Stefania Paolini, John Dixon, Patrick F. Kotzur, Maria-Therese Friehs, Chloe Bracegirdle, Aaron Lauterbach, Julia Köbrich, Sylvie Graf, Mathias Kauff, Anna Stefaniak, Stephen C. Wright, Fiona K. Barlow, Kathryn Luebbering, Jake Harwood
{"title":"Towards a habit-rupture model of intergroup contact in everyday settings","authors":"Stefania Paolini, John Dixon, Patrick F. Kotzur, Maria-Therese Friehs, Chloe Bracegirdle, Aaron Lauterbach, Julia Köbrich, Sylvie Graf, Mathias Kauff, Anna Stefaniak, Stephen C. Wright, Fiona K. Barlow, Kathryn Luebbering, Jake Harwood","doi":"10.1038/s44159-025-00523-0","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44159-025-00523-0","url":null,"abstract":"According to intergroup contact theory, meaningful interactions between members of different social identity groups can lead to decreases in prejudice. However, the literature on intergroup contact has generally emphasized contact-based interventions that involve positive contact experiences in highly controlled environments like research laboratories or classrooms, or infrequent intimate intergroup contact experiences, like intergroup friendships. In this Perspective, we review the literature on how intergroup contact manifests in everyday settings, which challenges established views that contact is readily available, positive and leads to consistently positive within-person changes. We describe how variations in contact valence and environmental affordances for self-selection influence individual- and macro-level segregation dynamics, which create conditions for stable trajectories of contact and intergroup bias, or contact habits. We then propose a habit–rupture model of contact, according to which changes in intergroup relations through lifespan and macro-level disruptions act as ruptures, leading to the development of new contact habits. Considering contact and its effects through a habit and rupture lens identifies realistic and ecologically valid opportunities to apply intergroup contact in the service of the social good. The literature assumes that intergroup contact is naturally occurring, positive and consistently associated with positive outcomes, but these premises are inconsistent with everyday intergroup contact experiences. In this Perspective, Paolini et al. propose that variations in contact valence and environmental affordances for self-selection influence segregation dynamics, leading to stable trajectories of contact and intergroup bias.","PeriodicalId":74249,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews psychology","volume":"5 2","pages":"136-151"},"PeriodicalIF":21.8,"publicationDate":"2026-01-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146155325","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Influences of spoken and signed language on numerical cognition","authors":"I. Berteletti, J. Andin, C. Langdon, D. B. Berch","doi":"10.1038/s44159-025-00530-1","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44159-025-00530-1","url":null,"abstract":"Language conveys the cultural symbols and concepts of number. The specific way that numerical information is expressed in language shapes the mental processes that underlie numerical reasoning. These influences can occur across multiple levels, including phonological, morphological, syntactic, lexical, semantic, conceptual and visuo-spatial. In this Review, we explore the interactions between language and the development of numerical cognition, contrasting two language modalities. We examine how signed languages — which are expressed manually and perceived visually — and spoken languages — which are expressed orally and perceived aurally — influence numerical processing. By synthesizing multidisciplinary evidence from children and adults, we highlight how signed languages provide insights into how language shapes the acquisition of numerical concepts and skills. Finally, we detail open questions in the study of signed languages to guide a more comprehensive investigation of numerical cognition and the human mind. How numerical information is expressed in language shapes the mental processes that underlie numerical reasoning. In this Review, Berteletti and colleagues compare the impacts of spoken and signed languages on numerical cognition and detail how future work with signed languages can enrich understanding of these impacts.","PeriodicalId":74249,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews psychology","volume":"5 3","pages":"157-172"},"PeriodicalIF":21.8,"publicationDate":"2026-01-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147441944","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Matthew M. Burg, Jesse C. Stewart, Allison E. Gaffey, Josefin Särnholm, Alyssa M. Vela, Christopher A. Crawford
{"title":"Advancing implementation of behavioural medicine in cardiovascular care","authors":"Matthew M. Burg, Jesse C. Stewart, Allison E. Gaffey, Josefin Särnholm, Alyssa M. Vela, Christopher A. Crawford","doi":"10.1038/s44159-026-00531-8","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44159-026-00531-8","url":null,"abstract":"The contribution of behavioural and psychosocial factors (such as lifestyle behaviours, negative emotions and social connection) to incident cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular events is well recognized, and interventions to reduce the risk associated with these factors have been proved effective. Yet the implementation of these interventions in clinical settings has been slow, at best. In this Perspective, we review the literature to identify the elements and actions needed for a broad adoption of behavioural medicine interventions in routine cardiovascular care. We specifically discuss the need for a behavioural medicine clinical trials enterprise that is more pragmatic in approach, utilizing implementation science methods and extant clinical data sources, and prioritizing patient-reported and quality-of-life outcomes, along with offsets in cost of care. We furthermore discuss the need for the development and testing of integrated care models, engaging with institutional stakeholders, patients and families, and healthcare systems. Behavioural and psychosocial interventions can effectively reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. In this Perspective, Burg et al. identify the elements and actions needed for a broad implementation of these interventions in standard cardiovascular care.","PeriodicalId":74249,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews psychology","volume":"5 3","pages":"216-227"},"PeriodicalIF":21.8,"publicationDate":"2026-01-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147441946","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Claudia Buchweitz, Anna Viduani, Helen Herrman, Brandon A. Kohrt, Patrick McGorry, Giovanni Salum, Claudia Sartor, Shekhar Saxena, Christian Kieling
{"title":"Transdiagnostic stage-based monitoring of public mental health","authors":"Claudia Buchweitz, Anna Viduani, Helen Herrman, Brandon A. Kohrt, Patrick McGorry, Giovanni Salum, Claudia Sartor, Shekhar Saxena, Christian Kieling","doi":"10.1038/s44159-025-00527-w","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44159-025-00527-w","url":null,"abstract":"Public health monitoring based on the presence or absence of discrete health diagnoses helps to mitigate the burden associated with some health conditions, such as infectious diseases. However, this binary approach to disease monitoring misses opportunities for the prevention and effective care of mental health disorders, which are characterized by fluid boundaries between diagnoses and dimensional symptoms that vary over time. In this Review, we consider the staging model as an alternative to guide public mental health monitoring. This model situates individuals on a continuum covering six stages: asymptomatic individuals who have not experienced burdensome symptoms (stage 0); individuals with mixed symptoms not meeting criteria for full-threshold disorders (stage 1a); individuals with subthreshold presentations (stage 1b); individuals with a diagnosis of full-threshold disorders (stage 2); individuals with recurrent conditions (stage 3); and individuals with treatment-resistant conditions (stage 4). We integrate the staging model into public mental health monitoring by identifying possible indicators of mental health status at each stage. On the basis of identified gaps in monitoring the risk of progression across stages, we discuss how existing indicators can be reframed to improve the logic, intensity and timing of public health interventions and therefore the estimation of service and resource needs. Public mental health monitoring requires a nuanced approach that reflects the dimensional nature of mental health disorders. In this Review, Kieling and colleagues describe a staged monitoring approach that could improve the logic, intensity and timing of public mental health decision-making.","PeriodicalId":74249,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews psychology","volume":"5 2","pages":"120-135"},"PeriodicalIF":21.8,"publicationDate":"2026-01-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146155321","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Intergenerational transmission of mental health during the first 1,000 days of life","authors":"Angus MacBeth, M. Francisca Morales, Lisa Golds","doi":"10.1038/s44159-025-00521-2","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44159-025-00521-2","url":null,"abstract":"Parental mental health has long-lasting impacts on children’s behavioural and emotional outcomes. Intergenerational transmission is particularly relevant to the child’s first 1,000 days of life (from conception to age 2 years). During this time, the foundations of biopsychosocial development are established, while the child is completely dependent on parental and caregiving figures. In this Review, we summarize systematic review and meta-analytic intergenerational mental health evidence focused on the first 1,000 days of life, considering vulnerability and resilience mechanisms that underpin intergenerational mental health and contextual factors (such as trauma). We shift the focus from a conceptualization of parent–child transmission centred around risk and mental health disorders to incorporate protective factors and positive outcomes towards a comprehensive understanding of the complex relationships between parental mental health and children’s behavioural, social and emotional development. We point towards opportunities to integrate findings about intergenerational mental health during the first 1,000 days of life into broader dimensions of research, practice and policy, such as preventative and early-intervention mental health approaches that support child and caregiver mental health across income settings. Research on parent–child transmission of mental health has traditionally focused on vulnerability, but there is also intergenerational transmission of resilience. In this Review, MacBeth et al. integrate findings of risk and protective factors with a specific focus on the first 1,000 days of life.","PeriodicalId":74249,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews psychology","volume":"5 2","pages":"105-119"},"PeriodicalIF":21.8,"publicationDate":"2026-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146155320","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Monica Gori, Maria Bianca Amadeo, Andrew J. Bremner
{"title":"The development of spatial perception with and without visual experience","authors":"Monica Gori, Maria Bianca Amadeo, Andrew J. Bremner","doi":"10.1038/s44159-025-00516-z","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44159-025-00516-z","url":null,"abstract":"Spatial perception is essential for sensing and interacting with the environment. During development, coherent multisensory representations of space are created by aligning and integrating information across sensory modalities. In sighted adults, vision is typically the most reliable spatial sense and has a key role in multisensory spatial development by offering an immediate and comprehensive representation of the surrounding layout in a single glance. In this Review, we explore how sensory and motor systems develop in early life to form spatial representations of the external environment, and the role of visual experience in this process. We examine differences in spatial perceptual development between visually impaired individuals and sighted individuals, focusing on visual, auditory and tactile modalities and their interactions in the context of sensorimotor and bodily changes. Differences between visually impaired individuals and sighted individuals illustrate critical developmental periods during which sensory and motor experiences influence the construction of spatial representations. In sighted adults, spatial perception relies on information integrated across sensory modalities. In this Review, Gori and colleagues consider spatial perception in visually impaired infants, children and adults to clarify how it develops and the role of sensory information in the process.","PeriodicalId":74249,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews psychology","volume":"5 2","pages":"80-92"},"PeriodicalIF":21.8,"publicationDate":"2026-01-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146155324","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Individual, interpersonal and sociocultural contributors to maths anxiety in children","authors":"Fraulein Retanal, Erin A. Maloney","doi":"10.1038/s44159-025-00519-w","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s44159-025-00519-w","url":null,"abstract":"Mathematics is critical for academic and career success, yet many children experience ‘maths anxiety’, a pervasive emotional response that can hinder performance in and engagement with maths. In this Review, we examine how maths anxiety operates and develops, focusing on children (ages 4–17 years) because maths anxiety often begins to emerge in the early school years, and experiences during childhood and adolescence can shape long-term engagement and achievement in maths. We explore factors that contribute to and sustain maths anxiety within a three-level framework. At the individual level, we discuss the reciprocal feedback-loop model of maths anxiety, outlining the influences of biological predispositions, early maths performance, attitudes and beliefs, cognitive disruption and avoidance. At the interpersonal level, we examine how parents’ and teachers’ practices and beliefs shape children’s maths experiences and maths anxiety. Finally, at the sociocultural level, we consider how broader cultural and societal factors shape how children perceive and engage with maths. By bridging these perspectives, we clarify existing findings and chart a path to uncover how mechanisms operating within and between these levels jointly shape children’s experiences with maths. Maths anxiety refers to negative emotions such as fear, tension and apprehension that arise while doing mathematics. In this Review, Retanal and Maloney discuss individual, interpersonal and sociocultural influences on maths anxiety in children and their impacts on long-term engagement and achievement in mathematics.","PeriodicalId":74249,"journal":{"name":"Nature reviews psychology","volume":"5 2","pages":"93-104"},"PeriodicalIF":21.8,"publicationDate":"2026-01-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146155323","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}