Latest news with #humanbehavior
Fast Company
16-07-2025
- Health
- Fast Company
How to banish toxic positivity at work
Sure, we know that feelings are highly contagious, and being positive can help others around us to feel the same, but let's be honest for a moment: sometimes life isn't all rainbows. Some days aren't great, and sometimes positivity isn't the best way to handle it. And research confirms it: one 10-year study into using avoidance to cope—perhaps by pretending things are fine, rather than addressing when they aren't— finds that it can increase chronic, acute stress and be linked to long-term depressive symptoms. In my experience as an emotional intelligence and human behavior specialist, our workplaces are becoming more focused on employee wellbeing, but it's an easy way to compel us to fake optimism, regardless of the real circumstances at hand. In workplace cultures, toxic positivity compels people to remain optimistic or think positively regardless of the real circumstances—say, key clients lost, budgets and bonuses frozens, or team-wide layoffs. And it's pervasive: one survey by workplace blog Science of People finds that almost 68% of people had experienced toxic positivity in the last week. The fundamental basics of relationships between people is based on the ability to trust. Trust is created through being honest and transparent, being accountable and creditable, and being empathetic and vulnerable. It takes being real—and fake positivity isn't real. If I can see that your optimism is a put-on, how can I trust the other things you say or do? Do I feel safe to be real, or do I, too, need to fake positivity? When this occurs, it impacts every part of our workplace—from our culture, to our performance and our mental health. Ultimately it impacts the overall success of each person and in turn, their organization. Here are five steps to shut down toxic positivity in a workplace. Own the reality of the situation. The world is not perfect; we are not perfect. Things will go wrong, and we will get it wrong at times. The only thing we have control over in this world is how we choose to respond—and our response should be authentic and genuine. Respond appropriately to the workplace situation, at the right intensity, without the need for forced toxic positivity. Face emotions head-on. There is no such thing as a 'good' or 'bad' emotion, and while we tend to think positivity is the former, that isn't the case. We should be focusing on whether an emotion is appropriate for the situation, and whether the intensity that we are feeling the emotion is appropriate. We feel emotions for a reason. Acknowledge and understand what is driving an emotion so that it can be processed before we move on. Understand how the people around us are feeling. Our emotions are influential to the people around us, but people can spot an insincere emotion from far away. Faking an emotion is setting a standard in workplace environments of what is acceptable and what is not. Trust and respect won't be created when people are not being authentic or genuine. Ask the right questions, and answer questions asked. Communication is always key to the workplace environment, and the ability to communicate effectively directly influences our culture. When we are feeling any form of intensive emotion, we have something to say. Ask the right questions to better understand what is driving another person's emotions. Answer the questions they have, and provide the information they require to be able to move forward. Drive emotional intelligence. Realistically, we know that a great culture in a workplace is when all emotions are being displayed appropriately. In some situations, it may be optimism—and other times it might be sadness, anger, disappointment, fear, or frustration. Let's not judge someone else's emotion. Assess it, and do what it takes to ensure they are felt and processed before moving forward. 'The standard you walk past is the standard you accept,' Australian Lieutenant General David Morrison once said. Every person contributes to the culture of a workplace. By facing toxic positivity and choosing more effective communication, you can change yours.
Gizmodo
14-07-2025
- Science
- Gizmodo
Humans Are Starting to Talk More Like ChatGPT, Study Claims
For better or worse, the rise of ChatGPT as a writing tool, search engine, or conversational buddy has considerably changed how we communicate with each other and with technology. At the same time, ChatGPT's widespread use has also sparked numerous online debates about whether it's possible to spot AI-created content by looking at certain cues, like the em dash. But new research suggests that such AI cues might become increasingly harder to pick out—because we're starting to speak more like ChatGPT, and not the other way around. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Germany, found that in the 18 months since ChatGPT's release, so-called 'GPT words' noticeably increased in frequency among human users. Previous research had found that ChatGPT influenced written communication for humans, but the researchers were curious as to whether the proliferation of AI impacted how we spoke. For the study, the researchers uploaded millions of pages of e-mails, essays, academic papers, and news stories to ChatGPT, then prompted the AI to 'polish' the text. Then they identified several words that ChatGPT seemed to favor, such as 'delve,' 'realm,' or 'meticulous'—dubbing them 'GPT words.' Finally, they tracked the frequency of GPT words in over 360,000 YouTube videos and 771,000 podcast episodes from before and after ChatGPT's release. The paper, posted to the preprint server arXiv, has not yet been peer reviewed. Even with controls to account for synonyms or scripted content, the researchers found that indeed, GPT words have risen to prominence in spoken English. It appears that a cultural feedback loop of sorts has emerged between English-speaking humans and AI. 'The patterns that are stored in AI technology seem to be transmitting back to the human mind,' study co-author Levin Brinkmann told Scientific American. 'It's natural for humans to imitate one another, but we don't imitate everyone around us equally,' he added. 'We're more likely to copy what someone else is doing if we perceive them as being knowledgeable or important.' An increasing number of people are looking to AI as a cultural authority, wherein 'machines, originally trained on human data and subsequently exhibiting their own cultural traits, can, in turn, measurably reshape human culture,' the authors wrote in the study. ''Delve' is only the tip of the iceberg,' Brinkmann noted to the Verge. Other frequently used GPT words included 'underscore,' 'comprehend,' 'bolster,' 'boast,' 'swift,' 'inquiry,' 'meticulous,' and 'groundbreak.' The study offers some provocative food for thought, but there are some caveats worth noting. First, the researchers analyzed data from a specific set of GPT models: GPT-4, GPT-3.5-turbo, GPT-4-turbo, and GPT-4o. This anchors the study to these specific versions of ChatGPT. OpenAI will undoubtedly introduce new models over the coming months and years, and those upcoming versions are likely to exhibit new forms of language use and word preference. As a result, this study could become dated rather quickly. It's also not clear if ChatGPT truly has a significant influence on more casual forms of verbal language, especially given that the researchers pulled a considerable amount of data from academic sources. What's more, language and word use evolve over time owing to a wide variety of factors; while ChatGPT may be contributing in some small way to changes in the words we use, it's important to point out the many other sources in society and culture that contribute to language shift. AI is entering our subconscious, informing the linguistic patterns that allow us to communicate with one another. What that means for us humans, we'll have to wait to see. But in the meantime, experts caution that it'd be smart for us to keep a close eye on AI's influence on culture, communication, and beyond.
Forbes
08-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
How To Get Hired If AI Predicts Human Behavior In The Job Interview
How To Get Hired If AI Predicts Human Behavior In The Job Interview Not only can AI figure out what you're thinking, it can now predict what decision you'll make next based on patterns in human behavior. That has huge consequences for hiring. Most people already assume that AI is being used to screen resumes, but many do not realize they may soon be speaking to AI during the actual interview. In some cases, that is already happening. If you're applying for a job and the company is using AI to evaluate you, they may already have a pretty accurate idea of how you'll perform under pressure, how you'll respond to a challenge, or whether you'll fit their culture, before you even open your mouth. Two recent studies show just how far this has come. And if you're looking for a job, you need to know what AI knows about you and how to prepare. How AI Can Predict Human Behavior Better Than Psychology Theories How AI Can Predict Human Behavior Better Than Psychology Theories The first study introduced an AI model called Centaur. It was trained on 10 million human choices from over 160 psychology experiments. The researchers wanted to see if AI could understand patterns in how people make decisions. What surprised them was that the AI did not just do a good job at predicting human choices. It actually outperformed 31 out of 32 of the top psychological theories. These were not just simple choices either. The model recognized patterns in decisions involving fairness, risk, cooperation, and attention which are the same types of decisions we make during job interviews and on the job. That matters, because our choices might feel spontaneous, but they often follow patterns we do not even notice. When AI has enough data, it can recognize and predict those choices with surprising accuracy. As it got better, the researchers noticed that the way the AI organized information even started to look like how our brains process things. That shows how far these tools are going, and why we need to think more carefully about how they are being used in hiring. How AI Tracks Human Behavior Through Attention And Memory How AI Tracks Human Behavior Through Attention And Memory Another recent study out of MIT took a different approach but arrived at a similar conclusion: our behavior is often more predictable than we think. This research focused on how people pay attention in complex situations. The AI model learned what people remembered and what they ignored. It identified patterns in memory and focus. In a job interview, that matters. If a machine knows how you process information, it can anticipate how you'll respond under pressure. That has the potential of giving it an advantage in evaluating your potential before you've finished your first answer. How Human Behavior Gets Filtered Through AI In Interviews How Human Behavior Gets Filtered Through AI In Interviews Many companies have used one-way video interviews where instead of speaking to a person, you just speak to a camera. A family member of mine went through this kind of interview. He had been the top salesperson at his last company. He was used to having human interaction. Interviewing with a camera threw him off and he did not get the job. He needed a human being to play off of in the interview process. AI is the newer version of the old video interview. Now AI in interviews can track everything from your tone of voice to facial expressions and word choice. They compare you to people who were hired in the past. If you do not match the pattern, the system might screen you out before a person ever sees your resume. Even if you get through the initial resume screen, you might need to interview with AI later. How Companies Are Using AI To Analyze Human Behavior Within The Actual Interview How Companies Are Using AI To Analyze Human Behavior Within The Actual Interview I had the chance to interview Dr. Paul Ekman, known as the world's top deception detection expert and a pioneer in facial expression research. If you ever saw the television show, Lie to Me, that was based on his research. His work showed that emotions like anger, fear, joy, and sadness appear on our faces in the same way across cultures. What I found most interesting was that these expressions were even made by people who were born blind. That research helped shape emotional recognition tools now built into hiring platforms. Newer platforms, like those from micro1, a startup that offers AI-powered recruitment for technical roles, are using AI avatars as interviewers, with thousands of engineers going through interviews each month without speaking to a human. The system asks questions, records responses, and analyzes tone, word choice, and pacing in real time. Ekman always cautioned against overinterpreting cues, and his methods are not used in court to decide if someone is lying. But AI is now doing something very similar in hiring. A pause in your answer could be interpreted as dishonesty, or a calm tone might be seen as lack of confidence, even though these systems are still learning to understand natural behavior. Some candidates described the experience as rigid, missed the chance to clarify unclear questions, and compared it to talking with HAL 9000 from the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. How Curiosity Can Help You Shift Your Human Behavior How Curiosity Can Help You Shift Your Human Behavior To help your best qualities come through in the interview, it is important to recognize the value of being curious. Curiosity can be impacted by several factors and that can get in the way of performing well when AI is evaluating us. Fear can make us tighten up in interviews. If you're worried about being judged by a machine, your responses can become less natural. Learning how to manage that fear can help you appear more confident and present, which AI models often reward. Assumptions can trip us up. My family member assumed he was just talking to a camera. He should have realized that he was really talking to a human being that would watch the video. It helps to prepare for AI just like you would a live conversation. Practice being expressive, clear, and engaging on camera. Technology feels invisible in many of these interviews. But it is shaping outcomes behind the scenes. When you understand how the tech works, you can adjust how you present yourself. For example, if AI is trained to think like people, then interviewees need to think of it as a person. The problem is knowing what is in the algorithm that companies have set for their AI. Environment plays a big role too. If you have been around individuals who have limited your curiosity, that will play a part in how you come across in the interview. Recognizing who has told you to act a certain way or say a certain thing can help you be yourself and show your natural curiosity. How To Use Curiosity To Guide Your Human Behavior In Interviews How To Use Curiosity To Guide Your Human Behavior In Interviews If there is no human in the interview, curiosity helps you ask better questions before and after the interview. Ask what kind of system the company uses. Ask how they define success in the role. Ask what traits are most valued. Every question you ask gives you more clarity. Stay open to learning. If AI models are being used to evaluate attention or tone, practice those skills. Record yourself and watch how you come across. Be intentional about the message you send, verbally and non-verbally. How Companies Can Use Human Behavior Insights Without Limiting Potential How Companies Can Use Human Behavior Insights Without Limiting Potential AI can reveal patterns in human behavior, but it can also lock people into categories. If companies rely only on past data, they risk missing out on someone who thinks differently or learns faster than expected. Look for signals that show someone is growing, learning, and experimenting. Those traits might not show up clearly in a resume or video analysis, but they often show up in follow-up conversations and questions candidates ask. Why Human Behavior Is Still More Than A Pattern Why Human Behavior Is Still More Than A Pattern Human behavior might be trackable, but that does not mean it is fixed. People can change by improving how they respond under pressure, learning how to communicate better, and adjusting habits. AI cannot always account for that. Being aware of what influences your decisions gives you a better shot at showing your full potential. This is where curiosity pays off. Stay curious about how you come across, how AI might be evaluating you, and how to keep improving can help you stand out in a world where machines are watching.
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
The Saturday Spread: Statistical Signals Flash Green for CMG, TMUS and VALE
Here's a question you may have wondered about: if meteorologists frequently provide five-day weather forecasts, how come market analysts (within reason) don't do the same for the equities sector? Granted, human behavior can be irrational at times and black swan events by nature are unpredictable. However, on the whole, humans generally think in predictable manners. At first glance, the problem should be easy to address. When forecasting weather, meteorologists utilize ensemble models, historical simulations and probability distributions. By converting the applications toward the equities space, market analysts can assess the three main factors that meteorologists use for the weather: How to Make a 2.0% Yield with UBER Over the Next Month This Week's Market Momentum: 3 Exceptionally Active Options The Saturday Spread: Statistical Signals Flash Green for CMG, TMUS and VALE Markets move fast. Keep up by reading our FREE midday Barchart Brief newsletter for exclusive charts, analysis, and headlines. Define what event they're modeling for Determine when said event might occur. Calculate how likely the event will materialize based on past analogs. Unfortunately, both fundamental and technical analysis runs into a major structural wall when addressing past analogs. In both cases, the measurement metric is non-stationary; that is, the metric changes (often wildly) across time and context. For example, the share price for a hot growth stock may be vastly different from what it was ten years ago and the same can be said about its valuation ratio. With such discrepancies, past analogs are effectively impossible to calculate — unless you impose stationarity on the target dataset. This is the core reason why I've been focused on market breadth, which are sequences of accumulative and distributive sessions. Market breadth is a representation of demand and demand is a binary construct — it's either happening or it's not. As such, it's easily categorizable and quantifiable, thus facilitating probabilistic analysis. Just as importantly, market breadth sequences are falsifiable. Anyone can peer review my work and arrive at the same conclusions. The same cannot be said for certain methodologies, such as interpretive chart patterns in technical analysis. Because of the falsifiability of demand profiles, I'm able to filter out statistically intriguing ideas among hundreds of stocks. Below are three names to watch closely this week. With the closing bell on Friday, Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) ended the session up nearly 2%. For the week, the security gained just under 5%, potentially reflecting a sentiment shift. It would be a welcome change of pace. Since the beginning of the year, CMG stock has dropped 12.47%. However, the most intriguing development in my opinion is CMG's quantitative signal. In the past two months, the security printed a 4-6-U sequence: four up weeks, six down weeks, with a net positive trajectory across the 10-week period. This is a rare pattern, materializing only 27 times over the trailing decade. And in 66.67% of cases, the following week's price action results in upside, with a median return of 3.05%. Two circumstances shine a bright light on the above setup. First, CMG stock seems to respond well to positive momentum. While the balance of distributive sessions was greater in the past 10 weeks, the overall trajectory was still northward — and that generally tends to be a bullish sign. Second, as a baseline, the chance that CMG stock will be profitable over any given week is 51.47%. Therefore, long-side speculators are incentivized to consider a debit-based strategy. Aggressive traders may consider the 53/55 bull call spread expiring July 11. Using data from Barchart Premier, the call spread screener effectively identifies the 53/55 spread as arguably the most compelling idea from a risk-reward standpoint. Traders can lower the probabilistic risk to the 51/54 spread; however, doing so dramatically lowers the payout. Right now, T-Mobile US (TMUS) stands at an awkward juncture. TMUS stock started the year auspiciously, at one point gaining about 24% on a year-to-date basis. Since early March, however, the security hasn't looked appetizing, losing roughly 19% of equity value. Still, a quantitative signal suggests that a reversal may be in order. In the past two months, TMUS stock printed a 4-6-D sequence: four up weeks, six down weeks, with a net negative trajectory across the 10-week period. At first glance, the balance of distributive sessions outnumbering accumulative may not seem like a good sign. Nevertheless, in 62% of cases, the following week's price action results in upside, with a median return of 2.48%. On Friday, TMUS stock closed at $221.52. If the implications of the aforementioned sequence pan out as projected, the equity could reach over $227 quite quickly. Should the bulls maintain control of the market, they could drive the price above the $230 level over the next few weeks based on past empirical analogs. Those interested in taking a shot may consider the 220/230 bull call spread expiring July 18. This trade gives you about four weeks for the above thesis to pan out. If TMUS stock rises through the short strike price ($230) at expiration, the maximum payout for this trade clocks in at over 105%. As a metals and mining company, Vale (VALE) commands significant relevance. At the same time, global economic uncertainty — exacerbated by ideological paradigm shifts and now a geopolitical crisis — fundamentally clouds the narrative. On the technical front, VALE stock has gained just over 2% YTD, with the security struggling for traction since early April. Still, those who understand the ebb and flow of the financial markets may be enticed with the mining enterprise. Quantitatively, in the past two months, VALE stock has printed a 3-7-D sequence: three up weeks, seven down weeks, with a negative trajectory across the period. Ordinarily, the balance of distributive sessions grossly outweighing accumulative is a cause for concern. For VALE, it's an invitation to put it on one's radar. In 60.47% of cases when the 3-7-D sequence flashes, the following week's price action results in upside, with a median return of 2.79%. What makes this setup all the more enticing is that, as a baseline, the chance that a long position in VALE stock will rise over any given week is only 49.91%. Statistically, VALE suffers from a slight negative bias. However, the aforementioned sequence tilts the odds in favor of the bullish speculator. Further, should the bulls maintain control, VALE could move toward the $9.50 level over the next few weeks. With the market intelligence above, traders may consider the 9.00/9.50 bull call spread expiring July 11. While there are certainly call spreads with far bigger payouts, the 9.00/9.50 is arguably the most realistic transaction. On the date of publication, Josh Enomoto did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on 登入存取你的投資組合
Wall Street Journal
20-06-2025
- Science
- Wall Street Journal
When AI Creatures Ask ‘Why Me?'
In my algorithm, as readers will have noticed, exaggerated fear of artificial intelligence is a mask for what really distresses us, the thought that we are algorithms too. We think we're so smart and free, but we are apes who wear clothes. Our thoughts and actions have their origins in the animal mess. They aren't our own creations.
