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Department News

White Western women under greater pressure to look thin

New research by our Psychology department has found that White Western women are less positive about their bodies and feel greater media pressure to be thin than Black Nigerian and Chinese women.
Diverse group of women in underwear in a line showing torso and upper legs only

Durham psychologist discovers goosebumps happen far more often than we think

A study by a Durham Psychology researcher has found that goosebumps happen far more frequently than you think - and you may not even know you have them.
Goosebumps on an arm

Why a social media detox may not be as good for you as you think

Associate Professor Niklas Ihssen and PhD student Michael Wadsley from our Department of Psychology explain how cutting your social media use dramatically or even avoiding it completely can reduce the positive effects of social media just as much as the negative ones.
Person looking at a smartphone

Graphic warning labels could reduce people’s meat consumption

A new study from our Department of Psychology has found that cigarette style graphic warning labels could reduce people’s meat consumption.
Someone handing a plate of food including a burger and salad to a customer

Dr Sheina Lew-Levy awarded prestigious ERC Grant for pioneering cultural research

Dr Sheina Lew-Levy from our top-rated Psychology department has been awarded a highly competitive European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant.
Sheina Lew-Levy

Defining what makes the best virtual first impression

A new study by psychologists at Durham has found the answers to creating the best first impression in a virtual meeting, such as Teams or Zoom, is a visual background of house plants and books.
Image contains three people pictured against three backgrounds, including a man with a background of books, a woman with a background of house plants and a man with a background of a walrus

Professor Graham Towl appointed to key crime reduction role

Professor Graham Towl has been appointed as the new chair of the Scottish Advisory Panel on Offender Rehabilitation (SAPOR) which is a key role to help reduce crime in Scotland.
Graham Towl leaning against a fence

Oldest engravings of fishing discovered in Ice Age art

New research has revealed 15,800-year-old engravings of catching fish in traps.
The engraving shows a fish is fusiform in shape, showing the head, dorsal, and ventral sections, with a partially visible forked tail.

Understanding early human cave art

A psychological phenomenon where people see meaningful forms in random patterns, such as seeing faces in clouds, may have stimulated early humans to make cave art.
A Palaeolithic painting of an aurochs from the cave of La Pasiega. The artist traced the natural cracks in the cave wall when painting the head, horns, and back leg of the animal

Chimpanzees are not pets, no matter what social media tells you

Research Associate Jake Brooker from our Department of Psychology studies the social and emotional behaviour of great apes. He explains that social media needs to recognise that putting exotic animals in a human context isn't cute and reflects animal abuse.
A chimpanzee looking directly into the camera

Development of communication in chimpanzees echoes that of human infants

Our closest living relatives could help us better understand how communication evolved in humans and how our own language skills emerge.
A young chimpanzee stands in grassland

Leading Forensic Psychologist appointed chair of regional research network

Congratulations to Professor Graham Towl who has been appointed the new Chair of a regional network of experts in prison and offender health and social care.
Graham Towl smiling wearing a suit and leaning against railings
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