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A long-term study by the Universities of Zurich and Utrecht has confirmed a dynamic correlation between self-esteem and sexual satisfaction. The results provide valuable insights about longstanding questions about whether better sex makes you feel better, feeling better makes you have better sex, or both.

Not all pain is the same. Depending on the cause, it requires different therapies. A team led by ETH Zurich has now developed a method that enables physicians to better distinguish between physical and psychosocial pain. Severe pain often has physical causes. But emotional, psychological and social factors can influence how we perceive and react to pain.

Lesbian, gay and bisexual people experience greater exclusion than heterosexual people. This is the conclusion of a recent study by researchers from the University of Basel and the University of Kaiserslautern-Landau (RPTU). Heterosexual individuals who deviate from traditional gender roles are also affected.

Scientists from the University of Geneva have discovered that fentanyl leads to the activation of two distinct cell populations in the brain, first when the drug is taken and then during withdrawal, suggesting a novel model for opioid addiction. Fentanyl is a particularly powerful synthetic opioid. Diverted from its original medical use, it has become a deadly drug responsible for three-quarters of overdose deaths in the United States.

Many people aspire to a successful partnership. But is this success determined by destiny, or does it result from working on the relationship? Researchers from the University of Basel have investigated the role of people's inner convictions on how they approach a relationship and how satisfaction develops over time.

Artificial intelligence (AI) can reliably detect emotions based on facial expressions in psychotherapeutic situations. These are the findings of a feasibility study by researchers from the Faculty of Psychology and the University Psychiatric Clinics (UPK) at the University of Basel. The AI system is also able to reliably predict therapeutic success in patients with borderline personality pathology.

A team from the University of Geneva has tested six psychological interventions to combat climate misinformation. It shows how difficult it is to combat these messages, which are resistant to scientific information. Melting of glaciers, rising sea levels, extreme heat waves: the consequences of climate change are more visible than ever, and the scientific community has confirmed that humans are responsible.

By comparing the dreams of Western and non-Western populations, a study by the University of Geneva and the University of Toronto shows that dreams can have a variable emotional function. Why do we dream? A product of our brain's neurophysiology, dreaming is a complex experience that can take on many emotional tones and simulate reality to varying degrees.

Professor Annegret Hannawa from USI Faculty of Communication, Culture and Society will conduct one of the sessions of the upcoming Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavík, Iceland. The conference is the largest annual international meeting on the Arctic, and over 700 speakers and more than 2000 participants from 60 countries are expected.

The way the brain regulates pupil size is different from previously thought: fundamentally responsible is the neurotransmitter orexin, as researchers at ETH Zurich have now shown. This discovery could well alter our understanding of consciousness and illnesses such as narcolepsy and Alzheimer's. "The effect was so strong, we knew immediately that we were onto something important," recalls Nikola Grujic, a postdoc in the Neurobehavioural Dynamics Laboratory at ETH Zurich.

People who meditate every day are less likely to avoid negative information. This is a finding in a new study by a research team including researchers from ETH Zurich. Smart decision makers gather all the pertinent information, and weigh the pros and cons dispassionately. This also includes gathering information that could prove unsettling or unpleasant.

A team from UNIGE, HES-SO Geneva and EPFL shows the positive impacts of musical activities to counteract brain ageing. Normal ageing is associated with progressive cognitive decline. But can we train our brain to delay this process? A team from the University of Geneva , HES-SO Geneva and EPFL has discovered that practicing and listening to music can alter cognitive decline in healthy seniors by stimulating the production of grey matter.

Mental health disorders affect nearly one billion people worldwide and are a leading cause of suicide. A study by the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) has now found that the risk to commit suicide increases for people exposed to high levels of transportation noise. The results were published today in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

Mental health disorders can only be diagnosed on the basis of symptoms - and individual outcomes cannot be accurately predicted. An ETH scientist hopes to change that with the help of mathematical models. Why do we have emotions? Klaas Enno Stephan, a professor at ETH Zurich and the University of Zurich, considers the question carefully before answering: "It seems very plausible that the purpose of the emotions is to make us aware of unconscious processes in the body." As a doctor and researcher, Stephan is particularly interested in the interaction between brain and body.

Treating post-traumatic stress disorder with EMDR has been proven to be effective, but the mechanisms behind this therapeutic technique remain poorly understood. Three researchers from the University of Freiburg suspect that working memory plays a crucial role . A person who has been assaulted is at high risk of experiencing psychological trauma.

A study by Swiss TPH and partners found that the COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in mental health concerns among mothers in Zambia. The study highlights the need for public health interventions for vulnerable groups in low-resource settings. The findings were recently published in the peer-reviewed journal PLOS One.

When children's sleep patterns are altered by external factors, this can have consequences. This is the conclusion of a study from the University of Freiburg, which analyzed the sleep of children during the pandemic and their behavior six months later . The confinement of spring 2020 clearly affected the sleep of babies and young children.

Can a Tweet or a post on Instagram tell us something about our mental health? How meaningful is the relationship between well-being and the use of these platforms? To answer these questions, Marta Fadda, a researcher in bioethics at Università della Svizzera italiana, Oliver Grübner, a health geographer, and Marcus Wolf, a psychologist, at the University of Zurich conducted a series of studies to demonstrate the usefulness of social platforms for mental health research.

Guilt is an uncomfortable feeling and can be burdensome. Researchers at the University of Basel have shown that placebos can help reduce feelings of guilt, even when the placebo is administered openly. People don't always behave impeccably in relationship to others. When we notice that this has inadvertently caused harm, we often feel guilty.

A team from the University of Geneva deciphers how negative emotions durably modify brain activity in the older adults . Negative emotions, anxiety and depression are thought to promote the onset of neurodegenerative diseases and dementia. But what is their impact on the brain and can their deleterious effects be limited? Neuroscientists at the University of Geneva observed the activation of the brains of young and older adults when confronted with the psychological suffering of others.