Psychology | CAS in the Media | Washington State University

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Research: Women more sensitive to, affected by marijuana

July 3, 2014

After decades of researching gender differences in the effects of drugs, Rebecca Craft, professor and chair of psychology, has found that females using marijuana are likelier than men to become dependent on the drug and suffer more severe withdrawals.

At the same time, females seem to be more sensitive to the drug’s pain-relieving qualities.

Craft studies the effects of psychoactive drugs on rats and reported these findings most recently in journals such as Life Sciences and Drug and Alcohol Dependence. Her work, funded in part by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, focuses on the medical side of cannabinoids, the class of drugs found in marijuana.

A new target for alcoholism treatment: Kappa opioid receptors

May 23, 2014

The list of brain receptor targets for opiates reads like a fraternity: Mu Delta Kappa. Until now, the mu opioid receptor received the most attention in alcoholism research.

A new study in Biological Psychiatry, led by Brendan Walker, WSU associate professor of psychology, used a rat model of alcohol dependence to directly investigate the kappa opioid receptor (KOR) system following chronic alcohol exposure and withdrawal. These findings provide researchers with a potentially successful path to developing new drugs for the treatment of alcoholism.

Is exploding head syndrome the reason you can’t sleep?

May 7, 2014

Brian Sharpless, Director, Psychology Clinic — Brian Sharpless

Exploding head syndrome may sound like a made-up condition, but it’s a real and frightening medical disorder that’s also surprisingly common, according to a study led by Brian Sharpless, assistant professor of psychology at WSU.

People with exploding head syndrome (EHS) hear loud noises when going to sleep or on waking up. The type of noise can vary from explosions and fireworks to slammed doors, the sound of a gun firing, an enormous roar, shouting, thunder or a crack of lightning. The noises start suddenly and last for a few seconds.

“It can be very frightening and scary for those who do not know what is happening,” Sharpless said. It can lead to sleeping problems and worse: an attack may cause temporary tachycardia.

The study published in the journal Sleep Medicine Reviews suggests that the disorder may affect as many as one in 10 people at some time during their life. The most likely explanation is that there is some kind of temporary blip in the nerve cells of the brain during the switch from being awake to sleeping, Sharpless said.

45 undergraduates named top researchers in SURCA competition

April 28, 2014

Thirty-nine awards were presented recently to 45 WSU students—many in the College of Arts and Sciences—at the third annual Showcase for Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities (SURCA) 2014.

The work of 192 students University-wide was detailed in 11 oral and 145 poster presentations open to faculty, staff, students, and guests. More than 100 judges evaluated the presentations. The judges included WSU emeriti faculty and retirees, faculty, staff, and post-doctoral students as well as experts from companies outside of WSU.

While many students from urban campuses traveled to participate, SURCA was made available to two place-bound students thanks to web conferencing provided by the Global Campus. A Pullman student studying abroad in Mexico and a WSU Vancouver student who was unable to attend SURCA in person talked “live” to their judges who were in the senior ballroom of the Compton Union Building.

More about the competition and list of winners

The Confidence Gap

April 16, 2014

For years, women have kept their heads down and played by the rules, certain that, with enough hard work, their natural talents would be recognized and rewarded. Meanwhile, the men around them have continued to be promoted faster and paid more.

Evidence shows that women are less self-assured than men—and that success depends as much on confidence as on competence. WSU assistant professor of psychology Joyce Ehrlinger’s research is helping to explain why and what women can do about it.

Ehrlinger has studied the impact of women’s preconceived notions about their own ability on their confidence. She found that women’s comparatively lower confidence “led them not to want to pursue future opportunities.”

Find out more about The Confidence Gap in The Atlantic.