Out of the Ooze

Navigating the 21st century with a stone-age mind

Frank T. McAndrew Ph.D.

3 Keys to the Power and Meaning of Eye Contact

Eye contact amplifies both positive and negative emotions. Sometimes disconcerting, sometimes welcome, our gaze says a lot.

How We Really Choose Our Friends

Calling someone a "friend" elevates them to an important status in our life. How do we decide where to draw the line?

Who Is Willing to Risk Their Life to Save Others and Why?

Heroic actions are intuitive, even impulsive, rather than a product of thoughtful deliberation.

The Difference Between Being Cool and Being Popular

Being cool and being popular are completely different things, and being high or low on one does not necessarily mean you will be high or low on the other.

Why Male and Female Friendships Are So Different

The lives of men and women could be very different in early human groups. What are the implications of this for modern same-sex friendships?

What Makes Someone Boring

There are consistent behaviors and interests that lead others to think of you as boring. What can you do to make yourself more interesting?

Career Advice and Encouragement for College Students

Worrying less about "the major" and grades and focusing more on being good at something can ease the stress of entering the workforce.

When Is Retirement a Blessing? And When Is It a Curse?

Your retirement experience is a function of the collision between what you are retiring “from” and what you are retiring “to,” and this plays out differently for each of us.

Does Having Expensive Things Make Someone More Attractive?

Conspicuous consumption by men primarily reflects an interest in short-term rather than long-term mating. Women accurately detect it.

Why Intelligent Men May Not Be So Attractive After All

Do you think that intelligence in men is sexy? You may want to think again.

Why Some People See Ghosts While Others Never Do

Some individuals are more likely to encounter ghosts than others. Why?

What Makes Some Conversations So Great

Have you ever walked away from a conversation with a new acquaintance buoyed by a sense of rapport and "chemistry"? It may be due to a good fit between your conversational styles.

Why People Can't Stop Thinking About What Might Have Been

Thinking about the ways in which our life might have played out differently serves a useful psychological function—even when it makes us unhappy.

What Is Your "Style" For Dealing With Conflict at Work?

Understanding how one typically approaches workplace conflict can go a long way toward helping a person become a more satisfied and effective worker.

Why Does Tuesday Have Less "Personality" Than Other Days?

When asked to name their overall favorite day of the week, fewer people name Tuesday than any other day; it even comes in behind lowly Monday.

How Do We Name Adopted Children?

How do names help adoptive parents manage the balance between honoring a child's past and integrating them into a new extended family?

When Do Attitudes Predict Behavior?

The evidence is that attitudes can be good predictors of behavior—as long as we understand the constraints that they operate under.

Where Is That Fine Line Between Terror and Delight?

Why do we love exposing ourselves to things that terrify us? It may be just another form of play.

Why the Choice of Your Child's Name Matters So Much

When parents choose whimsical names for children, is it because they forget that the child will carry that name for an entire lifetime?

Psychology Explains Why War Heroes Are Not "Losers"

Heroes are held in such high esteem because they set aside any thoughts of their own well-being for the good of their group. However, is there more to the story?

A Snapshot of Life in a 19th-Century Insane Asylum

There was a movement to make the treatment of mental illness more humane during the 1700s and 1800s, but what did day-to-day life actually look like in the insane asylums of 1854?

Three Reasons Why Happiness Is So Elusive and Fleeting

Recognizing that happiness is a delightful visitor that never overstays its welcome may help us appreciate it more when it arrives.

COVID Parties? The Reckless Psychology of Being Young

The potentially deadly recklessness of young people has its roots in very old human psychology.

The Eternal Challenge of Conformity Pressure

Why do we all want to be nonconformists, just like everyone else?

Five Reasons Why Being Home All the Time Is So Hard

When the lockdown began, few of us grasped how long it might last and how dramatically we underestimated its emotional toll.

Why Face Masks Give Us the Creeps

The face mask controversy may have stumbled into that part of our psyche that gives us the creeps, especially during times of uncertainty.

Is Your Personality Stressing You Out?

We often blame external factors for our stress, but sometimes we need to look within ourselves.

How Does Your House Look Through the Eyes of a Burglar?

None of us want to believe that our homes are inviting targets for a robbery, and we think that we have taken adequate precautions. We should think again.

Why Small Talk Is a Big Deal

Some people hate small talk because they perceive it as a waste of time, but is it actually an important social skill?

Why We Love Big, Blood-Curdling Screams

We’re probably the descendants of individuals who were good screamers and were also good at reading the screams of their fellow humans.

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