Annual review of psychology最新文献

This article reviews empirical data demonstrating robust ingroup favoritism in political judgment. Partisans display systematic tendencies to seek out, believe, and remember information that supports their political beliefs and affinities. However, the psychological drivers of partisan favoritism have been vigorously debated, as has its consistency with rational inference. We characterize decades-long debates over whether such tendencies violate normative standards of rationality, focusing on the phenomenon of motivated reasoning. In light of evidence that both motivational and cognitive factors contribute to partisan bias, we advocate for a descriptive approach to partisan bias research. Rather than adjudicating the (ir)rationality of partisan favoritism, future research should prioritize the identification and measurement of its predictors and clarify the cognitive mechanisms underlying motivated political reasoning. Ultimately, we argue that political judgment is best evaluated by a standard of ecological rationality based on its practical implications for individual well-being and functional democratic governance.

Interpersonal communication is an integral part of everyday life. People are constantly sharing thoughts, opinions, and information with others, both online and offline. Further, such social sharing has important implications for what people think, buy, and do. However, while it is clear that interpersonal communication is both frequent and important, research is only starting to understand what people share and why. This article reviews the literature on interpersonal communication and word of mouth, focusing on the drivers of social transmission and the implications for individuals and society at large. It discusses how factors like audiences, modalities (e.g., speaking or writing), channels (e.g., email or text), and devices (e.g., phone or PC) moderate what gets shared, and it outlines areas that deserve further attention. Such areas include the diffusion of false information, conversations and conversational dynamics, and how automated textual analysis can be used to shed light on a range of interesting questions.

The incentive-sensitization theory (IST) of addiction was first published in 1993, proposing that (a) brain mesolimbic dopamine systems mediate incentive motivation ("wanting") for addictive drugs and other rewards, but not their hedonic impact (liking) when consumed; and (b) some individuals are vulnerable to drug-induced long-lasting sensitization of mesolimbic systems, which selectively amplifies their "wanting" for drugs without increasing their liking of the same drugs. Here we describe the origins of IST and evaluate its status 30 years on. We compare IST to other theories of addiction, including opponent-process theories, habit theories of addiction, and prefrontal cortical dysfunction theories of impaired impulse control. We also address critiques of IST that have been raised over the years, such as whether craving is important in addiction and whether addiction can ever be characterized as compulsive. Finally, we discuss several contemporary phenomena, including the potential role of incentive sensitization in behavioral addictions, the emergence of addiction-like dopamine dysregulation syndrome in medicated Parkinson's patients, the role of attentional capture and approach tendencies, and the role of uncertainty in incentive motivation.

Therapeutic claims about many psychedelic drugs have not been evaluated in any studies of even modest rigor. The science of psychedelic drugs is strengthening however, making it easier to differentiate some promising findings amid the hype that suffuses this research area. Ketamine has risks of adverse side effects (e.g., addiction and cystitis), but multiple studies suggest it can benefit individuals with treatment-resistant depression. Other therapeutic signals from psychedelic drug research that merit rigorous replication studies include 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and psilocybin for depression, end of life dysphoria, and alcohol use disorder. The precise mechanisms through which psychedelic drugs can produce benefit and harm are not fully understood. Rigorous research is the best path forward for evaluating the therapeutic potential and mechanisms of psychedelic drugs. Policies governing the clinical use of these drugs should be informed by evidence and prioritize the protection of public health over the profit motive.

Many individuals struggle to regulate their own consumption of food. Beginning with general theories of self-control, we review psychological factors that have been shown to influence the regulation of eating, including those related to particular personality variables, such as external eating, restrained eating, and reward sensitivity, as well as situational constraints, including normative influences, emotions, and calorie deprivation. Strategies for the self-control of eating, including reappraisal, effortful inhibition, and various automatic strategies are also reviewed, along with a discussion of the strengths and limitations of historical and contemporary psychological studies investigating food consumption. Whereas extensive examinations of food preferences and body weight have appeared in the psychological literature, we call for more robust research that prioritizes actual eating as the primary dependent measure.

In many instances, emotions do not simply happen to people by chance; Often, people actively seek out an emotion by engaging in practices that have culturally evolved to evoke that emotion. Such practices tend to be perpetuated and spread if people want to experience the emotion, like to recall it and tell others about it, want to give the emotion to others and experience it together, and/or regard the emotion as a sign of something wonderful. We illustrate this with a newly delineated emotion, kama muta. Many social practices around the world are structured to evoke kama muta. In those culturally evolved practices, and outside them, what typically evokes kama muta is a sudden intensification of communal sharing, or a sudden shift of attention to a communal sharing relationship. It seems probable that other social-relational emotions are also evoked by sudden changes in relationships or the sudden salience of a relationship. This change or saliencing may be incorporated in social practices that are perpetuated because they evoke the sought-after emotion. We suggest that such practices, as well as sudden changes in relationships that occur elsewhere, are especially promising places to discover social-relational emotions.