Latest news with #Psychology
Daily Mail
29-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Can YOU spot the psychopath based on these headshots? New study reveals subtle clues in people's faces
Would you be able to detect narcissism or psychopathy simply by looking at someone's face? Science suggests it's possible. A new study has demonstrated that people with so-called 'dark triad personality traits' share similar facial features and expressions. They tend to have stronger brow ridges, unreadable expressions, symmetrical faces, narrower eyes, and a direct gaze — and they smile less. Researchers in Turkey conducted three studies on people from Turkey and America who looked at photos of digitally created faces. The faces has been carefully crafted based on features associated with high or low levels of Dark Triad traits based on photos constructed by averaging the facial features of real individuals who scored either high or low on Dark Triad trait tests. The study showed that people could identify all of these traits at least 50 to 75 percent of the time from headshots alone. Scientists suggest that people's ability to identify these traits may be an evolutionary adaptation that our human ancestors developed to avoid dangerous people. 'Estimating the personality traits of others has adaptive advantages such as being aware of the opportunities and costs that the other party can offer... and it can guide us about behaving and making decisions in our social interactions,' the researchers wrote in the paper published in Personality and Individual Differences. People with the three main Dark Triad traits —narcissism (grandiose self-obsession), Machiavellianism (cold, tactical manipulation), and psychopathy (impulsive ruthlessness)— are often manipulative and emotional brick walls, typically willing to do or say anything to get their way. They also have a grandiose sense of self, are typically impulsive, and may engage in dangerous or exploitative behavior, such as love-bombing and emotional blackmail. People with these traits can be especially adept at hiding them, especially at first. Narcissists often come off as exceedingly charming and engaging upon meeting them. Machiavellians, meanwhile, excel at adjusting their moral values based on what will benefit them most and tend to be callous and cold. Researchers conducted three studies encompassing 880 total people. They viewed composite images from photos of people who scored very high or very low on personality tests, and were asked to guess which face displayed more of a given trait. The first study involved 160 Americans who looked at composite face images depicting high and low levels of the Dark Triad and Big Five traits -- openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism (anxious versus stable). People had to guess which of two faces scored higher on a given trait. Participants guessed correctly over 50 percent of the time for Dark Triad traits, while the Big Five were identified less often. There were, however, a few exceptions, including agreeableness – which involves being kind and trustworthy, was the easiest for study subjects to spot, particularly in male faces – 58 to 78 percent of the time; conscientiousness, about 55 percent of the time, and extraversion, roughly 75 percent of the time. But people consistently struggled to identify openness and neuroticism, which covers emotional instability, anxiety, self-consciousness, and sadness, often guessing the associated faces incorrectly. They identified extraversion – being outgoing, sociable, and energized by social interactions – only in women's faces, not men's. In study two, researchers included 322 American adults who participated in the same study as the first but also included demographic questions such as age, ideology, and sex, which helps ensure that effects aren't driven by particular hidden biases, like if one group skews younger or more liberal. Dark Triad traits were again correctly identified, while identification of the Big Five traits was more mixed. Again, the only two that were not identifiable were neuroticism and openness. The subjects were not influenced by age, sex, or political ideology. Study two proved that the results of study one were not a fluke, researchers concluded. Study three involved 402 Turkish college students who repeated study two, but in a classroom setting. The results were the same. And they were better than American adults at identifying narcissism, though less able to judge male extraversion and openness. Researchers did not identify any of the faces belonging to people with psychopathy. Still, those people with those disorders tend to also possess those personality traits, including callousness, thrill-seeking behavior, ease of manipulating people, and superficial charisma. Throughout human evolution, being able to 'read' people has proven a key survival mechanism. Spotting personality traits by how someone looks gives people an advantage, telling us to steer clear of a person who seems manipulative or exploitative. These traits inform the way people act. People who score high in extraversion are typically easy to spot because they are talkative, energetic, and quick to smile. They exhibit outward cues, including a relaxed posture and a warm expression, that are typically easily recognized. On the other side of the spectrum, people with the Dark Triad traits are more likely to lie, manipulate, and act aggressively, which makes them more likely to cause trouble in workplaces and in their relationships.
CBC
26-05-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Alberta-U.S. travel down but not as sharply as the rest of Canada. Is it politics? Pragmatism? Peer pressure?
Social Sharing It's been well documented by now that Canadians have been travelling to the United States less since U.S. President Donald Trump took office in January, but a further breakdown of the data reveals Alberta has seen smaller declines than the rest of the country. Air travel through Alberta's major airports, in particular, has been less affected than at airports in the rest of Canada. And while Alberta-U.S. travel by land is down quite a bit, the declines are still less pronounced than what's been seen at border crossings in other provinces. These trends come as no surprise to David Rast. He's a psychology professor at the University of Alberta who studies leadership, social influences and group behaviour. He's also an American who has been living outside of the United States for the past 13 years. "Every time I go back to the states, I feel less and less like I'm an American and less and less like I belong there," he said. Rast has a trip planned to the U.S. this month and understands the mixed feelings many Canadian residents now have about travelling to a country widely seen, until recently, as a friend and ally. "I am also apprehensive about going to the U.S. and have thought about cancelling my trip, but it's been planned for quite a while, so we're just kind of continuing with it," he said. "But we have had some people who were going with us who have backed out." 'A lot of interesting dynamics' at play That dichotomy has played out in millions of Canadians' travel decisions this year and, statistically speaking, those in Alberta appear to have leaned more toward going than not going when compared with the rest of the country. We don't know exactly why, but Rast believes political viewpoints likely play a big role — as they do in so many aspects of our beliefs and decision-making. Other Albertans who have made their own travel decisions this year figured other factors are at play, as well. Alberta's oilpatch does have close ties to Texas, for instance, and business trips might be less likely to be cancelled than personal vacations. The geography of Alberta also means spur-of-the-moment trips to the United States are harder than they are in other parts of the country, and those trips are easier to cancel than long-planned vacations. Safety concerns also play a role, and those worries can be especially pronounced for those who don't follow binary gender norms. Then there's also the influence of old-fashioned peer pressure. "A lot of interesting dynamics are at play here," Rast said. "And the answer is far from straightforward at all, once we start getting into all the different politics, groups and subgroups, and then the international relations going on, as well." Booked in advance, but not booking again Greg Rairdan was among the Albertans who decided to go. But, he said, it came with some hesitation. The 52-year-old Edmonton resident actually made two recent trips to the U.S. this calendar year, both booked in the fall of 2024. Or, as he puts it, "before the inauguration, before the 51st-state stuff." The first trip was to Las Vegas with a group of guy friends for "some golf and hanging out." The second was a family trip to watch the Canadian men's soccer team play in the CONCACAF Nations League Finals in Inglewood, Calif. He said it crossed his mind to cancel the trips when Trump's tariff talk and annexation rhetoric heated up, but after thinking it through and discussing it with his fellow travellers, they decided to continue on with their plans. "It just didn't make any sense for us to cancel a non-refundable trip, burn all that money," he said. That said, he will think twice about booking future trips. "I think with United States trying to punish us economically, I don't think it makes sense for us to spend our hard-earned tourism dollars in the United States at this moment," Rairdan said. "And it seems like there are a lot of like-minded Canadians." That sense of national solidarity, he said, is palpable. And there's a degree of social pressure that comes along with it. "I think especially when the news cycle hit its peak, not going to the United States was being seen as a proxy for the Canadian patriotism," he said. "But, you know, I haven't really heard of anyone actually being really judgmental, like, 'That person is a bad person because they're going to the United States.'" Personal boycott, professional consequences Jennifer Annesley is among the Albertans who decided not to go. And, as a professional visual artist, it was a difficult decision. One of her paintings was accepted into the 158th International Exhibition of the American Watercolor Society, an honour that comes complete with an invitation to the Salmagundi Club in New York City, where the event is held. It's not the first time she's had a painting accepted into the annual exhibition, but it's the first time she's turned down the invitation — and the professional opportunities that come with attendance. She thought long and hard about her decision and ultimately chose to make "a personal boycott" due to "the tensions between the U.S. and Canada." "I wanted to make my own statement by not going and not travelling and not spending my time there," Annesley said. As time went on, however, she started to see other reasons for not crossing the border, including warnings about U.S. Border Patrol's ability and willingness to search people's personal electronic devices, and stories about international travellers being aggressively detained. "It sort of started out as protest and then ended up with being a bit fearful to go," she said. 'I certainly felt anxious' Those worries crossed Gavin Needham's mind, as well. The 29-year-old Edmontonian recently travelled to New York City on his way to board a cruise ship that would take him across the Atlantic Ocean. "On a personal level, I certainly felt anxious about the process, [and] if there would be any extra scrutiny at the [U.S.] border," he said from the ship, via a direct-message conversation, as he continued his vacation in Europe. However, he said the experience flying to New York via Toronto, where he did pre-clearance via the NEXUS program, all went as smoothly as it had in the past. He's planning one more trip to New York in the summer and another trip to Florida in the late fall. "They were all booked ahead of time with non-refundable deposits so cancelling would mean losing out on some money," he said. Needham wondered if Alberta's air-travel numbers, in particular, are affected by people in similar situations, with non-refundable U.S. trips booked months ahead of time. That might explain why February and March saw such small declines in air travel, while April's decline was significantly larger. Alberta-U.S. travel by land, meanwhile, has seen larger declines than by air. (But still not as large as in the rest of the country.) Needham notes Alberta's geography makes travel options to the U.S. "a lot more limited" than for British Columbians who can make relatively easy trips down to Washington state, or Ontarians and Quebecers who are close to major destinations in the northeast U.S. "So I think it might be easier for people to cancel 'easier' trips, but there's a lot more involved in U.S. travel from Alberta," he said. "I have made the decision, however, to not book any new trips going forward for 2026 and later, considering the situation." Gender and safety Ellen Forget lives in Calgary and is working on a PhD at the University of Toronto that focuses on braille and accessible book production. In the past, Forget has presented research at conferences organized by the Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing. But this year's conference is in Rochester, N.Y., and they decided not to go, in large part due to American laws and attitudes toward gender. "I can't justify spending money and supporting American tourism or just spending money in the U.S. in general, and I can't justify the risk," they said. For genderqueer people, Forget noted, concerns around safety extend beyond the border crossing. "I can appear femme to a lot of people, but I also have really short hair, and from behind could very easily be mistaken for male. And the American policies of who can use which bathroom and who can be in which space is very alarming to someone like me, who is non-binary and gender fluid, and doesn't really subscribe to gender norms," they said. "And the thought of possibly just needing to use the bathroom and being harassed for that or worse, being assaulted, because that has happened in many cases, means just the personal safety risk is not worth it for me." They said missing the conference will mean missing out on academic and professional opportunities, but it was the correct decision, for them. Forget has "no judgment" for people who make different decisions but isn't surprised Alberta-U.S. travel has seen smaller declines than the rest of Canada. "Alberta is largely conservative, which aligns with the current political state in the U.S.," they said. "So it is likely that fewer Albertans are concerned about the political state of the U.S. and still feel comfortable travelling there." How politics shape beliefs Rast, the American psychology professor now living in Canada, said politics and peer pressure play a big role when it comes to these kinds of decisions. "We're looking to other people around us to see how they're behaving, especially people that we might think of as being representative of our own group," he said. So when people with high levels of Canadian pride see other Canadians choosing not to travel to the U.S. based on that sense of pride, he said they're more likely to go along with the group and choose not to travel as well. Albertans, he noted, expressed some of the lowest levels of Canadian pride in recent polling, so it's not surprising Alberta-U.S. travel has seen smaller declines than in other parts of the country. Even concerns surrounding the safety of U.S. travel, he said, can be affected by political beliefs. "People view the world right away through their left and right partisan beliefs," he said. "And that's going to shape whether they view the U.S. as threatening at the moment." The same psychological effect might prompt Albertans who feel more provincial pride than national pride to actively travel to the U.S., due to the dynamics within their own social groups. "And so for them, instead of wanting to support Canada, they're possibly wanting to support the U.S., or show that they're actually different from the rest of Canada," Rast said. petition for the referendum for independence in Alberta."
CNN
24-05-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Harvard professor on Trump Administration barring enrollment of foreign students at university
Steven Pinker, Harvard University Professor of Psychology, says "The Trump administration is following the handbook of authoritarian regimes and dictatorships" by going after universities, law firms and media organizations that potentially oppose its policies.
CNN
24-05-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Harvard professor on Trump Administration barring enrollment of foreign students at university
Steven Pinker, Harvard University Professor of Psychology, says "The Trump administration is following the handbook of authoritarian regimes and dictatorships" by going after universities, law firms and media organizations that potentially oppose its policies.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Why So Many Marriages Fall Apart After the Kids Leave
No one tells you that 'empty nest' might also mean empty house, empty schedule—and, sometimes, empty marriage. For many couples, the departure of the last child marks not just a milestone, but a reckoning. Without the structure of school pickups, college prep, and daily distractions, some relationships are forced to look each other in the eye for the first time in years. And what they see isn't always love—it's distance. The kids leave. The silence grows. And suddenly, there's nowhere left to hide. Here's why so many marriages quietly unravel just when you'd think they'd be strongest. As highlighted in a study published by the National Center for Biotechnology Information, couples often experience changes in marital closeness and identity when transitioning to the empty nest phase. For years, 'Mom' and 'Dad' came before everything, including the couple underneath. Their roles were clear, their days were full, and their connection was often sidelined for survival. When the kids leave, those titles vanish, and what's left can feel like a void. Without the shared purpose of raising children, some couples feel unmoored, even invisible. Rebuilding an identity as partners, not parents, requires time and intentional effort. But many discover they've forgotten how to be a couple without an audience. What once brought them together is now gone, and nothing new has taken its place. It's not that the marriage broke—it just atrophied. When children are in the house, a lot of couples hit pause on the hard stuff. Big issues get shelved. Tensions get swallowed. The home becomes a stage for peace at all costs. But conflict doesn't disappear—it waits. And when the kids leave, all those quiet resentments come rushing to the surface, raw and unresolved. Couples suddenly face years of detours they never took. And without distraction, there's nowhere to turn but toward the mess they postponed. Research published in Developmental Psychology by Katz and Gottman (1993) explores how marital dynamics can lead couples to outsource their emotional lives to their children, with long-term consequences for family relationships. In many marriages, kids become the emotional center. They're the source of joy, intimacy, and even validation. One partner (or both) channels their energy into the children instead of into each other. It feels noble at the time—selfless, even. But the long-term cost is disconnection. When the children are no longer there to absorb all the emotional energy, a void is left behind. Partners often realize they haven't been emotionally present for each other in years. And the distance is too wide to cross overnight. Marriage isn't static. People change—new dreams, new disappointments, new versions of the self. The strongest couples learn how to grow alongside each other, not apart. But many are so focused on the family unit that they forget to nurture the one-on-one bond. The departure of children acts like a spotlight on that forgotten space. Suddenly, they're sitting across the dinner table with someone who feels like a stranger. Not because either person did something wrong, but because they stopped doing the work. Love isn't lost—it's just outdated. For years, routine carried them: soccer games, work commutes, family dinners, homework help. It felt like connection—but it was often logistics. The rhythm masked the absence of true intimacy. They weren't necessarily in love; they were in sync. According to an article on couples often mistake routine and shared daily activities for true intimacy, which can mask the absence of a deeper emotional connection. When that rhythm disappears, so does the illusion of closeness. With no schedule to follow, they realize how little they know each other. The marriage wasn't sustained by love—it was sustained by movement. And now that it's quiet, the silence is deafening. The empty nest doesn't just create space—it triggers reflection. For many, it marks the halfway point of life, and questions start to echo: Is this it? Am I happy? Do I still want this? The answers aren't always easy—or aligned. In a comprehensive review published by midlife is described as a time when many parents experience empty nest syndrome, which often triggers reflection on life satisfaction and personal identity. Some realize they stayed together for the kids. Others realize they don't recognize the person they've become inside the marriage. Midlife isn't a crisis—it's a confrontation. And sometimes the most honest thing a person can do is admit they've outgrown what once fit. When children dominate a household, physical affection can take a backseat. Touch becomes practical—hugs for the kids, a pat on the back, a quick kiss goodbye. Over time, physical intimacy fades, sometimes to the point of extinction. It's easy not to notice when everyone's busy. As noted in a study published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, affection deprivation—such as the decline in physical closeness and touch in relationships when children dominate family life—can lead to increased stress, loneliness, and depression over time. But when the kids are gone, the absence of physical closeness becomes undeniable. There's no longer a buffer between their bodies and their silence. Reigniting touch after years of absence feels foreign. And without it, many realize how long it's been since they felt truly desired. Many couples learn how to manage a household, not how to communicate as adults. They talk about schedules, bills, and school calendars—but not about their feelings, their fears, or what they need. That worked while life was noisy. But in quiet seasons, shallow communication doesn't cut it. Without kids to orbit, conversations dry up. Some couples feel like roommates—efficient, functional, emotionally distant. And without deeper dialogue, there's no intimacy to fall back on. They don't fight because they don't talk. Behind many marriages is an unspoken imbalance. One person carries the mental and emotional weight—remembering birthdays, smoothing over conflict, checking in on feelings. The other coasts, often unaware it's happening. This dynamic can hold for decades—until the emotional laborer burns out. The kids leave, and the person who's been holding everything together decides they're done. Done carrying the weight. Done fixing the disconnection. And without that invisible glue, the whole thing cracks. Whether for religious reasons, financial reasons, or cultural pressure, many couples stay because leaving feels unthinkable. The kids provide cover—a reason to endure. The hope is often: It'll get better once we have time again. But time doesn't always bring healing. When the last child leaves, obligation isn't enough. It becomes clear that what held them together was duty, not desire. And that's not a sustainable foundation for what's supposed to be the next chapter. Between bedtime routines and grocery runs, many couples forget how to simply have fun together. Shared joy becomes a distant memory, replaced by teamwork and task management. Once the house is quiet, they have time—but not the muscle memory—for lightness. And sitting across from each other at dinner feels more like a performance than a pleasure. Enjoyment isn't just a luxury—it's an essential relationship. But too often, it's neglected in the name of responsibility. When there's nothing left to manage, many couples realize they forgot how to laugh, flirt, or dream. And without that, the relationship starts to feel more like an arrangement than a connection. While the family stayed centered, their ambitions may have quietly drifted apart. One leaned into their job, the other sacrificed their career—or maybe both changed in ways the other never really noticed. Success in one area sometimes masks growing emotional distance. And when there's no longer a shared mission, the separation becomes impossible to ignore. It's not about blame—it's about misalignment. People evolve, and sometimes the person they become isn't the one their partner signed up to grow old with. When the kids are gone, they finally have the bandwidth to look at each other and ask, 'Do we even want the same life anymore?' Too often, the answer is no. It's easy to mistake longevity for intimacy. A 25-year marriage looks impressive, but inside, it might be emotionally starved. Stability can create a kind of complacency, where showing up becomes the only thing expected. But presence doesn't equal partnership. When the scaffolding of parenting falls away, many couples are left with just the shell. No rituals, no shared dreams, no emotional glue. They've lasted—but they haven't grown. And in the stillness, that becomes impossible to deny. Today, leaving a marriage in your 50s or 60s is no longer shocking—it's almost expected. The term 'gray divorce' exists for a reason, and for many, it's liberating. Once the kids are grown, some realize they stayed far longer than they wanted to. Now, they have freedom, perspective, and fewer reasons to keep performing. Society has shifted. Starting over isn't shameful—it's often seen as brave. And for people who sacrificed their own needs for decades, the post-kid chapter becomes a second chance. For some, leaving isn't failure—it's finally choosing themselves. In some marriages, the truth is quietly brutal: the emotional connection never ran deep. Parenting masked the gap. Daily life filled in the silence. And over time, they convinced themselves it was enough. But when the kids leave, the emptiness becomes too loud to ignore. What held them together wasn't love—it was shared logistics, external focus, and sheer momentum. And faced with the rest of their lives, many people finally stop pretending that's enough.
