Situationism in the Blogosphere – September 2009, Part I

Below, we’ve posted titles and a brief quotation from some of our favorite non-Situationist situationist blogging during September 2009 (they are listed in alphabetical order by source).

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From Brain Blogger: “Religion – A “Natural” Phenomenon?”

“All human societies have some phenomenon that can be described as religion. It is difficult to understand why religion is so pervasive in human culture. Some theories suggest that religion is a byproduct of evolution. However, no other animal group has anything that even remotely resembles the concept that has been labeled as religion in anthropology.” Read more . . .

From BPS Research Digest: “Political activism is good for you”

“Aristotle argued that we’re political animals at heart and that active involvement in society fulfils a basic human need. It’s an idea that’s been rediscovered recently by psychologists interested in well-being and human flourishing. Now the positive psychologists Malte Klar and Tim Kasser have provided some tentative evidence that activists are happier than non-activists.” Read more . . .

From BPS Research Digest: “Physiognomy redux? Link found between facial appearance and aggression”

“Physiognomy – inferring personality traits from facial features – was outlawed by King George II in 1743, and has for many years been dismissed as a pseudoscience. However, modern research is showing not only that observers readily make inferences about other people’s traits based on their facial appearance, but that these inferences are often highly accurate.” Read more . . .

From Cognitive Daily: “We’re more likely to behave ethically when we see”

“[…] So it appears that all three of our initial questions about why we cheat play into real-world cheating. We’re influenced by our chances of getting caught, by how much attention we’re paying to the ethical issues involved, and whether or not people like us are doing it. And we reserve special disdain for our rivals, taking care not to behave in the unethical ways they do. Perhaps if the University of Chicago wants to cut down on theft in their cafeteria, what they really need to do is point out how often those unethical Northwestern students steal silverware.” Read more . . .

From Cognitive Daily: “Does rewarding altruism squelch it?”

“Imagine your neighbor has a dog that regularly escapes her yard. One day you see the dog escape and return it to her. She thanks you by giving you a piece of delicious home-made apple pie. This happens several days in a row. Then one day when you return the dog, there’s no pie, no thanks, and no explanation. Would you return the dog the next time it escapes?” Read more . . .

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For previous installments of “Situationism on the Blogosphere,” click here.