Psych Papers

We surveyed a thousand people on how hot and how crazy the top 20 Millennial names are (20 boy names, 20 girl names). We show where the names line up on the hot/crazy scale. Hottest Millennial Boy Names: Hottest Millennial Girl Names: Craziest Millennial Boy Names: Craziest Millennial Girl Names: Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

We surveyed over 500 people on first date norms. Here are the questions we’ll answer: Key Takeaways:

We surveyed over 600 people on their dating deal breakers. We provided a list of 29 potential deal breakers and asked participants to select all that would end a relationship for them Question’s we’ll answer: Some key highlights: Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

The Kiki-Bouba effect is a phenomenon where people tend to associate certain sounds with specific shapes. When shown a sharp, angular shape and a soft, rounded shape, and asked which is named "Kiki" and which is "Bouba," most people will label the sharp shape as "Kiki" and the rounded shape as "Bouba." This effect suggests that there is a universal, possibly innate connection between speech sounds and the visual appearance of objects. This effect is seen across multiple languages and cultures and even observed in children and people born blind. We connect the kiki/bouba effect to past research we’ve conducted on which boys names and girls names would win in a fight? We surveyed over 500 people per survey and gave them random name pairings and asked who would win in a fight (eg, “David vs. Anthony… who would win in a fight?”). We also connect it to another survey we ran on which letters would win in a fight. Similar setup (eg, “X vs. W… who would win in a fight?”) Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

We surveyed over 500 people on the masculinity and femininity of different table lamps. Yup… Questions we’ll answer: What’s the most masculine lamp? Some key takeaways: Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

The decoy effect is a trick used in marketing to make you choose a more expensive option by adding a third, less attractive choice. For example, if you're deciding between a small and a large popcorn, and a medium popcorn is added at a price just below the large, you'll likely go for the large because it seems like a better deal compared to the medium. The less attractive option (the medium) is the "decoy" that makes the large popcorn look like the best choice. We discuss the different environments (movie theaters, restaurants, subscription services, etc) where this can occur as well as how it relates to the paradox of choice. Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

What do people think about anime fans? Do people prefer subbed or dubbed? We surveyed people on their impressions of anime and whether they think being an anime fan makes you cooler or lamer. Questions We Answer: Key Findings: Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

We conducted a survey to learn whether your phone’s background image can act as a “window to the soul.” In other words, whatever is most important to your wellbeing will most likely be your phone background. So if you want to get to know someone, take a look at their phone background. Questions we answer: Key Findings: Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

Beauty = Order and Complexity. Think of the architecture of your favorite museum versus the architecture of a mundane apartment building. Why is one beautiful and the other isn’t? For something to be beautiful, it must have the right balance of order and complexity. Order refers to the structured, organized, and predictable aspects of an object or environment. In architecture, order can be seen in the symmetry, balance, and clear organization of elements within a building. It provides a sense of coherence and stability, making it easier for our brains to process and understand what we see. Complexity refers to the intricate, detailed, and varied aspects of an object or environment. In architecture, complexity is found in the richness of details, variety of forms, and the depth of visual interest in a building. It engages our attention and curiosity, providing new patterns and details to discover upon closer inspection. The idea is that beauty arises from the right balance between order and complexity. Too much order can lead to monotony and boredom, while too much complexity can result in chaos and confusion. A beautiful object or environment, such as the Palace of Versailles, achieves a harmonious balance where there is enough order to provide stability and enough complexity to maintain interest and engagement. While this view focuses on architectural beauty, it can also be applied to other domains such as art and music. This view relates to the Prospect and Refuge Theory (Appleton, 1975) that states humans have an innate preference for environments that offer both opportunities for exploration and observation (prospect) and places for shelter and safety (refuge). Article: https://www.theschooloflife.com/article/the-secret-of-beauty-order-and-complexity/ Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

Is your preference for lights on/off during sex correlated with whether you keep your eyes open or closed at the dentist? How does this differ by gender? We surveyed 500 people on these topics. Psych PhD Chris Cole and cohost Joseph Tajaran discuss the results in this episode of Psych Papers. Key Findings: Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

In the 1930’s, a baby chimpanzee was raised as a sibling to a 10-month old infant. Winthrop Kellogg treated the the ape, Gua, as similarly as possible to his own son, Donald. They were dressed, bathed, fed, and taught in the same manner; they both wore diapers and shoes, had similar play toys, and both received a kiss goodnight. Kellogg examined the effects of nature versus nurture on development. We discuss the tests and measures used to compare the cognitive and physical growth of the chimpanzee and the child. Tests ranged from harmless to unethical and dangerous. While Gua the chimp developed quickly, Donald the baby actually started copying Gua’s behaviors, dragging his knuckles on the ground, barking when food was nearby, and even developing a type of language with Gua involving bark-like noises. We also discuss Kellogg’s later research on dolphins and echolocation, highlighting the importance it had in the development of the Navy’s radar systems. Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

We analyzed Rotten Tomatoes Movie Ratings and discuss our findings. The scraped dataset has data on 1.1 million reviews from 17.7k movies from 1914–2020. Here’s a sample of our findings: Here are some of our takeaways and suspicions: Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

The Shopping Cart Study investigates how toddlers develop awareness of their own bodies. Developed by Chris Moore and colleagues in 2007, the task examine when a sense of self develops in babies. At what age do children begin to understand how their bodies interact with the world? The shopping cart task involves tying a small rug onto the back of a toy shopping cart, right by the back wheels. If you tried to push the cart, you’d be standing on the rug which would make it impossible to push the cart. In order to push the cart, you have to realize that your body standing on the rug is what’s impeding your ability to push the cart forward. In other words, you have to have enough of a sense of self to understand how your body interacts with the world. 14-15 month olds will stand on the rug and try to push the cart and have no idea why it doesn’t move forward. They get frustrated and will try strange tactics like trying to climb into the cart. 16 month olds understand that the rug plays a part in what’s blocking them from pushing the cart, but think it’s something to do with the mat, and not themselves. 18 month olds will typically try to push the cart once, and then quickly realize that they themselves are the obstacle to moving the cart. This suggests he’s aware of himself and his body. Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

In developmental psychology, the Rouge Test is used to test self-recognition in children. We discuss the origins and significance of this classic test which assesses a child’s ability to identify themselves in a mirror. Developed by Gordon Gallup Jr in 1970, using rouge makeup, an experimenter discreetly puts a red dot on the child’s face. Then the child is placed in front of a mirror to see how they react. Babies between 6-12 months will typically see a “playmate” in the mirror that they try to interact with. But babies around 18 months old will look in the mirror and start poking the red dot on their face, indicating they recognize themselves in the mirror. This is crucial for a child to develop their sense of self—an individual’s awareness and understanding of their own identity and that they are a thing that exists in the world that is separate and distinct from other things. A sense of self develops over time and can include many facets but one of the earliest aspects of it is being able to recognize yourself. Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

The Barnum Effect is the tendency for people to accept vague and general personality descriptions as highly accurate and personally meaningful. “Barnum statements” are general characterizations that people believe to be true about themselves, even though these statements could apply to just about anyone. It’s commonly exploited in astrology / horoscopes, fortune telling, psychics, mediums, tarot card readers, palm readers, and other con artists. Bertram Forer identified the effect in 1948 with a classic psychological study which gave people personality surveys followed by bogus personality feedback. Every participant received the exact same personality feedback which they rated to be highly accurate of them. Psych PhD Chris Cole and cohost Joseph Tajaran discuss the Barnum Effect and how it can be exploited by scamsters. Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

How do sports and income relate? Specifically, how do the sports you played in high school relate with your household income. Which sports do more educated parents have their kids play? We surveyed 500 US high school graduates about what sports they played in high school, their parents’ household income, and their parents’ highest education achieved. Key Findings: Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

Scale errors refer to a hilarious phenomenon in developmental psychology where young children make errors in judging the relationship between the size of an object and the size of their own body. What this looks like is a child seriously trying to sit in a doll house chair, trying to get inside of like a hot wheels car, and trying to put doll shoes on their own feet. Psych PhD Chris Cole and cohost Joseph Tajaran discuss how scale errors were discovered and what is going on in a child’s mind when they commit these errors. Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

Joseph Tajaran (Designer & Chris’s friend) and Chris Cole (Psych PhD) go over how aesthetics impact functionality in design. More specifically, they go over the aesthetic-usability effect and specific examples of how this happens in design: Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

Why do men prefer black coffee? We ran a survey of over 500 people to see how their food preferences and gender interact. Psych PhD Chris Cole and cohost Joseph Tajaran review the results in this episode of Psych Papers. The food takes we surveyed are: Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.

Is being a Joe Rogan fan a red flag in dating? Do Democrats or Republicans like Joe Rogan more? Why do Joe Rogan haters dislike him so much? We conducted a quantitative survey of 1000 people and analyzed how people think about Joe Rogan. Psych PhD Chris Cole and cohost Joseph Tajaran discuss the results in this episode of Psych Papers. Here are some highlights: 1. Most people, that have heard of him, like Joe Rogan at least a little. 2. More women dislike Joe Rogan, and more men like Joe Rogan 3. Republicans like Joe Rogan. Democrats are mixed. But out of Joe Rogan’s haters, they’re predominantly Democrat. 4. Fans like him for being funny, controversial, and honest. Haters dislike him for being arrogant, conservative, and into conspiracies. 5. When it comes to dating a Joe Rogan fan, women feel more strongly both negatively and positively. 6. Democrats are more likely to prescribe a social responsibility to Joe Rogan to be mindful of the impact his content has on his audience. Check out the video version of this episode on YouTube.