Psychology

Get to know your own mind—and improve your mental health—with the latest findings on human brains and behavior.

Latest in Psychology

Text message chat speech bubbles covering the face of woman with eyeglasses

Stop asking AI for life advice

a guide dog helps a woman with a cane navigate a train

Robots can’t replace guide dogs

By Mack DeGeurin

A medium-shot photograph shows a smiling senior woman with blonde hair riding a black bicycle through a park. She is wearing a black puffer jacket and grey trousers, and she is looking ahead with a joyful expression. The background is a soft blur of green grass and dark leafy bushes, emphasizing the motion of the bike.

Why you never forget how to ride a bike

Overlapping ace of clubs, diamonds, and hearts

All that magician chitchat? It’s not fooling your brain.

Nine blue dots on purple background

How many blue dots do you see? New optical illusion tricks the brain.

an illustration of a calendar with the world "cancelled" stamped on it. a pair of glasses, a cup of coffee, and a pen are next to the calendar

Psychologists confirm that a canceled meeting is good for you

By Laura Baisas

a stylized photo of a woman sleeping

Vivid dreams trick your brain into thinking you slept well

By Laura Baisas

A person lies in bed under a white duvet, their face partially illuminated by a bright shaft of morning light filtering through dark, heavy curtains. They have one hand resting on their forehead in a gesture of fatigue or waking up, creating a moody, high-contrast atmosphere of early morning.

Is it better to be a morning person or a night owl? What the science says.

By Laura Kiniry

A conceptual graphic featuring a young child with an afro standing alone against a textured purple and orange gradient background. A large, empty white thought bubble floats significantly above their head.

Not everyone has an internal monologue

By Jennifer Byrne

Happy young adult man listening to music with headphones and mobile phone celebrating and dancing outdoor against yellow background. Youth lifestyle concept

4 surprising scientific benefits of music

A close-up photograph of a young child with blonde hair smiling broadly, revealing several missing front baby teeth. The child is playfully covering their eyes with both hands, with a plain grey wall in the background.

Why do we even have baby teeth?

By Sarah Lindenfeld Hall

Female young behind book with face covered for a red book while smiling

How to rebuild your reading habits

Two dogs sitting in half open door looking curiously to the left

Dogs act like toddlers when trying to help humans

Interior of classic opera house

Color plays an unsung role in how we enjoy concerts

Professional male musician creates new song for music album by playing synthesizer in studio. Top view at angle on head of bald man in headphones who sits at microphone and presses keys of synthesizer

Can’t stop humming that tune? Thank math.

African striped mouse and pups

Biologists discover gene that may determine ‘good’ and ‘bad’ dads

Example of paired images used during free-view eyetracking study. These image pairs focused on participant reactions to spider versus other arthropods – (A) spider versus butterfly, (B) spider versus insect, (C) spider eyes versus insect eyes, (D) spider versus non-spider arachnid, and (E) spider versus myriapod. We also included a paired image of (F) scorpion versus non-scorpion arachnid to gain insight into whether participants respond differently to spiders versus scorpions (e.g., d vs. f).

Psychologists made people look at spiders. They didn’t like it.

a white dog with ears perked up and wide eyes against a blue background

Cortisol could impact your dog’s behavior

By Laura Baisas

Poison warning label layered atop brown hair

Hair samples reveal the benefits of lead regulation

A vibrant stage production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. In the center, a young wizard is being sorted under a floating hat by a man in a brown suit. Four large, illuminated banners representing the Hogwarts houses—Gryffindor (red), Ravenclaw (blue), Hufflepuff (yellow), and Slytherin (green)—hang from the gothic arches of the Great Hall, while students in robes watch from the sides.

A Harry Potter quiz may predict your career prospects

By Clarissa Brincat