social-psychology

A new study reveals how attachment styles, personality traits, and aggressive behaviors influence romantic satisfaction. The findings show that women prioritize emotional bonds and partner traits, while men's relationship happiness is closely tied to experiences of sexual coercion.

Scientific Reports, Published online: 20 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41598-026-58041-9 Social inequality and the mental health of Chinese youth

Notre Dame faculty are conducting research around the globe year-round. Their research spans continents, connects them with remote parts of the world, and even brings them into war and conflict-torn areas. For some, that’s exactly where they need to be. Notre Dame psychology…

Personal Perspective: Four steps to connect with someone who thinks differently than you do.

IntroductionWhile social comparison orientation has been established as an important antecedent to creative performance, existing research mainly focuses on its connection with general creativity (i.e., generating novel and useful ideas that benefit others), largely ignoring its potential link to malevolent creativity (i.e., generating novel ideas intended to harm others). This gap limits a compr…

A new study of newlywed couples found that people often overestimate how insecure and anxious their partners are. Researchers discovered that people routinely project their own attachment issues onto their spouse, especially if they are unhappy in the marriage.

This study aimed to psychometrically validate the construct of organizational climate in high-complexity hospitals in Chile and Ecuador. In both Chile and Ecuador, healthcare institutions, whether public or private, are organized according to levels of complexity. Consequently, considering the coverage and impact of services, the study focused on high-complexity institutions. A descriptive and co…

Peers play a significant role in adolescent development and mental health, but research has found mixed findings on whether peer support is protective factor against discrimination. This study found that peer support was protective for girls but a risk factor for boys in the face of discrimination.

Extreme loneliness in young adults often predicts obsessive online habits like uncontrollably viewing pornography. Conversely, obsessive gaming and endless internet health searches can predict future social isolation, revealing a cyclic relationship between human disconnection and digital habits.

Social-emotional learning (SEL) is often presented as a way to promote positive student outcomes. However, current SEL programs may reflect Eurocentric, heterosexual, ableist, middle-class American values and overlook the needs of racially/ethnically minoritized youth. To help school psychologists engage in social justice advocacy to improve Black students' wellbeing, this conceptual article high…

BackgroundLoneliness is a pervasive concern in the Broader Autism Phenotype, yet research often treats autistic traits as homogeneous risk factor, obscuring potential adaptive pathways. The distinct roles of social-communicative difficulties versus cognitive traits (e.g., Attention to Detail) in shaping friendship remain underexplored, particularly in non-Western contexts.MethodA sample of 1,076 …

Great minds think alike; great love matches do also. But when it comes to similarity, can there be too much of a good thing?

Personal Perspective: When neurodivergent people talk about “neurodiversity pride,” we are talking about our survival.

We hear a lot about estranged adult children. But what about the parents trapped by guilt, blame, dependence, and the painful feeling that they "owe" their child more?

Many siblings drift apart as they enter adulthood. Here are some of the common reasons and how to close the gap.

Learn the emotional patterns couples should understand before marriage, from conflict styles and attachment dynamics to money stress and communication.

I remember sitting with a colleague a few years ago. A conversation that started about nothing in particular quickly became one of the most productive exchanges I'd had in a while: problems I'd been thinking about for a long time simply disappeared. The same pattern kept happening, over and over, with that exact person. Every time, the results were significantly better than thinking alone, even t…

Public attacks on Black women often trigger emotions far beyond the intended target. The reasons are deeply psychological.