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Facebook calls links to depression inconclusive. These researchers disagree

Facebook calls links to depression inconclusive. These researchers disagree

Melissa Hunt of the School of Arts & Sciences questioned Facebook’s argument that the poor mental health outcomes tied to use of their platform can be mitigated with self-discipline. “All of the things that would contribute to these platforms being healthier for people to use, which is basically spend less time, don't follow strangers, don't spend time passively scrolling through this random feed that's being suggested to you," Hunt says. "That completely undermines their whole business model."

What happens in the brain when we imagine the future?
A composite image that supposed to be looking inside the mind of the person pictured. In the mind it shows blue and purple coloration, with specks of light breaking through.

What happens in the brain when we imagine the future?

Research from neuroscientist Joseph Kable finds that two sub-networks are at work, one focused on creating the new event, another on evaluating whether that event is positive or negative.

Michele W. Berger

A more effective at-home treatment for IBS
A person wearing a black dress with gold intertwining circles, a black sweater, glasses and gold earrings.

Melissa G. Hunt is the associate director of clinical training in the Department of Psychology in the School of Arts & Sciences. She is also author of the book “Reclaim Your Life from IBS: A Scientifically Proven Plan for Relief without Restrictive Diets.”

A more effective at-home treatment for IBS

In a randomized control trial, researchers found that after eight weeks, participants with irritable bowel syndrome who used an app focused on cognitive behavioral therapy experienced better health-related quality of life, fewer GI symptoms, and less anxiety.

Michele W. Berger

Anxious about post-vaccine travels? You’re not alone, according to mental health pros

Anxious about post-vaccine travels? You’re not alone, according to mental health pros

Lily Brown of the Perelman School of Medicine spoke about travel-related anxiety among vaccinated people resuming normal activities. “If this anxiety or shame is telling you to hide or to avoid people, practice slowly doing the opposite of that,” she advised. “The negative emotion will correct itself. But you do need to give yourself enough time to practice.”

A new theory for what’s happening in the brain when something looks familiar
A black-and-white illustration with many lines and circles and a person sitting in the middle.

How can the brain distinguish between something new and something familiar? Research from the Visual Memory Lab led by Nicole Rust has a new theory, replacing one long-held by the field. (Image: Julia Kuhl)

A new theory for what’s happening in the brain when something looks familiar

This novel concept from the lab of neuroscientist Nicole Rust brings the field one step closer to understanding how memory functions. Long-term, it could have implications for treating memory-impairing diseases like Alzheimer’s.

Michele W. Berger

Looking towards the future through an interdisciplinary lens
a portrait of Yasmina Al Ghadban

Looking towards the future through an interdisciplinary lens

Senior Yasmina Al Ghadban was able to connect her undergraduate education in bioengineering and psychology with her passion for public health through teaching, research, and extracurricular activities.

Erica K. Brockmeier

Zoom burnout is real, and it’s worse for women

Zoom burnout is real, and it’s worse for women

Emily Falk of the Annenberg School for Communication said the results of a recent Stanford study, which found women scored higher than men on all types of fatigue associated with video calls, were unsurprising but that Zoom itself may not be fully responsible for burnout. “It’s correlational data, and there could be other potential variables at play here,” she said. “When we’re feeling exhausted right now, how full is our emotional or mental tank to begin with?”

How do natural disasters shape the behavior and social networks of rhesus macaques?
A pair of tannish colored monkeys. One is laying on the ground covered with leaves and rocks and sticks. The other is grooming the one laying down.

A team of researchers led by Penn neuroscientist Michael Platt had been studying a colony of rhesus macaques on Cayo Santiago, a small Puerto Rican island, for a decade when Hurricane Maria hit. The island had been devastated. A massive effort by the team on the ground allowed the work to get back up and running, putting the researchers in a unique position to study how the monkeys’ behavior may have changed in response to an acute natural disaster. (Image: Lauren Brent)

How do natural disasters shape the behavior and social networks of rhesus macaques?

A team of researchers from Penn, the University of Exeter, and elsewhere found that after Hurricane Maria monkeys on the devastated island of Cayo Santiago formed more friendships and became more tolerant of each other, despite fewer resources.

Michele W. Berger

The path to deeper connections, even amidst a pandemic
Headshots of two people. On the left is a person with glasses wearing a blazer, white shirt and blue tie. On the right is a person in a black blazer, black-and-white blouse and visible necklace. Both are smiling.

Edward Brodkin is co-director of the Autism Spectrum Program of Excellence, director of the Adult Autism Spectrum Program, and an associate professor of psychiatry at the Perelman School of Medicine. Penn alumna Ashley Pallathra is a clinical researcher and therapist pursuing her Ph.D. at The Catholic University of America. They co-wrote “Missing Each Other.” (Images: Christopher Descano)

The path to deeper connections, even amidst a pandemic

A new book from Penn’s Edward Brodkin and psychology doctoral candidate Ashley Pallathra focuses on the science and practice of attunement, the process by which people can most effectively connect to themselves and others.

Michele W. Berger

‘It’s OK to not be OK’: For clients’ mental health, and their own, therapists managed intense new demands

‘It’s OK to not be OK’: For clients’ mental health, and their own, therapists managed intense new demands

Ariane Thomas of the Graduate School of Education spoke about the challenges of being a mental health professional over the last year. “The stressors and the symptoms that people are experiencing are exacerbated by the pandemic, the racial unrest, the intensity of the election, and the way the election dragged on, and the fallout since the election, the attack on voting rights,” she said. “It feels like it hasn’t quite let up. And as a result, neither has the request for support.”