Brilliance is often seen as something you’re born with—a kind of raw intellectual talent that propels certain people to succeed at a level the average person can only dream of. Although this trait is often prized in academic fields, an organizational emphasis on proving one’s intellectual superiority can contribute to a “masculinity-contest culture” (MCC) that may discourage women from jumping into the fray, according to research by Andrea C. Vial (New York University, Abu Dhabi) and colleagues in Psychological Science.  Organizations with MCCs position stereotypically masculine behaviors ..read more

What does it take for an enterprising person to rise above the competition and become a successful entrepreneur? Is it an ideal mix of startup cash, marketplace insights, and business savvy? Perhaps, but psychological science suggests that these assets may not be enough. Rather, specific characteristics and behaviors may differentiate the founder of a thriving new business from the leader of a failed startup. In a recent episode of Under the Cortex, Nikki Blacksmith and Mo McCusker, cofounders of Blackhawke Behavior Science and corecipients of a 2021 APS Psychological Science and Entrepreneurs ..read more

Mentoring relationships can be transformational within any profession, but they may be especially helpful in STEM fields, particularly for scientists from racial minority groups and other historically marginalized and underrepresented groups. Whether considering a transition mid-career or finding your path forward within academia, a knowledgeable mentor can prove invaluable in helping psychological scientists evaluate next steps, build relationships, and connect with potential opportunities.   But how to find the r ..read more

Research carried out by psychological scientists has brought about countless advances in humanity’s well-being, equipping clinical practitioners, policymakers, and the public to improve our physical and mental health—but, in Perspectives on Psychological Science, Elliot T. Berkman and Sylas M. Wilson suggest a number of incentives to support the development of even more actionable theories in the face of what they term a “practicality crisis.” “We study topics that can so easily be applied to everyday life, yet rarely do we go out of our way to make the case of our relevance to the general pub ..read more

Bargaining in an open-air market. Making trades at a sports memorabilia show. Monitoring price changes on a ride-sharing app. Every day, people in real-world marketplaces make choices using decision-making biases similar to those explored by psychological scientists in laboratory settings. And field experiments in such contexts “can serve an invaluable intellectual role alongside traditional laboratory research,” John List proposed in a recent review in Current Direction ..read more

An elderly person has fallen and calls for help on a simple-to-use medical alert pendant. Advertisements and commercials depicting this scene, seemingly ubiquitous since the late 1980s, have fueled the growth of a multibillion-dollar medical alert industry. Indeed, fall risks are as serious and costly for older adults as they have ever been. But the messages’ depiction of older people as frail, lonely, and needy is based on stereotypes that are unlikely to resonate with the fast-growing over-65 population, who are heterogeneous in terms of life experiences and health outcomes—and who tend to t ..read more

Burnout can happen in any profession, leaving a person exhausted, emotionally drained, and cynically doubtful of their ability to achieve personal fulfillment or contribute meaningfully to society through their labor. Burning out at work can strike a powerful blow to well-being, but a meta-analysis by Renzo Bianchi (University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland) and colleagues in Clinical Psychological Science suggests that it may not constitute a discrete clinical condition. Instead, “burnout” could be ..read more

Creative ideas often seem to come out of thin air, but bringing them to life involves a sequence of conscious and controlled steps. Even Leonardo da Vinci, one of the most famous scientists, painters, and inventors of all time, produced more than 500 drawings and 35,000 words on the topic of flight, yet it is doubtful that his ideas for human-powered flying machines would have succeeded, given what we now know about the limitations of human muscle force.  However, da Vinci’s extensive docum ..read more

From health crises and job losses stemming from COVID-19 to burst pipes and other damages wrought by weather calamities, the last year has unleashed a torrent of unexpected financial emergencies upon consumers, millions of whom were already struggling to get by. Although Americans as a whole have managed to save more money than ever during the panedemic, nearly 40 percent have such a small personal safety net that they would struggle to cover a $400 emergency expense, according to a 2019 report from ..read more

Mentoring relationships can be transformational within any profession, but they may be especially helpful in STEM fields, particularly for scientists from racial minority groups and other historically marginalized and underrepresented groups. Whether considering a transition mid-career or finding your path forward within academia, a knowledgeable mentor can prove invaluable in helping psychological scientists evaluate next steps, build relationships, and connect with potential opportunities.   But how to find the r ..read more