Tuesday, March 10, 2020

Among high-ability female students, being assigned a female professor leads to substantial increases in the probability of working in a STEM occupation & the probability of receiving a STEM master’s degree

The Effects of Professor Gender on the Post-Graduation Outcomes of Female Students. Hani Mansour, Daniel I. Rees, Bryson M. Rintala, Nathan N. Wozny. NBER Working Paper No. 26822, March 2020. https://www.nber.org/papers/w26822

Abstract: Although women earn approximately 50 percent of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) bachelor’s degrees, more than 70 percent of scientists and engineers are men. We explore a potential determinant of this STEM gender gap using newly collected data on the career trajectories of United States Air Force Academy students. Specifically, we examine the effects of being assigned female math and science professors on occupation choice and postgraduate education. We find that, among high-ability female students, being assigned a female professor leads to substantial increases in the probability of working in a STEM occupation and the probability of receiving a STEM master’s degree.


Males generally have a higher level of body appreciation than females

Meta-analysis of gender differences in body appreciation. Jinbo He et al. Body Image, Volume 33, June 2020, Pages 90-100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2020.02.011

Highlights
•    Males had higher levels of body appreciation than females.
•    Gender differences in body appreciation could be moderated by survey method.
•    Gender differences in body appreciation could be moderated by type of samples.
•    Gender differences in body appreciation could be moderated by age.

Abstract: There are a number of studies that have conducted comparisons of body appreciation between males and females. However, findings are largely inconsistent, making it unclear whether there are actual gender differences in body appreciation. With a meta-analytic approach, the current study quantitatively reviewed and synthesized previous findings, published up to May 2019, on gender differences in body appreciation. After searching and screening potential studies in four databases (i.e., PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global), we identified 40 relevant articles published from 2008 to 2019. A random-effects model reveals an overall estimate of gender difference in body appreciation of d = 0.27 (95 % CI: 0.21, 0.33; p <  .001); that is, males generally have a higher level of body appreciation than females, with a small effect size. Survey method, type of sample (cohorts), and age were identified as significant moderators that have contributed to the variability in previous findings. Future research and interventions in body appreciation may consider gender differences in their designs.


Blind at First Sight: On a first date, distinctive accuracy tends to be paired with lower romantic interest

Blind at First Sight: The Role of Distinctively Accurate and Positive First Impressions in Romantic Interest. Lauren Gazzard Kerr1, Hasagani Tissera, M. Joy McClure, John E. Lydon, Mitja D. Back, & Lauren J. Humani. https://osf.io/zyvj9/

Abstract: Viewing others with distinctive accuracy – the degree to which personality impressions corresponds with targets’ unique characteristics – often predict positive interpersonal experiences, including liking and relationship satisfaction. Does this hold in the context of first dates, or might distinctive accuracy have negative links with romantic interest in such evaluative settings? We examined this with two speed-dating samples (N1 = 172, Ndyad = 2407; N2 = 397, Ndyad = 1849). Not surprisingly, positive impressions of potential dating partners were strongly associated with greater romantic interest. In contrast, distinctively accurate impressions were associated with significantly less romantic interest. This association was even stronger for potential partners whose personalities were less romantically appealing, specifically, those lower in extraversion. In sum, on a first date, distinctive accuracy tends to be paired with lower romantic interest. The potential implications of distinctive accuracy for romantic interest and of interest for distinctive accuracy are discussed.

Keywords: Distinctive accuracy, positivity, first impressions, speed dating, attraction,

Contrary to widespread worries, health misinformation gains little traction on Facebook, and sex does not sell

Berriche, Manon, and Sacha Altay. 2019. “Internet Users Engage More with Phatic Posts Than with Health Misinformation on Facebook.” PsyArXiv. December 5. doi:10.31234/osf.io/nj2sr

Abstract: Social media like Facebook are harshly criticized for the propagation of health misinformation. Yet, little research has provided in-depth analysis of real-world data to measure the extent to which Internet users engage with it. This article examines 6.5 million interactions generated by 500 posts on an emblematic case of online health misinformation: the Facebook page Santé + Mag, which generates five times more interactions than the combination of the five best-established French media outlets.
Based on the literature on cultural evolution, we tested whether the presence of cognitive factors of attraction, that tap into evolved cognitive preferences, such as information related to sexuality, social relations, threat, disgust or negative emotions, could explain the success of Santé + Mag’s posts. Drawing from media studies findings, we hypothesized that their popularity could be driven by Internet users’ desire to interact with their friends and family by sharing phatic posts (i.e. statements with no practical information fulfilling a social function such as “hello” or “sister, I love you”).
We found that phatic posts were the strongest predictor of interactions, followed by posts with a positive emotional valence. While 50% of the posts were related to social relations, only 28% consisted of health misinformation. Despite its cognitive appeal, health misinformation was a negative predictor of interactions. Sexual contents negatively predicted interactions and other factors of attraction such as disgust, threat or negative emotions did not predict interactions. 
These results strengthen the idea that Facebook is first and foremost a social network used by people to foster their social relations, not to spread online misinformation. We encourage researchers working on misinformation to conduct finer-grained analysis of online contents and to adopt interdisciplinary approach to study the phatic dimension of communication, together with positive contents, to better understand the cultural evolution dynamics of social media.