Jacob Sellers, Han Zhang, John Jonides, Taraz G Lee
{"title":"Does Global Slowing Explain Age Effects in Inhibitory Control?","authors":"Jacob Sellers, Han Zhang, John Jonides, Taraz G Lee","doi":"10.1177/09567976261479660","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976261479660","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>A long-standing debate in the study of cognitive aging centers around the issue of whether aging results in a selective deficit in inhibitory control beyond general slowing of cognitive processing. Previous studies have obtained mixed findings, in part because the typical free-response-time paradigm lacks the specificity required to disentangle component processes underlying inhibitory control. Here, we apply a forced-response paradigm and computational model to test whether aging results in overall speed differences or a selective deficit in inhibitory control. Across two experiments, over 200 older adults and younger adults completed a forced-response arrow-flanker task. We found strong evidence that older adults demonstrate a global slowing of processing without any selective deficit in inhibitory control in this task. Furthermore, we demonstrate that global slowing is sufficient to explain the mixed findings in previous free-response-time studies. Overall, these results argue against a selective inhibitory-control deficit in older adults.</p>","PeriodicalId":20745,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Science","volume":" ","pages":"9567976261479660"},"PeriodicalIF":5.4,"publicationDate":"2026-10-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149184079","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Artists Can Design Memory, and AI Can Predict It.","authors":"Trent M Davis, Yifei E Chen, Wilma A Bainbridge","doi":"10.1177/09567976261483544","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976261483544","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Can artists deliberately design artworks to be remembered-or forgotten? Across three experiments, we tested whether visual-memory outcomes can be shaped through artistic design and how they are predicted by artists, laypeople, and artificial intelligence. We launched a nationwide art contest in which artists submitted works intended to be memorable or forgettable. Using recognition tasks with adults based in the United States (119 from Amazon Mechanical Turk, 892 from Prolific, and 62 visitors from a Chicago gallery), we found that artists achieved their intended memory outcomes. However, their success was asymmetric: Memorability was more readily increased than reduced. A neural network, ResMem, consistently outperformed human observers and artists in predicting which artworks would be remembered. Data-driven analyses identified psychologically interpretable features that explained nearly half the variance in memory and aligned with ResMem's predictions, but not with human judgments. Together, findings suggest that visual memorability can be engineered by humans, though asymmetrically, and is better captured by computational models.</p>","PeriodicalId":20745,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Science","volume":" ","pages":"9567976261483544"},"PeriodicalIF":5.4,"publicationDate":"2026-10-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149184054","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Camryn N Yuen, Daniel M Bernstein, Andrew M Smith, Rebecca C Ying, Ryan J Fitzgerald
{"title":"Face-Matching Lineups: A Method to Control Mistaken Identifications in Video Evidence.","authors":"Camryn N Yuen, Daniel M Bernstein, Andrew M Smith, Rebecca C Ying, Ryan J Fitzgerald","doi":"10.1177/09567976261487962","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976261487962","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>When crime is caught on video, suspects can be identified by matching their faces to the perpetrator in the footage. However, errors in face-matching decisions have led to wrongful arrests. We tested face-matching in a nonprofessional student sample from a Canadian university (<i>N</i> = 905) with one-to-one comparisons and lineups. On the basis of findings in the eyewitness identification literature, we hypothesized that if face-matching lineups were fair and included known-innocent fillers (i.e., nonsuspects), they would control the error rate on trials with innocent suspects and increase the accuracy of suspect \"match\" responses. This hypothesis was supported. However, the accuracy of suspect-nonmatch responses was greater for one-to-one comparisons than for lineups. Additionally, we found that applying wisdom-of-crowd approaches to multiple independent decisions could eliminate errors in both match and nonmatch responses. Whether to control face-matching errors with lineups, with the wisdom-of-crowds, or with both depends on practical considerations.</p>","PeriodicalId":20745,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Science","volume":" ","pages":"9567976261487962"},"PeriodicalIF":5.4,"publicationDate":"2026-10-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149128343","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Commentary on Alister et al. (2025): Individual Differences or Unsystematic Noise?","authors":"Peter Shepherdson","doi":"10.1177/09567976261485960","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976261485960","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Alister et al. (2025) reported individual differences in the extent to which people find source-dependent and source-independent claims persuasive, but an exploratory analysis showed no discernible relationship between these individual differences and demographic variables such as age, education, politics, and social-media use. Here I show through simulations that the individual-difference patterns Alister et al. identified are largely consistent with random across-trial variation in the absence of underlying differences between individuals. This casts doubt on the strength of their evidence for individual differences and provides one plausible account of why their exploratory analyses did not yield systematic relationships.</p>","PeriodicalId":20745,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Science","volume":" ","pages":"9567976261485960"},"PeriodicalIF":5.4,"publicationDate":"2026-10-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149128393","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
J Kathy Xie, Avshalom Caspi, Kathleen Mullan Harris, Allison E Aiello, HonaLee Harrington, Renate Houts, Christopher Kositzke, Daniel W Belsky, Laurel Raffington, Jay Belsky, Sandhya Ramrakha, Reremoana F Theodore, Terrie E Moffitt
{"title":"Do Children Who Develop Faster Go on to Age Faster in Midlife?","authors":"J Kathy Xie, Avshalom Caspi, Kathleen Mullan Harris, Allison E Aiello, HonaLee Harrington, Renate Houts, Christopher Kositzke, Daniel W Belsky, Laurel Raffington, Jay Belsky, Sandhya Ramrakha, Reremoana F Theodore, Terrie E Moffitt","doi":"10.1177/09567976261483545","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/09567976261483545","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>We quantified the association between rate of child development and pace of midlife aging in the Dunedin Study and the Add Health Study. Physical development was quantified in Dunedin participants (<i>N</i> = 1,037; age 45) using a composite comprised of (1) birth weight for gestational age, (2) toddler weight gain, (3) timing of behavioral milestones, (4) adiposity-rebound age, (5) timing of adolescent growth spurt, and (6) tempo of adolescent growth spurt. Social development was quantified using the Vineland Social Maturity Scale. Multi-organ-system (cardiovascular, metabolic, renal, immune, dental, pulmonary) longitudinal biological aging was used as the adult outcome. Fast physical development in childhood was associated with faster midlife aging. This was replicated in Add Health (<i>N</i> = 1,537; age range = 33-44 years), where girls who menstruated earlier had faster midlife aging. By contrast, faster social development in childhood was associated with slower midlife aging. Findings contribute initial empirical evidence characterizing the link between child-development rate and adult aging in humans.</p>","PeriodicalId":20745,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Science","volume":" ","pages":"9567976261483545"},"PeriodicalIF":5.4,"publicationDate":"2026-10-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149128403","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Psychological SciencePub Date : 2026-10-01Epub Date: 2026-09-23DOI: 10.1177/09567976261479675
Shuming Fan, Oliver P John, Filip De Fruyt
{"title":"Disillusionment With Meritocracy During the Transition to Adulthood: Longitudinal Change in Belief Systems and Depression in China.","authors":"Shuming Fan, Oliver P John, Filip De Fruyt","doi":"10.1177/09567976261479675","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09567976261479675","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p><i>Meritocracy</i>-the belief that individual effort rather than structural advantages drives success-has long shaped societal narratives but now faces growing skepticism. Using four waves of China Family Panel Studies, we examined changes in meritocratic and nonmeritocratic beliefs among 524 participants from early adolescence (ages 10-13 in 2012) to emerging adulthood (ages 18-21 in 2020) and assessed their concurrent associations with depression trajectories. Meritocratic beliefs declined significantly in both college (<i>d</i> = -0.56) and noncollege (<i>d</i> = -0.30) groups. Only college students increased in nonmeritocratic beliefs (<i>d</i> = 0.72), and these changes were associated with steeper increases in depression. College students' recognition of structural barriers to success is associated with heightened psychological costs, although causality cannot be inferred.</p>","PeriodicalId":20745,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Science","volume":" ","pages":"671-684"},"PeriodicalIF":5.4,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149031288","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Psychological SciencePub Date : 2026-10-01Epub Date: 2026-08-28DOI: 10.1177/09567976261471405
Zhang Chen, Senne Braem
{"title":"Action Framing Modulates the Pavlovian Bias in Go and No-Go Learning.","authors":"Zhang Chen, Senne Braem","doi":"10.1177/09567976261471405","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09567976261471405","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Reward- and punishment-associated (i.e., Pavlovian) cues can trigger specific responses that interfere with learning appropriate actions. Prior work has shown that reward impedes the learning of \"no-go\" responses, and punishment impedes the learning of \"go\" responses. This <i>Pavlovian bias</i> is theorized to arise at the motor level and may reflect a rigid coupling between reward and action activation and between punishment and action suppression. Contrary to this view, across two experiments testing adults (one preregistered, total <i>N</i> = 370), using behavioral analyses and computational modeling, we show that action framing strongly modulates Pavlovian bias. When go was framed as approach and no-go as avoidance, we replicated the typical asymmetry in learning. However, when go was framed as avoidance and no-go as approach, this Pavlovian bias disappeared in choice and was attenuated in response times. Pavlovian bias thus operates partly on a semantic level and is more flexible than often theorized.</p>","PeriodicalId":20745,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Science","volume":" ","pages":"721-744"},"PeriodicalIF":5.4,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148851424","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Psychological SciencePub Date : 2026-10-01Epub Date: 2026-09-22DOI: 10.1177/09567976261470401
Argaman Bell Meir, Liron Amihai, Daniel Toledano, Inbal Ravreby, Yaara Yeshurun
{"title":"Better Together? Facial Expressions as a Mechanism Shaping Enjoyment During Shared Experience.","authors":"Argaman Bell Meir, Liron Amihai, Daniel Toledano, Inbal Ravreby, Yaara Yeshurun","doi":"10.1177/09567976261470401","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09567976261470401","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>We explored the impact of shared experiences on enjoyment, focusing on the role of facial expressions. Participants (<i>N</i> = 190, aged 18-35, recruited in Israel) listened to humorous audio clips with a friend or alone, while their facial expressions were recorded via Zoom. Our primary analysis showed that friend presence influenced enjoyment in a content-dependent way, enhancing enjoyment for knock-knock jokes and reducing it for stand-up. Across both types of humor, friend presence amplified the intensity of happy facial expressions. Complementing these findings, a post hoc mediation analysis revealed that these happy expressions partially accounted for shared experiences' effect on enjoyment, suggesting they are a key mechanism linking social context to affective responses. Friends also exhibited facial-expression synchronization, reflecting communicative responsiveness to one another. Notably, these effects were reduced when participants could not see each other. These findings suggest that facial expressions actively shape enjoyment during shared experiences, offering insight into how people connect and experience the world together.</p>","PeriodicalId":20745,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Science","volume":" ","pages":"705-720"},"PeriodicalIF":5.4,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13646512/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149025935","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Psychological SciencePub Date : 2026-10-01Epub Date: 2026-09-23DOI: 10.1177/09567976261476962
Amanda J Wright, Peter Haehner, Rosalie Andrae, Till Lubczyk, Christopher J Hopwood, Wiebke Bleidorn
{"title":"Effects of a Theory-Based Smartphone Intervention to Decrease Neuroticism in the General Public.","authors":"Amanda J Wright, Peter Haehner, Rosalie Andrae, Till Lubczyk, Christopher J Hopwood, Wiebke Bleidorn","doi":"10.1177/09567976261476962","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09567976261476962","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Many people wish to be less neurotic, and such decreases could have far-reaching benefits, but evidence on nonclinical interventions and change mechanisms is limited. Using a German-speaking, adult sample (<i>N</i> = 446), we conducted a 6-week, smartphone-based randomized controlled intervention to test effects of theory-based strategies targeting different neuroticism levels and aspects. Across groups, there were significant self-report effects (<i>d</i><sub>effect</sub> = -0.22 to -0.37) that persisted through a 2-month follow-up (<i>d</i><sub>effect</sub> = -0.16 to -0.33), and follow-up peer-report effects for one of two measures (<i>d</i><sub>effect</sub> = -0.18 to -0.30). Treatment-group comparisons indicated that state-level strategies fostered larger immediate (albeit shorter-lasting) effects, whereas habit-level strategies led to smaller initial declines that strengthened over time. Behavior-focused strategies, for states and especially habits, yielded particularly strong effects across assessment methods, both independently and incrementally. Our findings demonstrate that neuroticism can be changed within 6 weeks and provide insight into effective mechanisms of change.</p>","PeriodicalId":20745,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Science","volume":" ","pages":"685-704"},"PeriodicalIF":5.4,"publicationDate":"2026-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13646517/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"149031351","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Psychological SciencePub Date : 2026-09-01Epub Date: 2026-08-26DOI: 10.1177/09567976261471424
William B Ridgway, Kevin D Mohawk, Rhiannon N Soriano Smith, Renato M Liboro, Charles A Morgan, Stephen D Benning, Colleen M Parks
{"title":"What Survivors Remembered: Cognitive and Experiential Themes in Trauma Narratives From the Deadliest Mass Shooting in Modern American History.","authors":"William B Ridgway, Kevin D Mohawk, Rhiannon N Soriano Smith, Renato M Liboro, Charles A Morgan, Stephen D Benning, Colleen M Parks","doi":"10.1177/09567976261471424","DOIUrl":"10.1177/09567976261471424","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This study examined cognitive and experiential patterns in the trauma narratives of 42 survivors (74% women; <i>M</i><sub>age</sub> = 42.1) of the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting, the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history. We conducted a codebook thematic analysis of written narratives collected within one month of the event. We developed four themes: contextual memory (sensory-perceptual features, time, and space), physical injury, heroism, and contemplating mortality. Survivors recalled vivid sensory impressions, detailed spatial awareness organized around escape, and temporal distortions, including both subjective slowing and sequence gaps. Accounts of graphic injury, prosocial action under fire, and direct confrontation with death further structured the narratives. Limitations include prompted rather than free recall, written self-report allowing revision, and a predominantly female sample. These findings add to the scant literature on mass-shooting survivors' memories.</p>","PeriodicalId":20745,"journal":{"name":"Psychological Science","volume":" ","pages":"648-664"},"PeriodicalIF":5.4,"publicationDate":"2026-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13558970/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148831861","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}