EurekAlert! News by Subject: Social & Behavior - Home

Social & Behavior

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 29-Oct-2026 21:16 ET (30-Oct-2026 01:16 GMT/UTC)

Why moths have a preferred side: Smart solutions for small brains

University of Konstanz
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Just as humans exhibit right- or left-handedness, moths also have a preferred side on which they place their proboscis when inspecting a flower for nectar. This observation was made by Konstanz-based biologists in their latest study. The researchers see this as an example of nature efficiently coping with the limited computational capacity of the insect brain.

ELTE ethologists’ service robot sparks curiosity rather than fear

Eötvös Loránd University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

When a robot offers you candy, it is hard not to be curious. In an experiment conducted by ethologists at ELTE, visitors at public events noticed an autonomous service robot more often than a human server, and the candy on the robot’s tray disappeared faster. The study also suggests that the presence of robots may influence the way people behave in social situations.

Journal: Computers in Human Behavior Reports

New review highlights gaps in care for First Nations children in Canada

University of Toronto
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study finds that First Nations Children still face long-standing inequalities in health care access in Canada despite improvements made through the application of Jordan’s Principle — a policy designed to ensure First Nations children receive the services they need.

Journal: Journal of Indigenous Social Development

Does debt increase suicide risk?

Wiley
Peer-Reviewed Publication

In a study published in Economic Inquiry that analyzed debt and income across US counties at the onset of the Great Recession in 2008, investigators have uncovered evidence that debt may impact the likelihood of suicide.

Journal: Economic Inquiry

Singapore has the world’s longest, healthiest lives — but also more years in poor health

National University of Singapore, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A global study found that Singapore ranked first in the world in 2023 for both life expectancy, at 85.4 years, and healthy life expectancy, at 74.1 years. However, the gap between the two widened to 11.2 years, up from 8.9 years in 1990, with women living longer than men but spending more years in poor health.

Journal: The Lancet Public Health

Are penalties a deterrent or a “price”?

Ehime University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

We examine whether penalties for long ground delays with passengers kept on board (i.e., lengthy tarmac delays) deter airline violations or are simply treated as a cost of doing business. Using severe-weather cases as a quasi-natural experiment, we compare penalized and non-penalized airlines with difference-in-differences methods. We find modest and inconsistent improvements. Deterrence is weaker when penalties are small relative to airlines’ net incomes, suggesting that some carriers may view them as routine business costs.

Journal: Transportation Research Part A Policy and Practice
Funder: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science

Try a little tenderness - new study into humans' closest ape relatives suggests physical touch can promote social harmony

Durham University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Physical touch may be an important evolutionary tool to help manage social tension and keep the peace.

That is according to a new study led by Durham University in the UK, analysing behaviours of our closest ape relatives, the bonobos and chimpanzees.

Journal: Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences
Funder: Templeton World Charity Foundation