Ethics News

November 22, 2024

Top Headlines

Here's Something Americans Agree On: Sports Build Character

Nov. 21, 2024 — In a polarized nation, there is one thing that nearly all Americans agree on, according to a recent study: sports are good for us. Researchers found that more than 9 out of 10 Americans agreed that sports build character and improved one's health, ...

War Impacts the Function of Children's DNA and Slows Development

Nov. 20, 2024 — Children living in war-torn countries not only suffer from poor mental health outcomes, but war may cause adverse biological changes at the DNA level, which could have lifelong health impacts, according to a ground-breaking ...

How Flood Risk Affects Home Values

Nov. 19, 2024 — Houses for sale in a flood zone are around 10% cheaper than surrounding areas, according to new research. However, the reduced price tag is not worth the extra risk and can burden buyers with long-term insurance costs, according to new ...

'Jekyll and Hyde' Leaders Do Lasting Damage, New Research Shows

Nov. 16, 2024 — Employees struggle when supervisors swing between good and bad ...

Latest Headlines

updated 7:00pm EST

Nov. 18, 2024 — Alcohol-related deaths in the U.S. nearly doubled from 1999 to 2020. The sharpest spike occurred among 25- to 34-year-olds (nearly fourfold), while individuals aged 55 to 64 had the highest rates. ...

'Emotional Contagion' a Factor in Seniors' Mental Health

Nov. 11, 2024 — A new study finds that seniors who tend to mirror other people's feelings are more likely to show signs of being anxious or depressed ...

Are We Missing the Mark on Biodiversity? 90% of Countries Ignore Key Behavior Changes

Oct. 28, 2024 — There is a yawning gap between national policies to enhance biodiversity and the individual and small group behavioral changes that are critical to ...

'The Way to a Man's Heart Disease': Can Social Expectations of Masculinity Be Bad for Cardiovascular Health?

Oct. 25, 2024 — A new study found that higher levels of stereotypical male gender expression were associated with a decrease in reported diagnoses and treatment for ...

Experts Call for Clear and Concise Regulation of Exosome-Based Treatments

Oct. 24, 2024 — Clinics that offer exosome therapies claim they have the ability to repair and regenerate tissues and treat inflammatory and other immune-related conditions in a noninvasive way. Now, a team of ...

Adapting GenAI for the Next Generation of Learning

Oct. 23, 2024 — A new study by learning analytics researchers presents key considerations for generative AI (GenAI) educational tools so they are carefully developed to support, rather than replace, human ...

Ethical Framework Aims to Counter Risks of Geoengineering Research

Oct. 23, 2024 — A new report says any research into large-scale interventions in Earth's climate system must be grounded in sound ethical principles so society can make informed choices about whether to deploy ...

Geography: Improving Our Understanding of Complex Crises

Oct. 23, 2024 — Researcher presents a new model for risk research which takes interactions into account and brings together various ...

U.S. Infant Mortality Increased 7 Percent in Months Following Dobbs, Researchers Find

Oct. 21, 2024 — U.S. babies died at a higher rate in the months following the Supreme Court's 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health decision, and infant mortality was ...

Big Data, Real World, Multi-State Study Finds RSV Vaccine Highly Effective in Protecting Older Adults Against Severe Disease, Hospitalization and Death

Oct. 17, 2024 — This multi-state study is a real world data analyses of the effectiveness of the RSV -- short for respiratory syncytial virus -- vaccine. VISION ...

Only Certain Paranormal Beliefs May Be Linked With More Stress and Distress

Nov. 13, 2024 — In a new study, feelings of distress and reduced ability to cope with stress were associated with traditional paranormal beliefs, but not with new age ...

Organ Donation: Opt-out Defaults Do Not Increase Donation Rates, Study Finds

Nov. 13, 2024 — A recent study shows that switching to an opt-out organ donation policy, where all adults are presumed organ donors unless they explicitly opt out, does not increase donations from deceased ...

Power of Aesthetic Species on Social Media Boosts Wildlife Conservation Efforts, Say Experts

Nov. 8, 2024 — Facebook and Instagram can boost wildlife conservation efforts through public awareness and engagement, according to a new ...

From Compliance to Conversation: New Guidelines Push for Ethical Reflection in Research Reporting

Nov. 4, 2024 — A new study highlights key challenges and tensions in research ethics, particularly in light of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, and calls for the adoption of new research ...

Bystanders in a Combat Zone Are Treated as Guilty Until Proven Innocent

Oct. 23, 2024 — People's bias toward sacrificing unknown bystanders appears to stem from assuming the unidentified person is an enemy, according to a new ...

Workplace Culture and Social Relationships Are Associated With Workplace Bullying

Oct. 22, 2024 — Workplace bullying poses a serious threat to employees' health and well-being. A study sheds new light on the impact of social relationships on workplace bullying. Focusing on the dynamics of ...

The Transformative Power of Movies

Oct. 21, 2024 — Docudrama can lead people to be more empathetic toward people who are stigmatized in society, a new study ...

Model Reveals Why Debunking Election Misinformation Often Doesn't Work

Oct. 17, 2024 — A new computational model analyzes the factors that help determine whether debunking efforts will persuade people to change their beliefs about the legitimacy of an ...

Environmental Law Reform Needed to Protect Endangered Marine Species

Oct. 8, 2024 — Researchers are calling for reforms to Australia's environmental laws, as threatened fish species continue to be legally ...

Transition to a Circular Bioeconomy Requires Getting Prices Right

Oct. 8, 2024 — A circular bioeconomy that reduces and recycles waste, transitions away from fossil fuels to renewable bio-based alternatives, and regenerates natural systems is critical for feeding and fueling the ...

Are Auditory Magic Tricks Possible for a Blind Audience?

Oct. 4, 2024 — Magic tricks make the impossible seem possible. Magicians have long captivated audiences with visual tricks, such as pulling a bunny from a hat or sawing someone in half, but tricks that rely on ...

Bridging the Gap: How Pragmatic Trials Can Better Serve Healthcare Systems

Oct. 2, 2024 — A new thought piece highlights the challenges facing healthcare researchers and decision makers in the quest to improve population health in a constantly evolving healthcare landscape. The authors ...

Cool Roofs Could Have Saved Lives During London's Hottest Summer, Say Researchers

Oct. 1, 2024 — As many as 249 lives could have been saved in London during the 2018 record-setting hot summer had the city widely adopted cool roofs, estimates a new ...

How Social Structure Influences the Way People Share Money

Sep. 26, 2024 — A study of informal finance finds that in East Africa, money moves in very different patterns depending on whether societies are structured around family units or age-based ...

Multilingual Gossip in Elizabethan London

Sep. 24, 2024 — Stranger churches in early modern London had 'eyes everywhere' to hear, spread and dispel gossip in multiple languages, according to new ...

A Few Doctors Will See Some of You

Sep. 23, 2024 — Latino and Black family medicine doctors are significantly more likely to participate in the Medicaid program and care for higher numbers of Medicaid patients compared to their White and Asian ...

Networks of Beliefs Theory Integrates Internal and External Dynamics

Sep. 19, 2024 — The beliefs we hold develop from a complex dance between our internal and external lives. A recent study uses well-known formalisms in statistical physics to model multiple aspects of belief-network ...

One in Five UK Doctors Use AI Chatbots, Study Finds

Sep. 18, 2024 — A survey reveals that a significant proportion of UK general practitioners (GPs) are integrating generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, into their clinical workflows. The results highlight the rapidly ...

Unhealthy Behaviors Contribute to More Coronary Artery Disease Deaths in the Poor

Sep. 17, 2024 — Lower socioeconomic status is associated with higher rates of death from coronary artery disease compared to higher socioeconomic status, and more than half of the disparities can be explained by ...

People Aren't Volunteering as Much These Days: What Gives?

Sep. 17, 2024 — Volunteering used to be a mainstay of U.S. culture. But in recent years, giving back to their community hasn't played as big a role in many Americans' lives. New research suggests the ...