A new Research Unit will examine conspiracy theories from a perspective that has received little attention to date: rather than focusing solely on their negative consequences, it will also investigate the functions they may serve for individuals, groups, and societies. The German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG) will fund the project at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz in collaboration with seven other research institutions over the next four years with approximately EUR 4 million.

New research finds an ADHD diagnosis gap for girls from multilingual and immigrant families.  ADHD is already known to be under-recognised in girls, whose symptoms are often less externally visible than those seen in boys. But this major new study suggests that language and cultural factors could further delay diagnosis, causing girls to miss out on vital support during some of the most important years of their education.

Cambridge scientists have shown that girls and boys show differences in what they pay attention to, even at birth. Since these differences are present so early, it is possible they emerge due to prenatal factors. The findings suggest that some psychological differences between males and females (such the development of social skills) may be influenced by both prenatal biology as well as later experience.

Social behavior is heritable but heterogeneous. An international team of EAGLE and R2D2-MH consortia researchers, led by the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands, conducted a large-scale genome-wide study of social behaviour in context, investigating two social domains at different ages and with multiple reporters. Identified patterns of genetic signals and genetic correlations, including links with mental health outcomes such as ADHD and autism, differed by context, offering new insight into neurodevelopment.

Dr. Wendy Harpham was 36 years old and a successful physician who prided herself on her empathy. Then she was diagnosed with cancer. Seeing things from the other side showed her how difficult being a patient can really be, and how much clinicians’ words impact how patients feel and what they do.