The researchers analyzed baseline data from multiple randomized, placebo-controlled trials spanning nearly a decade. These trials tested three different medical treatments for low sexual desire. The researchers first looked at four clinical trials evaluating a testosterone patch, which included a large sample of 2,204 naturally and surgically menopausal women.
In these testosterone studies, the baseline frequency of sexual events remained highly consistent. Across the different trial groups, the women reported an average of 2.5 to 2.9 sexually satisfying events per 28 days. This rate showed very little variation regardless of whether the women were naturally menopausal, surgically menopausal, or taking hormone therapies.
Next, Guptan and Simon evaluated data from clinical trials testing flibanserin, an oral medication approved for low sexual desire. They reviewed four trials conducted in the United States, comprising a large sample of 3,413 women. The baseline data for these trials showed a similar pattern, with women reporting between 2.0 and 3.0 sexually satisfying events every 28 days.
The researchers noted that older participants tended to report slightly lower frequencies. A trial focusing on naturally menopausal women with an average age of 55 reported the lowest baseline frequency at 2.0 events. Trials focusing on younger, premenopausal women with an average age of 36 reported frequencies closer to 3.0 events per month.
The researchers also examined an unpublished flibanserin trial conducted across 13 European countries, which included 915 participants. The European data averaged 2.41 baseline events per month, closely mirroring the United States findings. The rates varied widely between individual countries, ranging from 4.19 events per month in the Czech Republic to 1.12 in Italy.
Finally, the authors analyzed two trials evaluating bremelanotide, an injectable medication for low sexual desire. These two trials included over 1,200 women. The baseline frequencies in these studies were notably lower, averaging about 1.2 events per month. The researchers attribute this lower number to the specific design of the bremelanotide trials, which included a four-week observation period where participants took a placebo before the actual baseline measurements were finalized.
Guptan and Simon suggest a biopsychosocial framework to explain why women with low desire consistently engage in sexual activity. From an evolutionary perspective, women may participate in sex to maintain stability and prevent their partners from seeking intimacy elsewhere.
According to sexual selection research, males and females often have different reproductive strategies. Short-term mating strategies might benefit males seeking multiple partners, but they can disadvantage females who historically required stability and resource sharing to raise offspring.
The authors hypothesize that women may have learned to keep their male partners monogamous by fulfilling their faster-paced reproductive desires. In modern contexts, this translates to engaging in obligatory sex as a defense mechanism to preserve a long-term relationship. One qualitative study cited by the authors featured a patient who reported forcing herself to have sex to prevent her husband from satisfying his needs with someone else.
The authors suggest that women might also use sex as a tool to fulfill a psychological need for emotional closeness, even if the physical desire is absent. The authors reference Rosemary Basson’s circular model of sexual response, a psychological framework suggesting that female sexual arousal is highly nuanced and often driven by a need for emotional connection rather than spontaneous physical hunger.
Because men are socially conditioned to associate physical sex with emotional closeness, women may engage in sex simply to maintain that emotional bond. They learn to accept the physical act as a replacement for pure emotional intimacy, complying with their partner’s expectations to avoid conflict or emotional distance.
Social and religious conditioning can play a role in setting expectations for marital duties as well. The authors noted that countries with historically strict religious frameworks regarding marital obligations, such as Catholic teachings on conjugal debt, often showed varying rates of this behavior. Italy, for instance, had the lowest reported rate, which the authors speculate might relate to cultural shifts following the 1968 decriminalization of female adultery.
The analyzed data relies on samples limited to heterosexual women in monogamous relationships. The proposed explanations regarding partner dynamics and evolutionary pressures do not reflect the experiences of women in non-heterosexual relationships or those without regular partners.
The use of the term “satisfying” in these clinical trials is highly subjective. A participant might log an event as satisfying because it fostered emotional intimacy or resolved a relationship conflict, rather than providing physical gratification.
Future researchers designing clinical trials for sexual dysfunction will need to differentiate between an increase in actual sexual desire and an increase in obligatory sexual events. If clinical success is measured purely by the frequency of sexual activity, a drug’s true effect on internal desire could be misjudged.
The study, “Quantification of “Mercy Sex” in Heterosexual Women,” was authored by Nikita Guptan and James A. Simon.
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DATE: August 26, 2026 at 11:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Genetic vulnerability appears to have amplified the pandemic’s toll on teen mental health
A recent study provides evidence that adolescent mental health declined markedly during the COVID-19 pandemic, with youth who carry a genetic predisposition for psychiatric conditions experiencing an even greater overall burden of symptoms. The findings indicate that the environmental stressors of the pandemic caused lasting emotional and behavioral difficulties, particularly for adolescent girls. The research was published in Translational Psychiatry.
The COVID-19 pandemic introduced widespread disruptions, including school closures, social isolation, and shifted daily routines. These rapid lifestyle changes took a heavy toll on young people worldwide. For example, a 2021 meta-analysis found that rates of clinically elevated depression and anxiety symptoms among children and teenagers roughly doubled across the globe during the first year of the pandemic. Researchers have been trying to understand why some adolescents adapted to these changes over time while others experienced worsening psychological health.
Psychiatric conditions are known to have a strong hereditary component, meaning genetic differences play a role in how adolescents handle environmental stress. A study covered by PsyPost in 2024 found that a higher shared genetic risk across various psychiatric conditions was strongly associated with a persistent pattern of high depressive symptoms throughout adolescence. To measure this inherited risk, scientists often use polygenic risk scores. These scores combine the small effects of thousands of genetic variations into a single number to estimate an individual’s broad biological susceptibility to mental health conditions.
“We are particularly interested in the impact of social isolation on adolescents’ health,” said Chun Chieh Fan of the Center for Population Neuroscience and Genetics at the Laureate Institute for Brain Research. “While there were many studies reporting the crisis among youth, there was limited discussion on who is most susceptible.”
To identify these at-risk groups, Fan and co-lead author Lucy Shao of the University of California San Diego analyzed data from 10,374 adolescents. The participants were drawn from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study, a large ongoing project tracking child development in the United States. The youth were between 10 and 14 years old in 2020.
The researchers tracked 20 different measures of mental health over five assessment waves. These visits covered the period before the pandemic, the early pandemic in 2020, and the late pandemic extending into early 2022.
The team calculated four distinct polygenic risk scores for each participant based on past genetic research in adults. These scores estimated the genetic likelihood of compulsive disorders, psychotic disorders, neurodevelopmental disorders, and internalizing conditions like depression and anxiety. By comparing these scores with parent-reported and self-reported mental health surveys, the scientists could track how symptom levels changed over time in relation to each participant’s genetic profile.
The findings indicate that the pandemic was associated with broad increases in psychological distress. During the early pandemic, symptom scores across various mental health measures increased by 4% to 14% compared to pre-pandemic levels. Symptoms tended to remain elevated during the late pandemic period, ranging from 6% to 24% above early pandemic levels. Specifically, parent-reported withdrawn behavior, depression, and rule-breaking increased, as did self-reported internalizing problems.
Genetic predispositions also played a distinct role in symptom severity. For every one-unit increase in a participant’s neurodevelopmental or internalizing polygenic risk score, they experienced between a 3% and 21% increase in symptoms across most mental health categories.
“The COVID pandemic imposed a long-term impact on youth, especially when the disruptions lingered over years,” Fan told PsyPost. “The cumulative stress compounded upon those who are particularly vulnerable, emerging a wide range of behavioral issues among youth.”
The researchers noticed marked differences when separating the data by sex. Female adolescents exhibited a greater increase in mental health challenges during the early pandemic, including a 25% increase in parent-reported affective problems. In contrast, male adolescents showed a smaller initial bump in symptoms that tended to stabilize or even decrease during the later pandemic stages. Female participants with a high genetic risk for neurodevelopmental conditions also experienced a larger increase in conduct problems and aggressive behavior during the early pandemic.
These results are in line with research covered by PsyPost earlier this year, which found that the global population-level burden of mental disorders surged among children and teens during the pandemic. That earlier study, which modeled broad disorder prevalence rather than tracking specific symptom scores in a cohort, similarly noted that female youth experienced the largest increases in anxiety and depression.
The study has some limitations to consider. The polygenic risk scores used by the researchers are broad statistical tools designed to measure traits across a large population. They are not diagnostic tests and cannot predict individual behavior or clinical outcomes for a specific child. The genetic data primarily relied on models derived from adults, which might not perfectly capture how mental health conditions develop during early adolescence.
The calendar-based periods used to define the pandemic phases do not isolate the specific causes of adolescent distress. Increased symptoms could be tied to school closures, financial strain at home, fear of infection, or physical health changes, but the data cannot separate these intertwined factors. The researchers also adjusted for age, but because adolescence is a period of rapid emotional change, normal developmental shifts might still overlap with pandemic-related trends.
Future studies could focus on identifying which specific pandemic disruptions had the strongest impact on adolescent well-being. Researchers might also examine protective factors in the home or community that help mitigate mental health risks. Expanding genetic research to include more diverse ancestral populations would help ensure that these scientific models accurately reflect the experiences of all youth.
The study, “Contributions of Genetic Liability and the COVID-19 Pandemic to Rising Psychopathology Among Youth in the United States,” was authored by Lucy Shao, Jonathan Ahern, Robert Loughnan, Bohan Xu, Holly E. Baker, Susan F. Tapert, Fiona C. Baker, Wesley K. Thompson, Orsolya Kiss, Eva M. Müller-Oehring, Marie Gombert-Labedens, and Chun Chieh Fan.
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