Archive for the ‘HUMAN BEHAVIOUR’ Category

14 Mar

Boredom – It really is a killer!

Posted by seanduke in HUMAN BEHAVIOUR, NEUROSCIENCE, PUBLIC HEALTH, RADIO, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , .


The boredom of this Moscow street seller could be very bad for her health [Credit: Wikipedia]

The boredom of this Moscow street seller could be very bad for her health [Credit: Wikipedia]

Boredom in work, or at home, is quite literally a killer, according to a growing body of evidence linking it with serious health effects.

The science of boredom is proving very interesting indeed to many researchers around the world, including at least one here in Ireland.

Dr Wijnand van Tilburg, a psychology lecturer in the University of Limerick is interested in how boredom affects aggression and memory.

There are serious consequences for people’s health if they are bored, with studies linking boredom to a greater vulnerability to heart disease, depression, overeating, alcohol and drug abuse, and gambling.

The definition of boredom is different to different people, but it is widely induced in people that must do repetitive tasks, and suffer time delays, such as tedious factory work, or waiting at an airport for a long delayed airplane.

Researchers set up boredom experiments, but inducing the condition in subjects – typically university students. One team showed students a video of people hanging laundry washing, and this worked very well.

Given the range of ill health effect caused by boredom it is important to avoid it as much as possible. This might involve seeing the big picture of boring tasks, and linking them to a great good, or achievement, such as a teacher that is bored correcting homework, but sees it as good for pupils.

It is also possible to reduce boredom by taking exercise, such as walking or going for a job. It is important too, to try, when possible, to work in a job that its well suited to a person’s interests and abilities.

Click below to hear more:

Science of Boredom: Discussed on the Morning Show with Declan Meehan on East Coast FM. [Broadcast 14th March 2013]

1 Nov

Chemical differences when men and women argue

Posted by seanduke in HUMAN BEHAVIOUR, MENTAL HEALTH, RADIO, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , .


Men and women react differently – chemically – during an argument and during the aftermath ‘cooling down’ period. [Credit: Forbes.com]

A body of scientific evidence shows that men and women differ – chemically – when it comes to arguments between couples.

For example, a Pennsylvania State University  study, which measured the level of stress hormone, cortisol, found significant differences between arguing men and women.

The levels of cortisol in men were linked with the level of hostility in an argument, while in women, the stress levels were often the result of  a perceived ‘lack of engagement’ by men in the issue at hand.

The scientists asked the couples to discuss disputed issues between them, such as finances, or housecare, and them took saliva samples before and after they argued.

Men took longer to recover chemically and get back to normal cortisol levels than women after a particularly hostile argument.

The scientists theorised that women recovered quicker from such hostile arguments because they at least felt that issues had been aired and weren’t being ignored.

Another study by the University of Minnesota found a link between how good people are at ‘cooling down’ from an argument, and early childhood experience.

The Minnesota researchers found that individuals with a strong bond with their caregiver aged 12 to 18 months were better able to recover following an argument, move on, and not be left ruminating and angry – whether they were men or women.

When it comes to stress, and coping with it; it seems the blueprint is laid down early.

LISTEN: Interview with Declan Meehan 1 Nov ’12  on East Coast FM

15 Jun

Fathers also experience hormonal changes, ‘baby blues’ and the ticking of a ‘biological clock’

Posted by seanduke in HUMAN BEHAVIOUR, REPRODUCTION and FERTILITY. Tagged: , , , .


Fathers are also ‘biologically wired’ to care for their children, and experience the ticking of the ‘biological clock’. (Credit: http://www.blogmagazine.org)

As father’s day approaches, it is interesting to see what the scientific evidence is telling us about fathers and babies, and fathers raising children.

The rapid hormonal changes after a baby is born, and the ticking of a ‘biological clock’ are things that have been traditionally associated with women.

However, science is showing that men also undergo huge hormonal changes after a child is born, to make them more suited to nurturing; are more prone to depression after a baby is born; and have far greater difficulty making babies as they age.

This was the topic up for discussion on The Morning Show with Declan Meehan.

LISTEN: Interview with Declan Meehan

Broadcast on East Coast FM on 14th June 2012

30 Apr

Social media make people smarter

Posted by seanduke in COMPUTER SCIENCE, HUMAN BEHAVIOUR, THE SUNDAY TIMES. Tagged: , , , , , .


There may be those that think Twitter and other social media are part of a general ‘dumbing down’ of society, yet the emerging evidence suggests that social media are making people smarter.

Professor Andrew Jackson, of the Theoretical Ecology Group at TCD, and his PhD student, Luke McNally, have devised ingenious methods of testing whether increasing social interactions by media like Twitter, makes us smarter.

They created ‘digital brains’ that played games that replicated how people interact in society, over and over again, for a period of time that equated to 50,000 human generations. The results were fascinating.

LISTEN: Interview with Andrew Jackson

Broadcast on Science Spinning on 103.2 Dublin City FM on 16-04-2012

READ: The article below appeared in The Sunday Times on 12-04-2012

30 Mar

Are rich people more likely to lie, cheat and drive aggressively?

Posted by seanduke in CONTROVERSY, HUMAN BEHAVIOUR. Tagged: , , , .


BMW drivers, like the one pictured here, were voted the angriest drivers in Britain in a survey of 3,000 road users there (credit: ukautoblog.com)

We all might have suspected it, but now studies from the USA are confirming it. Wealthier people are more likely to lie, cheat and behave selfishly than others – up to three times more likely in fact.

These are the results of an experiment which monitored car users in California and their behaviour at busy junctions. Those driving the expensive cars behaved a lot worse, on average.

Follow-up experiments with people in the laboratory confirmed the same result.

LISTEN: Interview with radio host Declan Meehan

Broadcast on East Coast FM’s The Morning Show with Declan Meehan on 08-03-2012

25 Jan

Is our Darwinian drive to bring children into the world immoral and selfish?

Posted by seanduke in CONTROVERSY, HUMAN BEHAVIOUR, REPRODUCTION and FERTILITY. Tagged: , , , , , , , .


South African philosopher, Professor David Benatar argues that it is immoral and selfish to bring children into the world (credit: newbornbabyzone.com)

It is the most natural thing in the world for many of us. Find a partner we love, and bring a child, or children into the world. But, is this drive, or need to bring children into the world immoral and selfish?

Well, Professor David Benatar a philosopher, based in Cape Town University, argues that it is, and has backed up that view with well articulated philosophical arguments in his book,  Better to Have Never Been, The Harm of Coming into Existence.

The views of Benatar were the subject of debate at a recent lecture in the 2012 UCC public lecture series when Dr Tom Moore, a reproductive biologist at UCC, outlined the reasons why he believes that Benatar deserves to be taken seriously.

Listen: Interview with Dr Tom Moore

Broadcast on Dublin City FM on 19.01.2012

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