In a paper published in the Journal of Forensic Psychology Research and Practice, JCU Ph.D. student Rebecca Ward says the core practices of the field of forensic psychology, from risk assessments to expert testimony, are compromised by structural bias and an unwarranted confidence in the neutrality of psychological expertise.

For several years now, the radicalization of young people has been making headlines. This phenomenon can be linked to the far-right movement, as we saw on May 30 in Shawinigan during a demonstration calling for a "White Québec," or revolve around other forms of radicalism, including Islamist movements.

It is unpleasant, strange and often comes as a surprise: shame. But why do we feel it? An international study has shed new light on the emotion of shame, which has long been considered harmful. The conclusion: Shame is not merely an inconvenient feeling, but may fulfill an important function. As an evolution-based protective mechanism, it can help us protect our social reputation.

When a friend buys you a cup of coffee, it's likely that next time, you'll return the gesture. This type of reciprocal generosity has been well-documented in behavioral economics studies. However, anthropologists and other social scientists have known for decades that in the context of relationships where one person has more power, status or influence, reciprocal generosity is usually not the norm.

Hitting children (often referred to as smacking) by parents or caregivers as a form of punishment is linked to behavioral problems and worse exam results and should be prohibited in England and Northern Ireland as soon as possible, UCL researchers say.

You are scrolling through your feed when a screenshot appears showing a public figure saying something surprising or controversial. Within minutes, it is everywhere. Some are angry, others defend it, memes parody it, and arguments spread across platforms.

Future-oriented thinking is a cornerstone of healthy decision-making, academic success and mental well-being. Yet many people struggle to act in ways that benefit their future selves, often prioritizing immediate rewards over long-term gains. A new study published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research explores how digital interventions can help bridge this gap by strengthening future self-identification.

Global migration has risen sharply from approximately 13 million people per year in 2000 to around 35 million people per year in 2023. This is according to a new dataset on human migration published in Nature by researchers from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), IIASA and the University of Hong Kong.

Most people think they are open-minded and would like others to perceive them as such. But for the things that matter most—religious beliefs, for example, or the meaning of life—few of us are genuinely willing to consider that we might be wrong, let alone do the hard work of revising beliefs. At a fundamental level, we humans are somewhat closed-minded.

For many dads, talking with their teenager about sex and relationships can feel like a minefield.

In early June, an ABC Four Corners investigation into NSW Police showcased firsthand accounts of police using excessive force against the public.

When kids watch cartoons, they're absorbing much more than a plot. Thanks to the use of foreign accents in shows, they're also learning a shorthand for moral character, new research from the University of Toronto Mississauga suggests.

If the drug trade has helped define the modern Mexican state, writes the author of a new article in The Social History of Alcohol and Drugs, so too have wars on drugs. In "From Bandit Hunting to a War Against 'Social Poisoners': Counterinsurgency as Drug War and Drug War as Counterinsurgency in 1960s–1970s Southern Mexico," author Alexander Aviña argues that the strategies eventually employed against Mexican drug traders were first developed in the violent suppression of rural guerrilla movements.

In recent years, anti-immigration sentiment has become increasingly common around the world. A common concern surrounding immigration is its potential impact on the host country's welfare system, including health care. Such concerns can reduce public support for accepting immigrants and for redistributive welfare policies.

A Stanford team used geospatial data and detection algorithms to achieve a tenfold increase in rescues from modern slavery in the Brazilian Amazon. Now, they are planning to expand their approach.

Since the 1980s, there has been extensive research on the effectiveness of treatment for perpetrators of sexual crimes against children. Studies have examined rehabilitation programs, the role of clinicians and the factors associated with recidivism. However, what remains unclear is how these factors interact to influence recidivism once treatment is over.

Music and singing in soccer stadiums are not random entertainment. They follow clear patterns. And those patterns vary systematically from country to country.

Users who participate in online communities linked to conspiracy theories show distinctive linguistic characteristics even when discussing apparently neutral topics, such as films, music, cooking or science, and even before they take part in conspiracy communities.

When English speakers say "rose" and Chinese speakers say "玫瑰," do they mean the same thing? A Peking University team led by Professor Bi Yanchao explored this question using word embeddings from 53 languages, behavioral ratings from speakers of eight languages and exploratory multilingual brain imaging data. Published in Nature Communications, the study shows that word meanings are organized along shared neurocognitive dimensions, while differences across languages are associated with climate.

Japan is experiencing historically high numbers of foreigners. Its population is shrinking, and its workforce is aging, driving foreign labor to historic levels.