Author: dispatchtimes news

A new study published in American Psychologist finds that political liberals, while generally disliking prejudice, tend to rate antisemitic remarks more positively when they are paired with justifications rooted in human rights or criticisms of Israel. The researchers say these specific justifications can function as social signals, leading liberals to view the speaker as an ally rather than broadly bigoted. Antisemitism refers to prejudice or hatred directed at Jewish people. The researchers explain that in social psychology, expressions of prejudice are often accompanied by a justification to make them seem more socially acceptable or grounded in a legitimate concern. The…

A small Dutch study has found that a curious personality tends to align with higher indicators of cognitive reserve—specifically education and mentally stimulating leisure activities—though it did not observe a link with performance on cognitive tests. Cognitive reserve describes the brain’s ability to sustain functioning amid ageing, brain injury or disease-related changes. It is thought to accumulate gradually through experiences that repeatedly engage the brain, such as education, demanding work, reading, learning new skills and other mentally stimulating activities. In later life, greater cognitive reserve may delay or lessen cognitive effects of brain changes, even if those changes still occur.…

A new study has shown the brain actively directs the body’s endurance adaptations, revealing that a specific cluster of neurons in the ventromedial hypothalamus governs stamina gains after regular exercise in mice. The scientists found that activating SF1 neurons immediately after a workout is necessary for long‑term increases in endurance, a discovery published in Neuron in May 2026. The work was led by Morgan Kindel of the University of Pennsylvania and Ryan J. Post of Providence College, with a team of collaborators. Historically, exercise physiology has focused on the body’s periphery — muscles, the cardiovascular system and immune function —…

A long-running, nationally representative twin study has concluded that loneliness in childhood and social isolation independently forecast mental health, well-being and employment prospects in young adulthood, and that loneliness does not appear to help isolated youths reconnect. The Environmental Risk Longitudinal Twin Study, led by researchers at King’s College London, followed more than two thousand twins from England and Wales to age 18, collecting data at ages 12 and 18. In the researchers’ framework, social isolation is the objective absence of supportive relationships, while loneliness is the subjective sense that one’s social connections are unsatisfactory. A child can be surrounded…

Daytime stress is linked to negative dream emotions, a new study indicates, with researchers suggesting that the more distressed people feel during waking hours, the more likely their dreams are to carry negative emotional tones. The work, led by Jonas Mathes of SRH University Heidelberg, analysed data from 65 participants collected over a two‑week period. Psychologists frequently discuss the Continuity Hypothesis, which posits that waking experiences, thoughts and feelings feed into dream content. In this study, the researchers explored whether the coping strategies people use to manage daytime stress shape the emotional tone of their dreams. Coping strategies are commonly…

A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has introduced an artificial intelligence approach to map how different regions of the human brain age. By analysing MRI scans in fine detail, researchers show that ageing does not occur evenly across the brain, with certain areas displaying more advanced biological age in people with Alzheimer’s disease. “Our earlier work focused on global brain age, where AI estimates how old a person’s brain appears from an MRI,” study author Andrei Irimia told PsyPost. “That provides a useful summary, but it reduces the entire brain to a single…

A study published in Translational Psychiatry reports associations between the gut and oral microbiome and subclinical psychopathic traits among the general public. Led by Carolina F.F.A. Costa, researchers from the University of Porto and the University of Oxford recruited 200 adult volunteers in Portugal. Participants without recent antibiotic exposure completed extensive self‑report questionnaires assessing psychopathy, empathy and anxiety. Using a computer algorithm, volunteers were grouped into four categories reflecting different levels of psychopathy and anxiety; those with higher psychopathic traits tended to report lower empathy. The team collected stool, saliva and blood samples to map the microbiomes and to analyse…

The latest research argues that a specific condition—romantic and economic insecurity among never‑married men without a college degree—has helped fuel anti‑feminist attitudes and, in turn, support for the Republican Party and Donald Trump. The study, published in Political Research Quarterly, labels this dynamic a “mate‑value backlash” rather than a simple longing for traditional gender roles. Scholars have long noted a global rise in right‑wing populism, often framed as a cultural backlash to progressive social change. A 2019 theory described this shift as voters reacting to evolving social values, a narrative echoed by previous analyses suggesting Trump supporters displayed higher modern…

A new analysis led by Jasper X.M. Wiebenga, using data from the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety (NESDA), has found that among adults with depressive or anxiety disorders, those who experienced more childhood trauma were more likely to report recent suicidal thoughts and past suicide attempts. The researchers identify multiple psychosocial, personality, lifestyle and biological factors that may mediate this link. The paper, published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, was authored by Wiebenga, Lili Lokhorst, Adriaan W. Hoogendoorn, Henriette D. Heering, Merijn Eikelenboom, Erik J. Giltay, Patricia van Oppen and Brenda W.J.H. Penninx. One explanation commonly discussed in…