Acculturation is the process of adaptation to another culture, both by the people who move to the new ‘host’ culture and those already living there, who are receiving the immigrants. It is an interesting topic, with many complex layers, encompassing as it does the ideas of ‘acculturative stress’ and ‘culture clash’ as well as issues of bilingualism and transmission of … Read More
Social media ‘addiction’ – the evidence.
While most of us think of addiction as the physical and psychological dependence on a substance such as alcohol, cigarettes or any kind of drugs, the word has also been used for psychological dependence on behaviours like shopping, eating, gambling, and now screen time – especially the time that adolescents spend on social media. But what is the evidence for … Read More
Online research
Most of the studies you will want to read can be found online, but some will be behind what is called a ‘pay wall’. This means that your school librarian should be able to help you with access, in that most school libraries will subscribe to at least one online data repository of resources. However, that is no guarantee of … Read More
What is a ‘key study’?
Key studies are studies that are the most useful for any Psychology course, because they provide the ‘key’ to understanding a concept or theory. For example, Maguire’s famous ‘taxi driver’ study, Loftus and Palmer’s ‘car crash’ study or Rosenhan’s research into the validity of diagnosis on admission to mental hospitals. Teachers and students can benefit by summarising these studies according … Read More
Exam tips – for the days themselves.
First tip is – don’t panic. Once the exams are upon you, then make sure you know the dates and times (timetable on fridge, on bedroom wall, in school bag, on phone, etc.) Once you have sat an exam, no matter how badly – or how well – you feel it’s gone, it is gone. Forget it and move on mentally, … Read More
Overstimulation of newborn mice leads to deficits in cognition and attention
This research could be a useful counter argument to the classic Rosenzweig, Bennett and Diamond study (1972) into enriched environment and neuroplasticity. It suggests disco lights are out, but toys are in! This study was based on earlier findings by Christakis et al. (2004) that young children’s excessive television watching led to later attention problems. Christakis, Ramirez and Ramirez (2012) subjected … Read More
How do you revise?
You will all have your favourite tips for revision, but here are a few more that might help move you out of the dark woods into the sunlight. You are looking for retrieval, not recognition, so stop highlighting big chunks of your textbook and start writing or planning answers with the book closed. The IB Diploma exams are very near, … Read More
So What? How to engage in critical thinking.
We all know what critical thinking is when we see it – it is the ability not to stop at the seemingly obvious, but to look at the several possible meanings and probable explanations behind it. It involves analysis and synthesis of ideas and explanations. Without critical thinking, psychology becomes a list of studies to learn and boxes to tick, … Read More