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The Bystander Effect: Why the Famous Story Is Only Half True
The 38 silent witnesses to Kitty Genovese’s murder were largely a myth. The science of bystanders is more hopeful, and more useful, than the legend.
Latest
Relationships
Love, friendship, family and the everyday dynamics between people.
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Do Opposites Really Attract? A Century of Couples Says Mostly Not
Films and fridge magnets say opposites attract. Data on thousands of couples tells a different, more interesting story.
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Why Being Ghosted Hurts So Much: What Psychologists Know About the Silence
No row, no reason, just nothing. Research on ostracism explains why ghosting stings, why people do it, and how to…
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The Shrinking Circle: How Many Close Friends Adults Really Have, and Why It Matters
Fewer close friends and less time together: decades of survey data from the US and Britain reveal how adult friendship…
Psychology
How people think, feel and behave, explained through research and real life.
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The Bystander Effect: Why the Famous Story Is Only Half True
The 38 silent witnesses to Kitty Genovese’s murder were largely a myth. The science of bystanders is more hopeful, and…
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Why the Song You Hated in March Is Your Favourite by June
Repetition quietly rewires taste. Fifty years of mere exposure research explain why songs grow on you, and why some never…
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Why Does Time Speed Up as We Get Older? Five Explanations, Weighed
Everyone over 30 says the years are getting shorter. Psychologists have five explanations, and some hold up far better than…
Worth your time
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Does Writing About Your Feelings Actually Help? What 40 Years of Research Says
In 1983 a psychologist asked students to write about their worst experiences for four nights. Here is what…
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What Happens When People Quit Social Media? Five Experiments, One by One
Researchers have paid people to log off, cut them to 10 minutes a day and switched them off…
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Why the Song You Hated in March Is Your Favourite by June
Repetition quietly rewires taste. Fifty years of mere exposure research explain why songs grow on you, and why…
Modern Life
Work, technology, money habits and the way we live now.
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Do You Really Need 10,000 Steps a Day? What the Research Actually Shows
The famous target began life as a pedometer name. Here is what five big studies say about the step count…
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What Happens When People Quit Social Media? Five Experiments, One by One
Researchers have paid people to log off, cut them to 10 minutes a day and switched them off before an…
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Revenge Bedtime Procrastination: The Science of Stealing Back Your Night
Staying up late to reclaim time the day took from you has a name, and a growing body of research.…
Self-Growth
Habits, confidence, resilience and building a life that fits.
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The Women Who Named Imposter Syndrome Never Wanted It Called a Syndrome
Two psychologists described it in 1978 as an experience, not an illness. How common is it really, who gets it,…
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Pen or Laptop? Putting a Decade of Note-Taking Research on Trial
One 2014 study told students to ditch the laptop. Then the replications, meta-analyses and brain scans arrived. Here is what…
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Procrastination Isn’t Laziness: It’s How We Dodge Bad Feelings, and How to Stop
Putting things off is less about time or effort than about escaping an unpleasant feeling. Here is what the research…
Style & Living
Style, home and the small rituals that shape how we live.
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Does a Cluttered Home Make You Stressed? A Room-by-Room Look at the Science
From the hallway to the desk, what researchers have actually found about clutter, cortisol, snacking and sleep, and where the…
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Does Wearing Red Make You More Attractive? The Rise and Fall of the Red Effect
In 2008, psychologists said red made women more attractive to men. Then the replications came in. Here is what survived,…
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The Messy Desk Myth: What Really Happened When Scientists Tested Clutter and Creativity
A famous study said a messy room makes you more creative. A larger replication, a crisis in psychology and a…
Recently updated
Stories our editors have revisited with new research, figures and sources.
More stories
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Do Opposites Really Attract? A Century of Couples Says Mostly Not
Films and fridge magnets say opposites attract. Data on thousands of couples tells a different, more interesting story.
-
Procrastination Isn’t Laziness: It’s How We Dodge Bad Feelings, and How to Stop
Putting things off is less about time or effort than about escaping an unpleasant feeling. Here is what the research…
-
Does Wearing Red Make You More Attractive? The Rise and Fall of the Red Effect
In 2008, psychologists said red made women more attractive to men. Then the replications came in. Here is what survived,…
-
Does Writing About Your Feelings Actually Help? What 40 Years of Research Says
In 1983 a psychologist asked students to write about their worst experiences for four nights. Here is what has held…
-
What Happens When People Quit Social Media? Five Experiments, One by One
Researchers have paid people to log off, cut them to 10 minutes a day and switched them off before an…
-
Why the Song You Hated in March Is Your Favourite by June
Repetition quietly rewires taste. Fifty years of mere exposure research explain why songs grow on you, and why some never…