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Behavioral Economics: How Psychology Can Inform Other Fields
Picture this: Two economists are going on a leisurely stroll together when they stumble upon a one-hundred-dollar bill lying on the sidewalk. The two promptly walk past it without giving it much attention. One of the economists turns and says, “Did we just pass a $100 bill on the ground?” The other economist replies, “Of…
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Addressing the Portrayal of Mental Illness in Film and Television
With accessibility to film and television at an all-time high, this form of media reaches a very large audience. It is easy for us to get caught up in the plot of our favorite movie or TV show, without realizing the lasting effects that these films and shows have on the way we think and…
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Probing the Mind: Testing the breaking point of neuropsychological assessments
Medicine and psychology intersect more than you would expect. In particular, tests developed based on psychological concepts are used frequently in clinical evaluations to assess different aspects of a patient’s cognitive abilities. However, there are important limitations to these tests that become evident in cases of severe disease. Research has moved towards using neurophysiological methods…
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No such thing as a “positive” stereotype: Consequences of the Model Minority Myth
While Asian Americans are typically depicted as intelligent, high-achieving, and law-abiding, such stereotypes may not be as innocuous as you think. The Model Minority Myth has several consequences for the mental health, academic achievement, and institutional support (e.g., school and governmental programs) available to this population.
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If I told you I’d have to exclude you: Do online research participants have too much experience?
When I was an undergraduate Research Assistant, I worked with two- to six-year-old kids in a developmental psychology lab. Aside from my general incapacity to get small children to cooperate, the data collection process took an excruciatingly long time. It can be hard to find people to participate in studies, especially when many of the…
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What’s the Latest from the World of Social and Health Psychology? Reporting from the Social Personality and Health Network Conference
What do Facebook, biological assays, virtual reality, recording devices, and civic engagement programs have in common?
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The Psychology of Computer Rage
If you’ve ever used a computer to accomplish a task within the last 20 years, you’ve probably had a melt-down moment— viruses, blue screens, ads that won’t close, and the oh-so feared act of downloading a word document, only to save and close it into nothingness (a plague upon the early 2000’s). I once lost…
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Highlights of “Building Minds”
For those who missed “Building Minds: Microchips & Molecules”, here is a taste of the action. For all who packed the CNSI auditorium in May for our annual interdisciplinary symposium, here is a quick trip down memory lane. Enjoy! Gimzewski (’15 symposium) UCLA’s James Gimzewski cited Alan Turing in his talk describing his research on…
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“Building Minds: Microchips & Molecules” Symposium – May 18, 2015
Psychology in Action is proud to announce the fourth annual Psychology Interdisciplinary Events symposium, Monday, May 18th, 2015, from 4 to 6pm in UCLA’s CNSI Auditorium. The discussion will focus on various attempts to create artificial minds and what they tell us about our own minds. The event is completely FREE and open to the general…
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Signal Detection: Decision Making in Uncertainty
We all experience uncertainty: How did I do on that test? What do they think of me? Where did I leave my keys? Is my phone ringing? In these and other uncertain situations, we have to take the evidence we have and make our best guess about the answer. Sometimes we’re right, and sometimes we’re…