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trust

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·September 15, 2025·2 min read

Brain Circuits Show Why Friends’ Lies Are Easier to Believe

Researchers explored how people process deception from friends versus strangers, using brain imaging to study decision-making in gain and loss contexts. Volunteers were more likely to believe lies in situations promising rewards, with brain activity highlighting circuits for risk, reward, and intention.

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Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 23, 2025·5 min read

Why People Trust Those Who Grew Up With Less

New research reveals that people are more likely to trust others who grew up in lower-income households than those from privileged backgrounds. Across multiple experiments, participants consistently showed greater behavioral trust toward individuals with modest upbringings, seeing them as more moral and trustworthy.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 3, 2025·4 min read

Listening Builds Trust, But Stories Change Minds

A new study challenges the widely held belief that high-quality, nonjudgmental listening is essential for persuasion. While good listening improves how people feel about a conversation and reduces defensiveness, it doesn’t enhance the impact of persuasive messages.

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Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·January 29, 2025·5 min read

How Large Social Circles Foster Trust

A new study challenges the belief that larger groups reduce cooperation, showing instead that flexible social connections enhance teamwork. Researchers found that in a prisoner’s dilemma game, participants in bigger groups cooperated more frequently, despite memory limitations.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·November 22, 2024·5 min read

AI Summaries Simplify Science, Boosting Public Understanding and Trust

AI-generated summaries make scientific studies more accessible and improve public trust in scientists. Using GPT-4, researchers created simplified summaries that were easier to read and understand than human-written ones.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 25, 2024·5 min read

Trust Levels in Scientists: Who Tops and Who Flops?

A new study revealed varying levels of trust in scientists across 45 different fields, highlighting how perceptions of competence and morality influence public confidence. Conducted with 2,780 U.S. participants, the research found that trust levels varied significantly, with neuroscientists and marine biologists ranking highest, while political scientists and economists were trusted less.

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Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 11, 2024·5 min read

Those Who Use Willpower Deemed More Trustworthy

Individuals who rely on willpower to resist temptations are perceived as more trustworthy than those using external commitment strategies like swear jars or internet-blocking apps. This study involved over 2,800 U.S. participants in online experiments, comparing perceptions of integrity between those using internal versus external methods for achieving goals.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience Psychology

·February 21, 2024·4 min read

Genes Play a Key Role in Trust

Genetic factors account for approximately 33% of the variation in trust levels between individuals, highlighting the heritable nature of this crucial social trait. The research utilized data from twins and a comprehensive analysis of previous studies to explore the genetic and environmental influences on trust.

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Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·September 25, 2023·5 min read

Congress Tweets: Belief-Speak, Facts, and Trustworthiness Decoded

A new study delves into the tweet behavior of Congress members over the last decade. Both Republican and Democratic politicians have shown an uptick in sharing their convictions and beliefs along with evidence-backed information.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles Psychology

·March 6, 2023·5 min read

Brains With Compromised Trust Settings a Warning Sign of Lurking Depression

Shrunken gray matter volume in brain areas associated with social cognition and a compromised ability to trust others is linked to depression vulnerability and could be used as a biomarker for the onset of depressive symptoms, a new study reports.

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Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·March 10, 2022·4 min read

How Toddler-Mother Attachment Impacts Adolescent Brain and Behavior

Teens who had an insecure attachment to their mothers as toddlers are more likely to overestimate the trustworthiness of strangers, a new study reports.

This shows a mix of real people's faces and AI generated faces

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·February 14, 2022·3 min read

AI Generated Faces Are More Trustworthy Than Real Faces Say Researchers Who Warn of “Deep Fakes”

People have trouble distinguishing between real people's faces and AI StyleGAN2 synthesized faces. People also consider AI-generated faces to be more trustworthy.