Under the Cortex

Racial Disparities in Drug Intervention: Culturally Inclusive Approaches

In this episode, APS’s Özge Gürcanlı Fischer Baum discusses culturally sensitive and inclusive treatments with experts William Stoops from the University of Kentucky Medical Center, along with his colleagues Jardin Dogan-Dixon and Danelle Stevens-Watkins from the University of Kentucky, Paris Wheeler from the University of Cincinnati, and Krystal Cunningham from Boston College.  

Together, they examine evidence-based drug treatment studies, highlighting racial disparities in treatment effectiveness, especially how Black participants often experience worse outcomes than White participants. The discussion includes the impact of systemic racism, the opioid versus cocaine overdose epidemics, and the differences between culturally tailored and universal interventions. 

If you're interested in learning more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org. 

Send us your thoughts and questions at  underthecortex@psychologicalscience.org 

When Versus Whether: Gender Differences in Leadership

In contemporary society, there is a significant rise in the number of women assuming leadership positions compared to past generations. Nevertheless, this raises the question: Do these growing numbers equate to equal access to opportunities? What are the common gender disparities seen in professional environments? 

 

APS’s Özge Gürcanlı Fischer Baum chats with Hannah Bowles from Harvard Business School about her new article reviewing under what conditions differences between men and women might emerge. They discuss how ambiguity and stereotypes can function to exacerbate or minimize differences between men and women. 

 

If you're interested in learning more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org. 

 

Send us your thoughts and questions at  underthecortex@psychologicalscience.org 

 

Tools to Bolster Executive Function Skills in Kids

In this episode, Philip Zelazo and Ellen Galinsky join Under the Cortex to discuss their new paper in Current Directions in Psychological Science titled “Fostering Executive-Function Skills and Promoting Far Transfer to Real-World Outcomes: The Importance of Life Skills and Civic Science.” The conversation with APS’s Özge G. Fischer Baum reviews the many ways executive functioning skills are used throughout daily life. The authors describe the process they used to involve the community to determine what skills they focused on in their intervention and the intervention’s success. 

To learn more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org.

Send us your thoughts and questions at  underthecortex@psychologicalscience.org.

 

Navigating Regret in Decision-Making

In this episode, Under the Cortex features William Ryan from UC Berkeley and Stephen Baum from Washington University in St. Louis who recently published an article on this topic in APS’s journal Psychological Science. 

APS’s Özge Gürcanlı Fischer Baum chats with Ryan and Baum about their new article on how regret impacts risk taking and financial decision making. They also discuss what researchers mean when they talk about logical decisions and how that differs from how it is colloquially used. 

If you're interested in learning more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org. 

Send us your thoughts and questions at  underthecortex@psychologicalscience.org.

Is Everyone Out to Get Me? Paranoia in Social Interactions

In this episode, Under the Cortex hosts Michal Hajdúk from Comenius University Bratislava, Sohee Park from Vanderbilt University, and Amy Pinkham from The University of Texas, Dallas about their new paper in Clinical Psychological Science titled “Paranoia: From Passive Social-Threat Perception to Misattunement in Social Interaction.” The conversation with APS’s Özge G. Fischer-Baum starts with what paranoia is in a clinical context and how it differs from the use of paranoia in an everyday context. They also discuss proposed improvements for how to clinically test the social impacts of paranoia. 

If you want to know more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org. 
Send us your thoughts and questions at  underthecortex@psychologicalscience.org.

Allergies or Sickness? Unraveling the Mystery of Concealing Infectious Diseases

What do you think when people stay quiet about infectious situations? Is it just a small white lie? 

In this episode, Under the Cortex hosts Wilson Merrell to discuss his new paper in Psychological Science titled “When and Why People Conceal Infectious Disease.” The conversation with APS’s Özge G. Fischer Baum reviews what disease concealment looks like and the factors that contribute to when people do it. Merrell highlights that 75% of US adult participants report concealing infectious illness from others and discusses the potential social pressures that might influence this decision. 

To learn more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org. 

Send us your thoughts and questions at  underthecortex@psychologicalscience.org.

Desire Dynamics: Navigating Intimacy and Attraction in Relationships

Many studies show that sexual attraction in long-term relationships decreases over time. Is this decline inevitable? Are we doomed to be not as into our partners as we were in the honeymoon period? Can we get too close to our partners? 

APS’s Özge Gürcanlı Fischer Baum interviews relationship expert Amy Muise from York University to answer these questions. Muise’s recently published work in APS’s journal Current Directions in Psychological Science addresses when and how closeness with our partners forms and declines over time. Muise shares a new development in relationship research on how to maintain desire in relationships. Together, Fischer Baum and Muise discuss the importance of cultivating an individual identity alongside intimacy within a relationship to sustain attraction over time. 

If you're interested in learning more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org. 

Send us your thoughts and questions at  underthecortex@psychologicalscience.org.

Shaping Kinder Kids Through Parental Example

Children absorb much from their environments. Although the impact of parental conflicts and fights on children has been greatly studied, the impact of positivity has yet to fully be explored. 

In this episode, Under the Cortex features Brian Don from the University of Auckland who recently published an article on this topic in APS’s journal Perspectives on Psychological Science. 

APS’s Özge Gürcanlı Fischer Baum chats with Don about his new theory, the Interparental Positivity Spillover Theory. Don shares his thoughts on how this theory suggests that when kids witness their parents engaging in warm and positive interactions, it could have a positive effect on the children themselves. 

If you're interested in learning more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org. 

Send us your thoughts and questions at  underthecortex@psychologicalscience.org.

Parental Engagement Enhances Children’s Therapy Experience and Outcomes

Anxiety is common in children. What methods effectively alleviate their anxiety? How do parents influence the treatment process? Can parents positively affect the treatment outcomes? 

In this episode, Under the Cortex features Wendy K. Silverman from Yale University School of Medicine and Jeremy W. Pettit from Florida International University who have recently published an article on this topic in APS’s journal Clinical Psychological Science. 

Özge Gürcanlı Fischer Baum starts the conversation with the history of anxiety and therapy in children. Silverman highlights how our current understanding and approach to the mental well-being of children have changed over the decades. As one of the leading researchers in the field, she explains how she established her research program from scratch and emphasizes the role of parental involvement in children’s therapy process.  

If you're interested in learning more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org. 

Do you have questions and suggestions for us? Please reach us at underthecortex@psychologicalscience.org 

Twisted Tales: Unraveling the Surprising Benefits of Irony

Using irony is a common practice in everyday speech. What’s the main purpose of doing so? What skills are necessary to best understand irony? 

In this episode, Under the Cortex features Penny Pexman from Western University. The conversation with Özge Gürcanlı Fischer Baum raises questions about the cognitive, social and emotional benefits of verbal irony. According to Pexman’s research published in APS’s journal Current Directions, cognitive flexibility and emotion recognition are crucial aspects that underlie the processing of sarcastic speech. Despite its reputation of being a negative practice, verbal irony shapes social relationships and enhances cognitive skills. 

If you're interested in learning more about this research, visit psychologicalscience.org.