Cognitive & evolutionary science of imagination & religious, secular, conspiracy belief
Oxford, UK
Joined November 2009
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Tomorrow is #WorldImaginationDay! This year, consider what use imagination is - to be creative in arts & crafts? to daydream?
Read my article in the Psychologist (@BPSOfficial) to learn about imagination's central role in human evolution!
bps.org.uk/psychologist/use-…
New article in @ConversationUK about finding flow through hobbies 🎻🎾🎮 and how this can help with your focus in a highly distracting world:
theconversation.com/feeling-…
The article covers my recent publication w/ @MathiasClasen, describing four main functions of imagination: Supporting..
(1) planning and future thought 📝
(2) coping and emotion regulation 😖
(3) bonding and social needs 🫂
(4) identity and worldviews🌍
doi.org/10.1037/ebs0000397
Far from an idle & frivolous pursuit, imagination is one of our most fundamental evolutionary tools✨
If you are interested in this research, consider participating in our ongoing, anonymous fiction & coping mechanisms survey (10-15 minutes):
brookeshls.co1.qualtrics.com…
Happy WID!
Here Be Humans retweeted
Use your imagination! The unreal in everyday life…
On the eve of World Imagination Day, @herebehumans showcases a framework for understanding the importance of fiction and imagination.
bps.org.uk/psychologist/use-…
For yesterday's #WorldReligionDay, consider our research showing what religion can tell us about human nature.
Religious rituals may seem like either stifled Sunday mornings or exotic events in lands far away, but neither capture the reality of these events 🧵
..And recently for art performances. Like religious rituals, experiencing art together reduced people's self-boundaries, sometimes to the point of feeling merged with the other. 🤝 This increased self-other overlap was associated w/ increased bonding.🫂
doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/6atk…
Do you like listening to rock music?🎸Have you got 5-10 minutes?
brookeshls.co1.qualtrics.com…
Participate in this BSc psychology research, which involves listening to a rock song & noting your emotional responses, to help us understand the emotional impact.
Thanks for your time!
ALT An image of Led Zeppelin in concert in orange hues, with above it "The Emotional Impact of Rock Music", the Oxford Brookes University logo, and the text: "This study has been approved by the Psychology Research Ethics Committee at Oxford Brookes University."
For when the argument comes up again that the humanities and female or "diverse" university staff "brainwash" students into becoming 'woke' and leftwing, I present for your attention: Albert Einstein's essay "Why socialism" (1949): monthlyreview.org/articles/w…
Here Be Humans retweeted
Every winter, the NHS literally CHOOSES this situation.
It’s a choice.
There are many simple measures they could implement to reduce all infectious disease, eg respirators, air filters, ventilation, testing, separate waiting rooms, etc.
But they won’t do it.
It’s a choice.
Here Be Humans retweeted
It can’t make any sense to tax electric car drivers for not burning fossil fuels while allowing people that fly to pay no tax for burning fossil fuels. The answer is simple, extend the charging per mile to the airline industry. Fair, climate effective and tax raising - all at the same time.
bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0mx…
Here Be Humans retweeted
The cost of winter fuel payments is £3bn a year. The profits of the big four gas supply giants in 2023 were £65bn. It's hard to see any obvious policy conclusions here, but I'm sure top economists are working on the problem.
Very cool study on a very cool theory:
This study took us years and years, and it's finally out! 🥳 Here's years of our life in 60 seconds. 🚨 bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wil… @BPSOfficial @AlexEngPsych @liuqing_wei @Tongrongtian
Here Be Humans retweeted
Other studies have also shown how HEPA filters can really help reduce the spread of airborne viruses.
The UK CLASS-ACT study showed that Covid-related illness absence in schools was reduced by >20% when HEPA air filters were used in classrooms.
newscientist.com/article/239…
