In Journal Club, students and professors talk together about exciting new psychology research. By reading and discussing a short, current article, students learn necessary skills about understanding and interpreting psychological research.
Schedule for Fall 2025
Monday, October 13, 4:30-5:30pm, Centenary Square 210
Discussion led by Dr. Jessica Alexander (PSY325 Learning & Memory)
The Superiority of Graphics Over Text in Long‑Term Memory Retention
Lorenzo Ciccione, Denis Caroti, Syalie Lium Valeria Giardino, Elena Pasquinelli, & Stanislas Dehaene
Graphical representations of data are pervasive in modern communication and are often used to convey socio-economic, scientific, and medical information. Despite their popularity, it is still unknown whether they can enhance the long-term retention of their content. We conducted a delayed-recall task with psychology undergraduates (N = 92), in which participants read about the evolution of a socio-economic phenomenon, with five to six datapoints presented as graphics, text, or table; recall was operationalized as correct reporting of the trend in the data, 2 h after the information was presented. We found that graphics facilitated the delayed recall of such trends. No advantage was found on immediate recall of trends or specific datapoints in another sample of participants (N = 80). Thus, even for equal initial encoding of data, and even for very concise materials, graphics facilitate long-term retention. Overall, the study reveals the potential of graphics as effective tools for enhancing memory retention and therefore highlights their valuable role in educational settings.
Tuesday, October 28, 4:30-5:30pm, Centenary Square 210
Discussion led by Dr. Mae MacIntire (PSY312 Drugs & Behavior)
Should Antidepressants be Used for Major Depressive Disorder?
Janus Christian Jakobsen, Christian Gluud, & Irving Kirsch
Background
Major depressive disorder is estimated by the WHO to affect more than 300 million people globally, making depression the leading cause of disability worldwide. Antidepressants are commonly used to treat depression.
Objective
The study aimed to provide an update on the evidence on the effects of antidepressants compared with placebo. Should antidepressants be used for adults with major depressive disorder?
Study selection
We searched the Cochrane Library, BMJ Best Practice and PubMed up to June 2019 with the search terms ‘depression’ and ‘antidepressants’ targeting reviews published in English since 1990.
Findings
Several reviews have assessed the effects of antidepressants compared with placebo for depression. Generally, all the previous reviews show that antidepressants seem to have statistically significant effects on depressive symptoms, but the size of the effect has questionable importance to most patients. Antidepressants seem to have minimal beneficial effects on depressive symptoms and increase the risk of both serious and non-serious adverse events.
Conclusions
The benefits of antidepressants seem to be minimal and possibly without any importance to the average patient with major depressive disorder. Antidepressants should not be used for adults with major depressive disorder before valid evidence has shown that the potential beneficial effects outweigh the harmful effects.
Wednesday, November 12, 4:30-5:30pm Centenary Square 210
Discussion led by Dr. Pete Zunick (PSY355 Prejudice & Stereotyping)
The Breadth of Confrontations as a Prejudice Reduction Strategy
Kimberly E. Chaney, Diana T. Sanchez, Nicholas P. Alt, &Margaret J. Shih
Past research on prejudice confrontations as a prejudice reduction tool has only examined bias that was implicated in the confrontation, such as the use of negative Black stereotypes after being confronted for using negative Black stereotypes. Examining the breadth of prejudice confrontations, we hypothesize that confronted individuals should subsequently use fewer negative and positive stereotypes about other racial minority groups, and fewer stereotypes about groups stigmatized along other identity dimensions (e.g., gender). In two studies, White participants confronted for the use of negative Black stereotypes used fewer negative Latino stereotypes (Study 1), positive Black, but not Asian, stereotypes and fewer gender role stereotypes (Study 2). Additionally, participants confronted for female gender role stereotypes subsequently used fewer negative Black and Latino stereotypes 24–72 hr later due to greater racial egalitarian motivation (Study 3). Thus, prejudice confrontations have a broad effect on reducing bias toward multiple stigmatized groups across identity dimensions.
Thursday, November 20, 4:30-5:30pm, Centenary Square 210
Discussion led by Dr. Adam Blancher (PSY362 Foundations of Psychopathology)
article coming soon!
If you have questions, please contact Dr. Amy Hammond in the Psychology Department.