Most Popular Posts of 2016
As 2016 comes to an end, the editors take a look back at the most read posts of the year. Some are quickly becoming classics, while others tackle new research or cover discussions important to the field. Take a look for yourself.
Anxious-Avoidant Duos: Walking on Thin Ice in Relationships and Physical Health
Originally published in 2015, this post continues to be a top pick among blog readers...While the Disney animated film “Frozen” is most famous for its lovable characters and award-winning song “Let it Go,” this kids’ movie can teach us a thing or two about attachment styles in close relationships and the important interplay between preferences for intimacy versus independence in relationships.
How Historical Migration Patterns Shape Emotional Expression
The most popular post written in 2016, Adrienne Wood explores historical cultural connections of emotional expressions in 19th century Nebraska. "Since people from very different cultures can recognize each other’s facial expressions of emotion at better than chance accuracy, facial expressions may be a particularly valuable tool for communication in situations where people have very little in common culturally and linguistically."
Are Stereotypes Accurate? A Viewpoint from the Cognitive Science of Concepts
Lin Bian and Andrei Cimpian discuss Lee Jusim's latest work “Social Perception and Social Reality,” and argue "Regardless of whether one understands stereotypes as generic or statistical beliefs about groups, skepticism remains about the rationality of social judgments." This post comes in two spots behind Jussim’s post (below) but for content clarity we’re listing it here.
Stereotype Accuracy is One of the Largest and Most Replicable Effects in All of Social Psychology
In Lee Jussim's response he argues that Stereotype accuracy is one of the largest effects in all of social psychology, challenging psychologists to confront their cherished beliefs given the available data.
The Consequences of Dishonesty
Rounding out the top 5 is another popular post written in 2015 that continues to gain attention in 2016. "Lying has its benefits. It allows people to feel better about themselves, to make themselves look better in others’ eyes, and to maintain good relationships. At same time, lying can also create problems. Lying can be cognitively depleting, it can increase the risk that people will be punished, it can threaten people’s self-worth by preventing them from seeing themselves as “good” people, and it can generally erode trust in society."
Rounding out the top 10 most viewed posts in 2016:
6. Bad Science Evolves. Stopping It Means Changing Institutional Selection Pressures
7. Onward and Upward with Psychology
8. An Open Letter to NPR's Invisibilia About "The Personality Myth"
9. Why the Internet Isn't Making Us Smarter - and How to Fight Back
10. Personality and Social Psychology's Hidden Gender Gap
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