EurekAlert! News by Subject: Social & Behavior

Social & Behavior

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 21-Jun-2026 10:16 ET (21-Jun-2026 14:16 GMT/UTC)

9-Apr-2026

Soundscapes from nearby forests are more uplifting than those from faraway places

German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Listening to one-minute-long audio recordings of forests had positive effects on people’s short-term wellbeing, especially when the recordings were from local temperate forests. This is the key finding of an experiment led by the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv). Study participants residing in Germany perceived soundscapes as more awe-inspiring and restorative when recorded in nearby forests than soundscapes that came from the tropics; higher or lower levels of animal diversity only had small effects on short-term wellbeing. The study has been published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology.

Journal: Journal of Environmental Psychology

9-Apr-2026

New 10K liquid SNP genotyping array for wax gourd

KeAi Communications Co., Ltd.
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers from China developed the first high-density 10K SNP array for wax gourd using genotyping by target sequencing (GBTS) technology, comprising 10,722 genome-wide SNPs distributed across the genome, including 278 associated with functional trait loci.

Journal: Journal of Integrative Agriculture
Funder: Science and Technology Talent Support Project of Hunan Province, China, Hunan Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Fund, China, Science and Technology Innovation Program of Hunan Province, China

9-Apr-2026

Older immigrants in Finland face everyday problems that impede the realization of their rights

University of Eastern Finland
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study conducted at the University of Eastern Finland highlights the challenges faced by older immigrants in Finland when seeking social and healthcare services, employment and citizenship.

9-Apr-2026

When the world becomes too loud: The sensory toll of trauma on young children

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Peer-Reviewed Publication

New research reveals that for many young children, the trauma of war can fundamentally alter how their nervous systems process and respond to the physical world. The study found that nearly half of the young survivors of the October 7 attacks developed atypical sensory patterns, causing common stimulus such as sounds, movements and touches to be perceived as overwhelming threats. These findings emphasize the critical importance of addressing sensory needs to ensure that daily environments no longer feel like a source of distress for children during their most vulnerable stages of development.

Journal: American Journal of Occupational Therapy

8-Apr-2026

World's largest study of human flourishing opens its data to the public

Baylor University
Reports and Proceedings

The Global Flourishing Study (GFS), the most comprehensive empirical investigation of human flourishing ever undertaken, today made its first two waves of data publicly available through the Center for Open Science at no cost and without pre-registration. Researchers, journalists, policymakers and the public can now freely access the dataset on the Open Science Framework (OSF) website.

Funder: John Templeton Foundation, Templeton Religion Trust, Fetzer Institute, Templeton World Charity Foundation

8-Apr-2026

UCF research to help inform statewide efforts to stop domestic violence and improve care for survivors

UCF College of Medicine
Grant and Award Announcement

Through a $257,384 two-year grant from the Florida Partnership to End Domestic Violence, faculty from the University of Central Florida’s Violence Against Women research cluster are conducting a statewide domestic violence needs assessment. Their findings will help policymakers and local agencies develop better strategies to fund and support domestic violence prevention programs that empower survivors.

8-Apr-2026

Male gender, marriage, and social support linked to flourishing mental health for older Canadians

PLOS
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In a new study, Canadian adults aged 65 and older were more likely to have flourishing mental health if they were male, married, and reported having social support, important spiritual beliefs, and excellent health, among other characteristics. Daniyal Rahim of the University of Toronto, Canada, and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS One on April 8, 2026.

Journal: PLOS One