Free Republic

Psychologists have shown humans are poor judges of their own abilities, from sense of humour to grammar. Those worst at it are the worst judges of all. You're pretty smart right? Clever, and funny too. Of course you are, just like me. But wouldn't it be terrible if we were mistaken? Psychologists have shown that we are more likely to be blind to our own failings than perhaps we realise. This could explain why some incompetent people are so annoying, and also inject a healthy dose of humility into our own sense of self-regard.

If there was reputable scientific evidence that some people were born homosexual, I would have no problem accepting this. After all, my theology tells me that as human beings, we are all created in God's image and yet we are a fallen race – and so all of us carry aspects of that fallen nature to the core of our being, and that could theoretically include homosexuality. But the fact is that there is simply no reputable scientific evidence that anyone is born gay. As stated by gay activist and history professor John D'Emilio, "'Born gay' is an idea with...

Women’s mags—at least the ones that line supermarket check-out counters—seem obsessed with the euphoria-producing properties of sex and fine chocolates. Men’s mags seem focused on the latest coolest stuff that will make them desired by women and envied by men. A new study suggests both men and women might be better off looking into...scrapbooking. An Opinion Matters study surveyed 2,040 adults in the United Kingdom, and found that 80% of respondents “were happiest when reminiscing about old times with friends and family.” Chocolate (at 17%) and “even sex (38%)” fell behind reminiscing (45%) in providing “a greater, more prolonged...

You may often see articles in the media claiming that "research has shown" that children of same-sex couples are thriving, in fact are physically and psychologically doing just as well as, or even better than, children of couples who are -- let me use this currently underused word -- normal. Are these works reliable? In July such a study, carried out in Australia, was much trumpeted by that pillar of "progressive" thinking, the Washington Post, under the headline "Children of same-sex couples are happier and healthier than peers, research shows". Researcher Simon Crouch and his team at the University of...

A few years ago, I worked at a web design agency as a product manager. The part of the job I loved the most was working on product with our design team and clients. Unfortunately, this was only about 10 percent of the work that I actually got to do. The majority of the time, I was trying to control the constant flow of stuff–keeping track of meeting notes, searching for files, and trying to stay up-to-date with the latest technology news.I was mentally exhausted. I’d get home feeling that I hadn’t really accomplished anything. Once I left the agency...

People who tend to blame others for their suffering and think setbacks in their lives are irreparable tend to report more pain after knee replacement surgery, according to a new study. This is not the first time feelings of personal injustice have been tied to longer recovery times and increased disability after injury, the authors write. “Pain is a complex phenomenon that is influenced by biological, social, and psychological factors,” said lead author Esther Yakobov, a doctoral student in clinical psychology at McGill University in Montreal. “Studies conducted with patients who suffer from chronic pain because of an injury demonstrated...

A new national poll has found that a majority (51%) of Americans aged 18-24 feel that everyone who participates in a sport should get a trophy.

A whopping 68 percent of Americans think there should be a law that prohibits kids 9 and under from playing at the park unsupervised, despite the fact that most of them no doubt grew up doing just that. What's more: 43 percent feel the same way about 12-year-olds. They would like to criminalize all pre-teenagers playing outside on their own (and, I guess, arrest their no-good parents). Those are the results of a Reason/Rupe poll confirming that we have not only lost all confidence in our kids and our communities—we have lost all touch with reality. "I doubt there has...

If you suspect someone in your life is a narcissist, there may be an incredibly straightforward way to confirm your suspicions: Just ask them. New research suggests that simply asking narcissists to out themselves can be surprisingly effective. Specifically, researchers asked this question over a series of 11 studies: “To what extent do you agree with this statement: I am a narcissist.’” The participants — and there were about 2,200 of them in total — were told to answer on a scale of one to seven. As it turned out, their self-scoring results closely matched scores on the traditional method...

All it takes for Obama to protect himself from Impeachment is to accuse Boehner of trying to Impeach him. Always a fool for reverse psychology traps, Boehner dutifully held a Presser today and said: "We have no plans to Impeach the president. We have no future plans. It is all a sham." BINGO! Obama's part-time Day Job is safe, because Boehner is really, Really, REALLY STUPID! Speaker “Blank Check” Boehner has convinced most voters in the Public and US House of Representatives that NOTHING CAN BE DONE to punish B. Hussein Obama for violating the US Constitution unless he is...

An Ohio State University (OSU) class has apparently determined another fundamental difference between Christians and atheists: their IQ points. An online quiz from the school’s Psychology 1100 class, provided to Campus Reform via tip, asked students to pick which scenario they found most likely given that “Theo has an IQ of 100 and Aine has an IQ of 125.” The correct answer? “Aine is an atheist, while Theo is a Christian.” According to a student in the class who wished to remain anonymous, the question was a part of an online homework quiz. Students were required to complete a certain...

Early Risers More Likely To Cheat And Behave Dishonestly At Night, US Study Finds By Raziye Akkoc Early risers are more likely to behave dishonestly and cheat during night time hours, a study has found. Those who rise early see their energy levels decrease during the day which directly affects their behaviour. Researchers believe the way a person's internal body clock works could have an impact on the workplace. Psychologists tested the honesty of almost 200 individuals by asking them to undertake problem-solving tests and games. Those who took part were tested on how honest they were about their perfomance,...

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator is probably the most widely used personality test in the world. An estimated 2 million people take it annually, at the behest of corporate HR departments, colleges, and even government agencies. The company that makes and markets the test makes somewhere around $20 million each year. The only problem? The test is completely meaningless.

There’s been no shortage of media coverage of a new study that purportedly shows that children raised by same-sex partners fare better than other children.“Children of same-sex couples are happier and healthier than peers, research shows,” was the headline of a Washington Post story. “Largest-ever study of same-sex couples’ kids finds they’re better off than other children,” proclaimed Vox, while NBCNews.com announced, “Children of Same-Sex Parents Are Healthier: Study.”But the actual study is a little more, well, complicated.In an article published on Public Discourse, University of Texas at Austin professor Mark Regnerus takes issue with the study’s method.The study, conducted...

Most people don’t think it’s fun to sit alone with nothing to do but think — it’s part of the reason for obsessive phone-checking during idle moments. A new study in Science highlights just how unenjoyable this experience is: in short, very. To the point that some people will choose to shock themselves rather than sit alone with nothing to do for a little while. The researchers conducted 11 experiments in a variety of settings and among a variety of age groups. In most of them, subjects were asked to simply chill out and think for 6 to 15 minutes...

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to consider arguments against California's ban on a controversial therapy aimed at reversing homosexuality in children, allowing the prohibition to be enforced in the most populous U.S. state. The court's decision not to take up the case follows a ruling by an appeals court last year that the prohibition on so-called "gay conversion therapy" for minors is not a violation of the constitutional rights of counselors or parents, as argued by a conservative religious group that challenged the ban. "The Court's refusal to accept the appeal of extreme ideological therapists who practice the...

Burned out from her job and still mourning the loss of her father, Jinna Yang decided to dramatically shake up her life and honor the memory of a man who always put others first. In April, Yang, 25, quit her job in digital media in Manhattan, sold about 80 percent of her belongings and bought a one-way plane ticket to Iceland. Before she left, she took an old photo of a tuxedo-clad Jay Yang and had a company she found online make a life-size cardboard cutout of her father, who died from cancer at 52 on Aug. 24, 2012. Jay...

He has been broken down! Divorced men understand what it's like to be in a committed relationship within which there are compromises and accommodations. His resistance has already been broken down by another woman so that you don't have to endure the push back yourself. He uses his words. Divorced men tend to be better communicators. There is a decent chance that he went to therapy during his marriage, if not after, and he has become fairly proficient at communicating needs and feelings more clearly. He's been broken in! Another thing about divorced men that you might not want to...

An Obama administration official upset with the direction of the Bergdhal story voiced his concern on Twitter on Wednesday, floating a theory that put Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl in a more sympathetic light--and his fellow soldiers as part of the problem. The American people, he argued, were too quick to jump to conclusions about Bergdahl after his fellow soldiers spoke out about his disappearance. “Here's the thing about Bergdahl and the Jump-to-Conclusions mats: What if his platoon was long on psychopaths and short on leadership?” asked Brandon Friedman, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at Department of Housing and Urban...

After being held captive by the Taliban for the past five years, Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is facing a long road to recovery following his release. The specifics about what Bergdahl has endured have not been released and may not be. Psychologists explain that it’s important to know the specifics of Bergdahl’s last five years in order to determine how to proceed with the appropriate treatment options. “What we don’t know about is whether he is a true hero who had the misfortune of being the only POW captured, or whether he in some way identified with his captors,” psychologist...