May 2025· Behavioral and Brain Sciences· Vol 49· 7 citations· ⚡ 1 influential· 207 references
Medicine
Abstract
Short abstract For decades, we have known that developmental psychological findings primarily describe Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, Democratic (WEIRD) samples, unrepresentative of the developmental landscape of all humans. A new approach advocates for a Worldwide, In situ, Local, and Diverse (WILD: Newson et al., 2021) psychology. Here we evaluate the extent (Bard, 2022) to which developmental theories are WEIRD or WILD, by considering potential bias in one bottom-up theory (Shared Intentionality) and in one top-down theory (Attachment). Theories drive research and we provide Five Steps to Increase Inclusivity (from Bard et al., 2021) that will contribute to re-building developmental psychological theories to embrace WILDness. Long abstract Most scientists are aware that developmental databases derive primarily from Western, middle-class samples, but fewer are cognizant that developmental theories can be similarly biased. There is urgency in revising developmental theories, both scientifically (embracing diversity is essential to the study of human psychology) and applied (it is damaging to apply WEIRD standards/methods/theories to evaluate development in the multitude of non-WEIRD contexts). We evaluate the extent to which two prominent developmental theories are inclusive. We find that Shared Intentionality Theory is based on a WEIRD bias in the foundational databases: the core constructs lack culturally diverse data, undermining claims that this theory explains human-general social cognition. In Attachment Theory, we illuminate the lack of inclusivity in the core assumptions and resulting claims of the meaning and measure of the attachment system: this theory excludes cultural diversity in social-emotional constructs focused on communal orientations (e.g., interdependence, attachment networks) found in many people of the Global South and neglects culture-specific adaptive behavior patterns. Acknowledging the lack of inclusivity at the level of theory is necessary. We urge researchers to take a more WILD approach: obtain Worldwide samples, study development In situ, focus on Local cultural practices and ethnotheories, and consider development as Diverse. Being WILD entails attending to inclusivity during the entire research process, from framing the research questions to interpreting the data (e.g., respecting all adaptive behaviors in development). Five Steps for Increasing Inclusivity can be used as a practical guide to decenter psychological theories from their current WEIRD mindset.
The WEIRD framework-Western, educated, industrialized, rich, democratic-introduced in 2010 by Henrich et al. drew widespread attention to psychology's overreliance on Western samples and its assumption of universal human psychology. However, in this article I argue that the framework's popularization-particularly in work explaining the origins and consequences of WEIRD psychology-has paradoxically generated a new form of exceptionalism. By designating Western populations as psychologically "peculiar," the framework inadvertently maintains the West as the central reference point against which human variation is measured. I identify three mechanisms through which this occurs. First, the WEIRD acronym itself embeds developmental assumptions: Its components connote achievements rather than neutral differences, while implicitly defining non-WEIRD populations through deficit (uneducated, undeveloped, poor, authoritarian). Second, the comparative structure positions WEIRD populations as the persistent baseline, with non-WEIRD psychologies understood through their deviation from Western patterns rather than as autonomous systems. Third, cultural-historical accounts tracing WEIRD psychology to internal European developments risk obscuring how extraction and violence constituted the material conditions for Western institutional dominance. I propose that genuinely decentering Western psychology requires moving beyond binary comparative frameworks, developing research programs that engage diverse cultural psychologies on their own terms and transforming institutional structures that implicitly favor Western theoretical frameworks as unmarked universals.
Unknown authors· Perspectives on Psychologica...· 0 citations
It is widely believed that staying “true to ourselves” or behaving authentically is inherently adaptive and something we should strive for. Indeed, anyone who has tried to push themselves out of their comfort zone—by, for example, acting more sociable or more meticulous than usual—knows that it can be draining. By the same token, because personality expressions result from a complex interplay between persons and situations, people regularly behave out of character. Yet, the psychological consequences of doing so remain poorly understood. In this study, we first synthesize the theoretical frameworks and empirical evidence on the consequences of counterdispositional behavior, showing that findings are mixed and reflect considerable methodological heterogeneity across studies. Building on this synthesis, we identify key methodological challenges and provide guidance for how researchers can navigate them. Finally, we outline a forward‐looking research agenda, proposing that threshold perspectives and the cusp catastrophe model offer promising frameworks for understanding when and why deviations from one's baseline become psychologically costly. Specifically, we argue that identifying the motivational and situational factors that shape these thresholds represents a key avenue for future research, highlighting the need to account for the complexity of counterdispositional behavior rather than dismissing mixed findings as noise.
E. Kuijpers, Bart Wille, J. Hofmans· Social & Personality Psychol...· 0 citations
Demand artifacts stem from participants’ beliefs about treatment effects and motivations to respond in accordance with these beliefs. These artifacts typically build on subtle cues that exert extraneous influences unbeknownst to researchers, through processes that are not part of their stated theory. Demand artifacts threaten the internal and external validity of studies, and they have been supported across a wide range of psychological domains (e.g., clinical, cognitive, and social psychology, psychology of perception) and beyond (e.g., consumer research, experimental economics, psychosomatic medicine, neurosciences). This article reviews prominent methods used to address them. Our discussion is structured around Corneille and Lush's (2023) framework of demand effects, which distinguishes between participants’ hypothesis formation, motivation, and implementation strategies. We conclude this review by discussing three fundamental questions of broad interest: when should we care about demand artifacts, what is the best approach for addressing them, and how can we usefully build on demand artifacts?
O. Corneille, Chloé Fournier Bernard, P. Lush· Behavior Research Methods· 0 citations
The existence of mechanisms that operate below conscious awareness (e.g. unconscious bias, microtargeting, dark patterns) and the degree to which they may threaten our autonomy fascinate and challenge us in equal measure. Although concepts like free will and consciousness are being extensively debated in (experimental) philosophy, we know remarkably little about how everyday people perceive threats to their autonomy. Still, ethical debates and ensuing policy often assume that any manipulative attempt, conscious or otherwise, is perceived as worrisome and autonomy-threatening. The present work evaluates how these positions align with public perceptions of freedom and autonomy under conscious or unconscious manipulation. We take a novel approach by grounding experimental scenarios in situations members of the public have volunteered. Across three studies (N=1462), findings show that in realistic and relatable scenarios, people hold nuanced, pragmatic views. They are generally reluctant to conclude that choices are not free, even in cases of direct, successful, and inaccessible manipulation. When evaluating freedom of choice, people consider choice importance, victim identity (self vs. others), and the counterfactual case. Intriguingly, whether participants themselves like the outcome or not affects their evaluation of the victim's freedom, even if the victim's preferences are subverted. Overall, people judge there to be a lack of freedom only after a search across plausible causal factors fails to account for anomalous choice outcomes. We propose this as a viable rational cognitive process, contrasting with claims of public irrationality, underappreciation, or misunderstanding of core philosophical concepts.
C. Bechlivanidis, Magda Osman· Consciousness and Cognition· 0 citations
Decades of research has established that how we think about our goals shapes psychological well-being and daily behavior, yet much of what we know derives from paradigms that deliberately prompt goal cognition. Across two studies (N = 173), we developed and applied a novel hierarchical coding scheme to Think-Aloud Protocol recordings to understand whether these same processes emerge spontaneously in the stream of consciousness, whether they carry meaningful consequences for real-world behavior, and how they change in older age. We quantified participants’ spontaneous engagement in mental contrasting (MC), a self-regulatory strategy that links desired futures with present obstacles to facilitate solutions that promote effective goal pursuit, in the absence of instruction or prompting. In Study 1 (n = 77 young adults), higher depression and anxiety predicted less frequent spontaneous mental contrasting (MC3), while higher trait mindfulness predicted more frequent MC3 and less dwelling on obstacles. Study 2 (n = 95 younger and older adults) largely replicated and extended these findings, further revealing that despite a similar number of goal-related thoughts, older adults produced a higher proportion of MC3 thoughts relative to younger adults. Moreover, more frequent use of mental contrasting when spontaneously thinking about one’s goals predicted significantly greater goal progress and accomplishment over time, independent of age. These findings demonstrate that individuals spontaneously vary in the depth of goal-related elaboration during spontaneous thought, that these variations associate meaningfully with wellbeing and real-world goal success, and that spontaneous engagement in solution-focused goal elaboration seems to differ across the adult lifespan.
Vannia Puig Rivera, Quentin Raffaelli, Kate Chambers et al.· Research Square· 0 citations
Psychological wisdom research has shifted from characterizing rare exemplars and desired outcomes to specifying processes that support sound judgment under uncertainty. Yet it has advanced along two siloed research tracks: one on folk theories-cultural tools such as exemplars, narratives, heuristics (including proverbs and maxims), and standards of judgment-and the other on the mechanisms involved in wise judgment. This review bridges these research tracks using a situated metacognitive lens: Folk theories provide candidate attributes or strategies for action, whereas perspectival metacognition-the capacity to recognize epistemic limits, coordinate viewpoints, and track uncertainty and change-regulates their context-sensitive selection and use. We synthesize evidence connecting wisdom-related processes to emotional balance, relational well-being, cooperation, and reduced polarization, while noting boundary conditions. We show how this synthesis sharpens measurement trade-offs, highlighting the limits of global self-report and the advances in situated assessment. Finally, we summarize work on wisdom development and cultivation and consider the socioecological implications of wisdom research in an AI-shaped world.
Igor Grossmann, Nic M. Weststrate· Annual Review of Psychology· 0 citations
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