A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
The Stanford Prison Experiment, one of the most famous and compelling psychological studies of all time, told us a tantalizingly simple story about human nature. The study took paid participants and assigned them to be “inmates” or “guards” in a mock prison at Stanford University. Soon after the experiment began, the “guards” began mistreating the [...]
Childline has seen a 14% rise in the number of children contacting the charity about loneliness. In 2017/18, the charity delivered 4,636 counselling sessions on loneliness, compared to 4,063 the year before. Nearly 80% of sessions went to girls. Some said watching their friends socialise without them on social media made them feel increasingly isolated. This [...]
In young adults, negative social media experiences may be strongly and consistently associated with higher depressive symptoms. But, positive experiences seem to have a weak link to lower depressive symptoms, according to research led by the University of Pittsburgh. The study titled "The association between valence of social media experiences and depressive symptoms" was published in the journal Depression and [...]
While some would believe dehumanizing someone is a way of expressing dislike, new findings suggest that the two may actually be different psychological processes. The study titled "Denying humanity: The distinct neural correlates of blatant dehumanization" was published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology on May 31. "When people are dehumanizing others, they are mobilizing different brain regions than [...]
Growing up, I was a gymnast. The serious, train-six-times-a-week-and-never-do-anything-else kind. By the time I was 10, I had represented NSW at national championships, and won. By the time I was 12, I had represented Australia. By 15, I was preparing for my second World Championships. I had been training relentlessly, day in, day out. I [...]
Only a true marketing wizard could transform his image from that of a guy best known for torturing dogs into the world’s foremost apostle of happiness. And that’s exactly what the University of Pennsylvania’s Professor of Psychology Martin Seligman pulled off. Seligman launched his career in experimental psychology by administering painful electric shocks to man’s [...]
An estimated 1 in 33 Australian children suffer TRAUMA in childhood. We need to rethink current practices and help schools to become more ‘trauma informed’. But what exactly does this mean, and how do we make it happen? Hard Yards is a unique one day conference, repeated over two days, giving principals, teachers, advocates and educational [...]
#Care2QPR Question. Persuade. Refer. It’s three simple steps that anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide says Illawarra psychologist Dr Alex Hains. And – as community members are encouraged to learn CPR to potentially save lives – Dr Hains is urging the public to learn QPR to do the same for those people struggling with suicidal thoughts. [...]
New University of Canterbury research into the behaviour of online trolls has revealed the many actors involved and a surprising number of benefits to trolling – and not just for the trolls. When University of Canterbury (UC) doctoral student Maja Golf-Papez left a marketing career in Slovenia to start her research into mischief-making consumer behaviours [...]
When it comes to body image issues, the struggle is equal for men and women. The feeling of low self-confidence, being judged for your weight, not fitting into clothes and the pressure to live up to society's standard of a body type can be all too crippling. It’s normal to be insecure, to compare ourselves to [...]
