Summary: Depression’s earliest signs can be hard to spot, but a new study shows AI can detect them in subtle facial movements. Japanese students with subthreshold depression were perceived as…
Category: mental health
Your Words May Reveal More Than You Think: AI Shows How
Summary: Psychologists are turning to artificial intelligence to uncover hidden psychological cues in speech, from word choice to tone and pacing. These signals can reveal personality traits and even early…
Sex Shapes the Course of Bipolar Disorder and Schizophrenia
Summary: A large multicenter study has revealed that sex influences the course and characteristics of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Women with schizophrenia tended to begin treatment later, while men with…
Chronic Stress Sends Immune Cells to Brain, Driving Depression
Summary: A new study shows that chronic stress causes immune cells called neutrophils to leave bone marrow in the skull and collect in the brain’s protective membranes, where they contribute…
Depression Disrupts Learning to Avoid Unpleasant Events
Summary: Depression specifically impairs the ability to learn how to actively avoid unpleasant events, though it does not affect avoidance behavior once learned. Researchers tested 465 participants across a range…
Hormonal Contraceptives Influence Memory of Emotional Events
Summary: A new study reveals that hormonal contraceptives may shape both emotional responses and memory processing in women. Compared with naturally cycling women, users of hormonal birth control had stronger…
The Midlife “Unhappiness Hump” Has Vanished, But at a Cost
Summary: A new large-scale study finds that the long-observed “unhappiness hump,” where mental distress peaked in midlife, has disappeared. Instead, younger people now report the highest levels of anxiety, depression,…
Cannabis Linked to Reduced Insomnia and Anxiety
Summary: A new study suggests cannabis-based medical products may help people with insomnia sleep better over the long term. Across 124 patients followed for up to 18 months, participants consistently…
Big Five No More? New Study Uncovers Hidden Personality Traits
Summary: For 40 years, the Big Five personality model has dominated psychology, but new research suggests it may be incomplete. Using taxonomic graph analysis, researchers mapped personality from the ground…
How Stress Types Differently Impact Brain and Behavior
Summary: Stress is a universal experience, but not all stress affects the brain in the same way. A new study in rats reveals that acute stress provokes anxiety-like behaviors, especially…
