What's Current in

Psychological and Brain Sciences

A man holds his hand on his chin and stares at a painting while two others paint in the distance
Photo Credit
Matt Perko
Aha! moments in creative contexts such as the arts may be less a verdict than a motivational impetus, according to researchers

‘Aha!’ moments are great for solving problems but less so for creative judgements

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photograph of Brenda Major
Photo Credit
Matt Perko
Brenda Major, May 2024

Brenda Major elected to National Academy of Sciences
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UC Santa Barbara selects inaugural Public Voices Fellows
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Russell Sage Foundation taps UCSB social scientists for fellowships
gears as brains on wooden silhouettes of heads facing each other

A holistic framework for studying social emotions
six women facing the sea with their arms raised in heart hands
Photo Credit
Simona Pilolla

Embracing single life: Love, intimacy and family beyond the couple
image of multiple heads

Social-behavioral findings can be highly replicable, six-year study by four labs suggests
woman walking at labyrinth
Photo Credit
Elena Zhukova

Are sportier people better friends? New research looks at physical activity and close relationships
Two opposing heads with winged and horned brain and tailed and haloed brain.
Photo Credit
kovalto1 via iStock
Moral reasoning creates distinct patterns of activity in the brain.

Moral reasoning displays characteristic patterns in the brain, with distinctions between moral categories
Emily Jacobs seated, looking upward, seated in front of a backdrop of brain imagery
Photo Credit
Matt Perko
Emily Jacobs’ lab primarily examines how hormones affect the brain

The current landscape of women’s health — and how it might be improved
Photo illustration of a floating human brain
Photo Credit
Matt Perko

When the brain leaves the body, does identity move with it? Depends on who you ask.
man refusing envelope of cash

People in power who are guilt-prone are less likely to be corrupt
concept of human and machine intelligence working together

Researchers at the 2023 Mellichamp Mind & Machine Intelligence Summit contemplate and discuss the state of artificial intelligence
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