psychology

Mar 5, 2013

Seniors Who Play Video Games Report Better Sense of Emotional Well-Being

New research finds that older adults who play video games report higher levels of emotional well-being. It’s correlation, not causation, but it is interesting. Researchers at NC State’s Gains Through Gaming lab asked 140 people aged 63 and older how often they played video games, if at all. The study participants then took a battery of… 

May 10, 2012

Efforts to Help Homeless Kids Gaining Traction

Homeless children are at higher risk for mental health problems than other kids, but one researcher from NC State is taking action to give these kids a better chance for a healthy life. Last year, we told you about Mary Haskett’s work with a program called Project CATCH, which aims to provide homeless children with the… 

Mar 26, 2012

March Madness: Why Rooting For Losers May Save Your Life

Editor’s note: Last year we told you about this study (then forthcoming). We’re posting a modestly revised version of that write-up for two reasons. First, it’s a timely read as we head into the Final Four weekend. Second, the paper is now available. We’ve linked to it below. Enjoy! If you’re a sports fan, you… 

Nov 1, 2011

How Will Players Respond To Game Changes? Do The Math

Can user responses to changes in one game predict the response to changes in a different game? Apparently there’s math involved. When it comes to video games, imitation can be dangerous. If one game makes changes that players love, there’s no guarantee that players of a different game would welcome the same changes. So, do… 

Aug 31, 2011

Making Refactoring Tools More Attractive For Programmers

Researchers have come up with a new way to give programmers access to refactoring tools, hopefully making the process more intuitive and making it more likely that programmers will use the tools. Refactoring is when you change the structure of a piece of a code without changing what the code actually does – you might… 

Aug 29, 2011

Making Research An Open Book

How one NC State professor saw an aspect of literacy education being neglected, and decided to do something about it. 

Aug 29, 2011

Putting Research-Driven Teaching Tools In Schools – For Free

When John Begeny saw that an aspect of literacy education was getting scant attention in schools, he decided to research it. Then he used that research to develop an effective new tool for teachers, with demonstrated results. Then he decided to give the new program to teachers and parents for free. Cheers to that. As… 

Mar 8, 2011

Why Rooting For Losers May Save Your Life

If you’re a sports fan, you want your team to win. You especially want your team to win the big games: championships, rivalry games, etc. Be careful what you wish for. A new study shows that big games with close scores are followed by a significant increase in traffic fatalities – but only for fans… 

Mar 4, 2011

Research In Action: Helping Homeless Children

Psychologist Mary Haskett has been doing research on childhood development for over 20 years, and her experiences in that field ultimately highlighted a real and growing mental-health crisis facing homeless children around the country. Now she’s calling on her research expertise to do something about it. Haskett, a professor at NC State, is working with eight… 

Mar 3, 2011

Our Online Training Preferences, or Why Clippy Bombed

A new study finds that students in online training courses want to be taught by electronic versions of themselves. The study, by researchers from NC State and George Washington University, were interested in how student performance was affected by changes in the electronic tutorial “helpers” utilized in online training programs. It turns out that students do… 

Mar 1, 2011

Off the Hook: Top Professors (3.1.11)

Today is the First Annual Distinguished Professor Lecture Series event. NC State students nominated more than 250 professors who have impacted their lives, and we'll hear from three of them at Stewart Theatre today at 6 p.m. 

Feb 16, 2011

Climbing Kilimanjaro

Dr. Craig Brookins, an associate professor of psychology and Africana studies, shared his experiences of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro as part of the Fabulous Faculty series. 

Dec 21, 2010

Trivial Pursuits: The Abstract’s 2010 Quiz

The Abstract staff will be taking off for a couple of weeks to prepare for 2011. In an attempt to amuse and entertain ourselves you, we’ve pulled together a quick quiz on some of the research we’ve written about in 2010. See how you do! Answers are below the photo, and include links to the… 

Nov 2, 2010

Strumming Up Business

Italo Leiva was struggling to learn sheet music for guitars when suddenly a light bulb went off. Specifically, a light with seven colors. So, Leiva color-coded his guitar strings to improve his skills, and now fronts a start-up business with a chance to become a big hit in the music equipment industry. 

Sep 28, 2010

Research: Welcome To The Real World

A new study shows that social-science research done by “ivory tower” academics does have utility in the real world, specifically in the business community. And, even more specifically, it could help catch the next corporate fraud. The accounting firms tasked with auditing corporations and identifying fraud are required to have brainstorming sessions as part of…