This week, we have Jan Dijkstra, University of Groningen, visiting and giving a talk in the Social, Economic, and Decision Psychology colloquium (title and abstract follow). 

Risk behavior in adolescence

A striking feature of adolescence is the rapid increase of youth engagement in risk behaviors, such as alcohol use and delinquency. In this presentation, I will elaborate on one explanation for the increase of risk behaviors in adolescence: the maturity-gap. Furthermore, I will zoom in on the role of peers by focusing on two distinct aspects of adolescent peer relations: status and friends. Using longitudinal social network analyses allows the understanding and unravelling of how peers matter for risk behaviors in adolescence.

This week, we have Sabina Hunziker, University Hospital Basel, give a talk in the Social, Economic, and Decision Psychology Colloquium (title and abstract follow). 

Communication in emergency situations

An acute emergency situation, such as the cardiopulmonary resuscitation is challenging, and needs good teamwork and communication skills.  In the last 10 years, our research group has focused on communication on the team level and between patients, relatives and health care workers in this difficult situation.  Using simulator-based study designs as well as real life observational studies, we found strong evidence, that proactive communication has influence on both, rescue team performance and psychological wellbeing of relatives. Based on these results, the current American Heart Association guidelines include recommendations for communication and teamwork teachings in the resuscitation training.

We had Paolo Riva, University of Milano-Bicocca, visit and give a talk in the Social, Economic, and Decision Psychology Colloquium, Nov 16, 2017 (title and abstract follow).

The Many Faces of Social Exclusion

Social exclusion has many faces. From ostracism on the playground to romantic rejection, bullying at work, and social disregard for the aged, individuals are at constant risk of experiencing instances of social exclusion, including ostracism, rejection, discrimination and dehumanization. These phenomena have a powerful impact as testified by their immediate influence on thought, emotion, and behavior. In this talk, I will present research showing that social exclusion can have implications concerning virtually all domains of psychological inquiry, including social psychology, developmental psychology, cognitive psychology, and clinical psychology. Then, I will review some of the possible psychological and neural approaches that can reduce the negative impact of social exclusion. Considering that the negative consequences of social exclusion have been widely documented, there is an urgent need for more research on interventions to reduce the detrimental impact of social exclusion.

Save the date: Brent Roberts, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (USA), will be giving a talk, Thursday, November 23, 2017, 18.30-19.30, at the Alte Universität (Hörsaal 101), Rheinsprung 9, 4051 Basel.