Tag: Educational Psychology

Female leadership affects wage-gap and firm performance

A new paper in The Economic Journal, published by Oxford University Press, finds that female executives decrease the wage-gap for women at the top of a firm while widening it at the bottom. This study also finds that the lack of women at the executive level has a negative impact on firm performance, especially in

School savings accounts can dry up in ‘financial deserts’: College savings programs are less effective in neighborhoods lacking traditional banks, professor says

Children’s savings accounts (CSAs), offered by elementary schools throughout San Francisco and in schools across the nation, were introduced to boost college-going rates, limit student debt and foster equal opportunity for low-income children. However, San Francisco State University Assistant Professor of Management Ian Dunham finds that geography — particularly in neighborhoods that lack brick-and-mortar banks

What makes memories stronger? Researchers shed new light on how the brain solidifies important memories

A team of scientists at NeuroElectronics Research Flanders (NERF- empowered by imec, KU Leuven and VIB) found that highly demanding and rewarding experiences result in stronger memories. By studying navigation in rats, the researchers traced back the mechanism behind this selective memory enhancement to so-called replay processes in the hippocampus, the memory-processing center of the

Blue-enriched white light to wake you up in the morning

Here is a good news for those of who have difficulty with morning alertness. A KAIST research team proposed that a blue-enriched LED light can effectively help people overcome morning drowsiness. This study will provide the basis for major changes in future lighting strategies and thereby help create better indoor environments. Considerable research has been

Mandarin Chinese could help us understand how infants learn English

Infants may be more sensitive to non-native speech sounds than previously thought, according to a study published in the Journal of Memory and Language. The findings shed light on the way babies begin to understand language. The study, coauthored by Jessica Hay, an associate professor in the University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s Department of Psychology, and

More is better when coordinating with others

Researchers at Tokyo Institute of Technology, Imperial College London and the University of Tokyo have demonstrated that physical coordination is more beneficial in larger groups. The researchers used robotic interfaces to test coordination in groups of two, three and four partners, and found that performance was improving with every additional group member. The researchers believe

When the insurance company monitors your driving in real time does it help? New research finds that it helps on a number of levels, from safety to consumer cost

The traditional model for setting auto insurance premiums has been to base rates on the motorist’s driving history, age, gender and even marital status (in some states). Thanks to new technological options, insurance companies and motorists have started to work together to give the insurance companies access to better data on an individual driver’s risk

Does being bilingual make children more focused? Study says no

Bilingual children do not have more advantages than monolingual children when it comes to executive function, which includes remembering instructions, controlling responses, and shifting swiftly between tasks, according to a new study published in PLOS One. The study, “No evidence for effects of Turkish immigrant children’s bilingualism on executive functions,” was coauthored by two UT

Helping anxious students excel on science exams: A 10-minute mental exercise helps improve lower-income students’ STEM exam scores

A new study reveals that helping lower-income high school freshman to regulate their test-taking anxiety can cut their biology course failure rates in half. The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and conducted by Barnard College President Sian Leah Beilock and her research team found that brief pre-exam de-stressing strategies could

Scientists opening up access to science through DIY equipment

Scientists at the University of Sussex have developed a piece of hardware to demonstrate how our brains function, as part of a growing range of equipment which uses DIY and 3D printable models to open up access to science education. Professor of Neuroscience, Tom Baden, has been working with colleagues to build Spikeling; a piece

‘Football vision’ as important as ball skills, experts reveal: Young footballers would benefit from more time learning to read the field — and less on ball skills

Young footballers would become better players if coaches spent more time training them to scan the field and less on focusing on the ball. New research by sports experts at the universities of Chichester, Portsmouth, and Limerick suggests reading the game should be taught to players from a young age, in tandem with ball skills,

Does it matter where students sit in lecture halls?

Lectures are a staple of higher education, and understanding how students interact and learn within the lecture theatre environment is central to successful learning. In a new study published in FEBS Open Bio, researchers examined students’ reasons for choosing particular seats in a lecture hall, and investigated how seating positions correlate with student performance. Many

Vulnerable youth stress the importance of influential adults in their school lives: How systems to address stressors such as maltreatment and homelessness affect education

Kids who faced daunting barriers to success in the classroom had a clear message for University at Buffalo researchers who asked them as young adults to look back on their experiences with maltreatment, homelessness and their time in school: Adults can do better. “It’s as though they’re asking us as adults not to give up

Roles of emotional support animals examined: Beyond airlines, colleges and courts struggle to understand need, effects, researchers say

Airlines are not the only organizations grappling with the complexities surrounding emotional support animals. Colleges and courts are also questioning the need for these animals and the effects they may have on students and juries, respectively, according to research presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association. The recent, rapid rise of emotional