Psychology being science of common sense, and one of the things that make the field very interesting is that, research is very paramount to its success. From day to day, psychologists are conducting in-depth research that will impact the society either positive or negative. On this note, i’m bringing to you some mind-blowing psychological experiments ever carried out.
Though, i can’t cover all the amazing research ever done by renowned psychologists in this article, but my delight is to shine some light on the little i can afford, just to give you some wow moments.
Why do people react the way they do? or Do you have further misconception about psychology? Let’s clear the doubt, as i list some of the psychological experiments i gathered from notable psychology domains.
The placebo effect
The placebo effect explains how our mind and body works hand in hand.
As explained by Jeremy Dean Phd. Psychology. Perhaps you’ve had the experience that a headache improves seconds after you take an aspirin? This can’t be the drug because it takes at least 15 minutes to kick in.
Your mind knows you’ve taken a pill, so you feel better. In medicine it seems strongest in the case of pain: some studies suggest a placebo of saline (salty water) can be as powerful as morphine.
The Monster Study.
In 1939, Wendell Johnson of University of Iowa and his team hoped to discover the cause of stuttering by attempting to turn orphans into stutterers. Out of 22 young subjects, 12 of them were non-stutterers.
In the research, half of the group were exposed to positive teaching while the other group dealt with negative reinforcement. The teachers continually told the latter group that they had stutters. Notably, no one in either group became stutterers at the end of the experiment, but those who received negative treatment did develop many of the self-esteem problems that stutterers often show. The author’s interest in this experiment had to do with his own stutter as a child.
Piano Stairs
This Fun Theory proves that fun is the best way to get people to change their ways.
In the experiment, musical piano was set up over steps on the Sweden subway station staircase at Stockholm, to see if more people would be more willing to choose the healthier option and take the stairs instead of the escalator. That day, 66 percent more people took the stairs than usual. Proving that people’s behavior can be changed via some fun activities.
Fantasizing about future success reduces motivation
We often motivate ourselves by using fantasies or being optimistic about the future. Because, we all belief that dreaming about a positive future helps motivate us towards that goal. What if i said this isn’t true?
Jeremy reported that psychologists have reasons for saying fantasizing about future success is actually bad for motivation. And that is, getting a taste of the future now reduces the drive to achieve it. And there is better ways to commit a goal, other than using fantasies.
References:
- N Engl J Med: Is the placebo powerless? An analysis of clinical trials comparing placebo with no treatment.- 2001 May 24;344(21):1594-602.
- Pieter-Jan Maes : Action-based effects on music perception – Theoretical and Philosophical Psychology
- Gal, David, and Rucker, Derek, When in doubt, shout. Psychological Science, October 13, 2010
- Psyblog.
