Open-World Video Games Boost Relaxation and Mental Well-Being

Summary: Open-world video games can significantly improve relaxation and mental health, especially for postgraduate students. These games, offering expansive environments and player autonomy, provide a form of cognitive escapism that…

Study Ties Visual Errors to Paranoid Beliefs

Summary: A new study suggests complex beliefs like paranoia may have roots in visual misperception. Participants prone to paranoia or teleological thinking were more likely to wrongly identify one moving…

Teen Brain’s Blunted Reward Response Predicts Depression Onset

Summary: A new study reveals that a reduced neural response to rewards in teens predicts the first onset of depression, but not anxiety or suicidality. Researchers used EEG scans to…

Ketamine Reduces “Giving Up” by Targeting Brain Support Cells

Summary: Researchers have found that ketamine’s antidepressant effects target astroglia, a type of brain support cell, rather than neurons, challenging conventional views. Using zebrafish, scientists observed that ketamine suppressed the…

Black adults with long COVID report higher levels of hopelessness and suicidal thoughts − new research

Black adults living with long COVID pointed to challenges with their physical health – rather than their mental health – when asked to describe their long-COVID symptoms. That is one…

Depression Genes in Women Linked to Higher Heart Disease Risk

Summary: A new study analyzing genetic data from over 300,000 people revealed that women with a high genetic risk for depression also face a higher likelihood of developing heart disease,…

Leaded Gas Exposure Linked to Mental Illness

Summary: A new study estimates that childhood lead exposure, peaking between 1960 and 1990 due to leaded gasoline, caused 151 million excess cases of mental illness by 2015. Researchers linked…

How We Filter Out Background Sounds When Speaking

Summary: Researchers have traced how the brain filters out background noise during speech using signals between the motor and auditory cortices. These milliseconds-long electrical signals, called auditory corollary discharge, originate…

Masculine Ideals Double Suicide Risk in Men

Summary: Men who strongly adhere to traditional masculine ideologies, such as suppressing emotions and valuing independence, are more than twice as likely to attempt suicide compared to those with more…

Family History of Mental Illness Increases Aggression Risk in CTE

Summary: A new study reveals that individuals with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and a family history of mental illness have a heightened risk of aggression during adulthood, particularly between ages…