Age and Empathy: Middle-aged are most likely to feel your pain
February 1st, 2013
ANN ARBOR, Mich.—Looking for someone to feel your pain? Talk to a woman in her 50s. According to a new study of more than 75,000 adults, women in that age group are more empathic than men of the same age…
Social networking: Gen Xers connect online as often as they socialize in person
January 31st, 2013
ANN ARBOR– Young adults in Generation X are as likely to connect with friends, family and co-workers online as they are in person, according to a University of Michigan study. In a typical month, adults in their late 30s report…
Jerome Johnston directs ISR Research Center for Group Dynamics
January 24th, 2013
ANN ARBOR—Jerome Johnston has been appointed director of the Research Center for Group Dynamics, part of the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research. “I am delighted to make this appointment. Jere has interesting new ideas for supporting junior faculty,…
High school jobs: Impact is different for whites and minorities
January 24th, 2013
ANN ARBOR — African American and Hispanic students are less likely than whites to work part-time in high school, according to a University of Michigan study. But those who do hold jobs tend to work longer hours, and are less…
Video games intensify anti-Arab stereotypes, new study shows
January 15th, 2013
ANN ARBOR – Playing violent video games about terrorism strengthens negative stereotypes about Arabs, even when Arabs are not portrayed in the games. That is one of the findings of an innovative new study in the January issue of Psychology…
Consumer confidence plunges in December
December 21st, 2012
ANN ARBOR—Confidence plunged in December as consumers confronted the rising likelihood that political gridlock would push the country over the fiscal cliff. Consumers were more pessimistic about their future finances, and more pessimistic about the outlook for the overall economy…
Teen smoking continues to decline
December 18th, 2012
ANN ARBOR— The 2012 national survey results from the Monitoring the Future study show a continuation of the declines in teen smoking in all three grades under study—grades 8, 10, and 12. Based on annual surveys of 45,000 to 50,000…
Rise in teen marijuana use stalls
December 18th, 2012
ANN ARBOR— National samples of 45,000 to 50,000 students in three grades (8, 10, and 12) have been surveyed every year since 1991 as part of the nationwide Monitoring the Future study. Among the most important findings from this year’s…
Media coverage, attitudes about Latinos drive immigration debate
December 7th, 2012
ANN ARBOR—The debate about immigration policies is shaped primarily by how one group feels about another—not solely based on economic concerns, according to a new University of Michigan study. White Americans’ feelings about Latinos, but not other groups, powerfully drive…
Dana Garbarski: The Role of Rapport in Sensitive Interviews
December 4th, 2012
Dana Garbarski is the winner of the 2012-2013 Charles Cannell Fund in Survey Methodology. Suppose your spouse had a serious illness today with very low chances of survival. First, what if he were mentally intact, but in severe and constant…