PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Overspent this Christmas? Blame the ostrich problem!

2013-12-17
(Press-News.org) Contact information: Clare Parkin
clare.parkin@sheffield.ac.uk
01-142-229-851
University of Sheffield
Overspent this Christmas? Blame the ostrich problem! It's the festive season, time for eating, drinking and being merry, and any thoughts of reaching goals like losing weight or keeping on top of finances go out of the window.

And now a team of psychologists at the University of Sheffield have carried out new research which suggests that burying our head in the sand instead of trying to meet our targets this month is completely understandable - in fact we are motivated to do so.

Dr Thomas Webb, from the University's Department of Psychology, is the lead researcher on a project looking at the effect that monitoring progress can have when striving to achieve a goal. His research suggests that despite evidence that monitoring can help people to reach their targets, like regularly stepping on the scales when trying to drop a few pounds, there are times when individuals intentionally avoid such information.

"There will be plenty of us over the Christmas period who will not check our bank balance or look at the calories on the back of the box of mince pies despite us wanting to be in control of our money or lose weight," said Dr Webb.

"The project proposes that there is an 'ostrich problem' such that people bury their heads in the sand."

Although there may be practical reasons why people do not monitor their progress (for example, sometimes we can find the information too difficult to interpret, such as complicated nutrition labels or cryptic energy bills), Dr Webb says that research into the ostrich problem suggests that there are also motivated reasons for avoiding information as well.

"The ostrich problem is the idea that there are times when people would rather not know how they're doing," he said. "Avoiding monitoring may allow people to escape from negative feelings associated with an accurate appraisal of progress. For example, people might not want to know how much money they have spent or what their partner thinks of their social skills. We call this motivated inattention."

Dr Webb said that promoting lasting changes in people's behaviour was one of the most significant challenges facing science and society. His four-year project - which ends in 2015 and has been funded by the European Research Council (ERC) - seeks to understand why people avoid monitoring their goal progress and, by so doing, find ways to promote monitoring and help people to achieve their goals.

### A link to a paper describing The Ostrich Problem can be viewed online via http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/spc3.12071/pdf


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

UCLA study challenges long-held hypothesis that iron promotes atherosclerosis

2013-12-17
UCLA study challenges long-held hypothesis that iron promotes atherosclerosis A UCLA research team has found no evidence of an association between iron levels in the body and the risk of atherosclerosis, the hardening and ...

New gene mutation will help better diagnosis of myopathy

2013-12-17
New gene mutation will help better diagnosis of myopathy A new gene mutation which will help doctors give a more accurate diagnosis of a particular type of brain and muscle disease in children has been discovered for the first time by University of Leeds experts. Mitochondrial ...

Social benefits of regret, ethics of gift giving in business, humor after a hurricane

2013-12-17
Social benefits of regret, ethics of gift giving in business, humor after a hurricane New research in our journals The social benefits of regret As the year draws to an end, regret often comes to mind – regret of trips not taken, ...

Radiation therapy to treat uterine cancer linked with increased risk of bladder cancer later in life

2013-12-17
Radiation therapy to treat uterine cancer linked with increased risk of bladder cancer later in life Radiation therapy used to treat uterine cancer may increase a patient's risk of developing bladder cancer. That is the conclusion of a recent study published in BJU International. ...

Traffic jams lend insight into emperor penguin huddle

2013-12-17
Traffic jams lend insight into emperor penguin huddle Emperor penguins maintain the tight huddle that protects them from the harsh conditions of an Antarctic winter with stop-and-go movements like cars in a traffic jam, a new study has shown. By using ...

Fracking chemicals disrupt hormone function

2013-12-17
Fracking chemicals disrupt hormone function Endocrine-disrupting activity linked to birth defects, infertility found near drilling sites Chevy Chase, MD—A controversial oil and natural gas drilling technique called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, uses ...

Vanderbilt study: Ancient chemical bond may aid cancer therapy

2013-12-17
Vanderbilt study: Ancient chemical bond may aid cancer therapy Researchers included 48 middle- and high-school students in five states, from Arkansas to Maine A chemical bond discovered by Vanderbilt University scientists that is essential ...

Embargoed news from Annals of Internal Medicine -- Vitamin supplements a waste of money?

2013-12-17
Embargoed news from Annals of Internal Medicine -- Vitamin supplements a waste of money? Annals of Internal Medicine tip sheet for Dec. 17, 2013 1. Physicians urge, 'stop wasting money on vitamin and mineral supplements' Editorialists responding to three ...

Lion numbers could improve with new sustainable hunting quotas

2013-12-17
Lion numbers could improve with new sustainable hunting quotas Researchers have devised a simple and reliable way to set sustainable quotas for hunting lions, to help lion populations to grow, in a new study. Trophy hunting occurs in 9 of the ...

4 degree rise will end vegetation 'carbon sink'

2013-12-17
4 degree rise will end vegetation 'carbon sink' Latest climate and biosphere modelling suggests that the length of time carbon remains in vegetation during the global carbon cycle - known as 'residence time' - is the key "uncertainty" in predicting how ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Thirty-year mystery of dissonance in the “ringing” of black holes explained

Less intensive works best for agricultural soil

Arctic rivers project receives “national champion” designation from frontiers foundation

Computational biology paves the way for new ALS tests

Study offers new hope for babies born with opioid withdrawal syndrome

UT, Volkswagen Group of America celebrate research partnership

New Medicare program could dramatically improve affordability for cancer drugs – if patients enroll

Are ‘zombie’ skin cells harmful or helpful? The answer may be in their shapes

University of Cincinnati Cancer Center presents research at AACR 2025

Head and neck, breast, lung and survivorship studies headline Dana-Farber research at AACR Annual Meeting 2025

AACR: Researchers share promising results from MD Anderson clinical trials

New research explains why our waistlines expand in middle age

Advancements in muon detection: Taishan Antineutrino Observatory's innovative top veto tracker

Chips off the old block

Microvascular decompression combined with nerve combing for atypical trigeminal neuralgia

Cutting the complexity from digital carpentry

Lung immune cell type “quietly” controls inflammation in COVID-19

Fiscal impact of expanded Medicare coverage for GLP-1 receptor agonists to treat obesity

State and sociodemographic trends in US cigarette smoking with future projections

Young adults drive historic decline in smoking

NFCR congratulates Dr. Robert C. Bast, Jr. on receiving the AACR-Daniel D. Von Hoff Award for Outstanding Contributions to Education and Training in Cancer Research

Chimpanzee stem cells offer new insights into early embryonic development

This injected protein-like polymer helps tissues heal after a heart attack

FlexTech inaugural issue launches, pioneering interdisciplinary innovation in flexible technology

In Down syndrome mice, 40Hz light and sound improve cognition, neurogenesis, connectivity

Methyl eugenol: potential to inhibit oxidative stress, address related diseases, and its toxicological effects

A vascularized multilayer chip reveals shear stress-induced angiogenesis in diverse fluid conditions

AI helps unravel a cause of Alzheimer's disease and identify a therapeutic candidate

Coalition of Autism Scientists critiques US Department of Health and Human Services Autism Research Initiative

Structure dictates effectiveness, safety in nanomedicine

[Press-News.org] Overspent this Christmas? Blame the ostrich problem!