psychology Archives - News@91��ɫ

Prof Emeritus Gordon Flett discusses the importance of mattering on The Oprah Podcast��

egamulin — Tue, 27 Jan 2026 15:29:37 +0000

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At least one in three family members of those with serious mental illness feel stigmatized

egamulin — Thu, 27 Apr 2023 12:00:00 +0000

New study by 91��ɫ researchers points to need to reach out to ‘very marginalized group’ who’ve been made to feel they don’t matter

TORONTO, April 27, 2023 – Families of those with serious mental health issues feel stigmatized and alone, say 91��ɫ researchers in a new study.

“We are avoided. When we told our family, they shut us out, I am so hurt, and so angry” – 62-year-old mom with an adult son with serious mental illness, as described to 91��ɫ researchers.

It’s well known that those who have serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia face a great deal of stigma in society, but what has been less understood is the concept of “stigma by association” – the discrimination people close to them experience.

A team of 91��ɫ researchers looked at just that , published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, and found that one in three family members living with relatives who have serious mental illnesses experience stigma. Ahead of Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Mental Health Week, starting May 1, , lead author on the study describes this figure as “startling” and points to the need to do more outreach.

“We wanted to reach out to a group of people who we think have been especially marginalized and one of the things that we noticed right away, is that this is a group of people who have really not been well studied. And that really speaks to how isolated they are,” says Goldberg, a 91��ɫ Faculty of Health Professor with the Department of Psychology. “We found that family members were not receiving the social support they needed, even from other family members.”

Professor Joel Goldberg

The researchers, including 91��ɫ graduate researchers , and and 91��ɫ Psychology Professor and Canada Research Chair , reached out to groups like the Schizophrenia Society of Ontario, Reconnect Community Health Services, the CMHA and The Schizophrenia Society of 91��ɫ and were able to connect with 120 family members who were living with relatives with severe mental health challenges.

In surveys, family members described chronic feelings of blame, failure and loneliness. Overall, the researchers found many felt stigmatized, unsupported, and that their lives don’t matter. This last main finding builds on other work by Flett, who studies mattering, which is essentially the idea that all of us need to feel like we matter, and feeling like we don’t, a concept Flett describes as anti-mattering, can lead to a host of problems.

About one per cent of the population is affected by schizophrenia, commonly characterized by auditory hallucinations (“hearing voices”), delusions, and disordered thinking that can affect daily functioning.

“Unfortunately, it's a condition which has been really misrepresented in media portrayals. The few times when the public hears stories about people with schizophrenia, they hear about someone who hasn't been taking their medicine, or acts of violence,” says Goldberg. “These ideas become the basis of the stigma, and families are then associated with it.”

Goldberg says that it is very probable that the numbers of family members facing stigma are actually much higher as the cohort they studied were people already connected to support groups. From a public-health perspective, the study points to the need to reach out to not only those who have the illness, but also their families, who he describes as “very marginalized.”

“If you're made to feel insignificant, if you are feeling like those around you treat you as if you're invisible, this can have really harmful effects on your sense of well-being,” he says. “We're hoping with this Mental Health Week that this will give great attention to family members, and let them know that we do not see their lives as being insignificant, that we don't see them as being invisible, that their lives matter.”

About 91��ɫ

91��ɫ is a modern, multi-campus, urban university located in Toronto, Ontario. Backed by a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners, we bring a uniquely global perspective to help solve societal challenges, drive positive change, and prepare our students for success. 91��ɫ’s fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario’s Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education. 91��ɫ’s campuses in Costa Rica and India offer students exceptional transnational learning opportunities and innovative programs. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.

Media Contacts: Emina Gamulin, 91��ɫ Media Relations and External Communications, 437-217-6362, egamulin@yorku.ca

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91��ɫ U study reveals new findings about anti-Black bias in children

egamulin — Mon, 20 Feb 2023 19:57:00 +0000

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Is spontaneous sex better? New research casts doubt on commonly held belief

egamulin — Mon, 13 Feb 2023 14:57:29 +0000

TORONTO, Feb. 13, 2023 – The idea that spur-of-the-moment sex is the most passionate and satisfying is a deeply ingrained one in popular Western imagination, but calls this into question. In their latest study, psychology researchers from the Faculty of Health found that planning ahead can be just as sexy as sex that ‘just happens.’

91��ɫ PhD student and registered psychotherapist Katarina Kovacevic

“There can be a lot of resistance to asking clients to talk about and plan sex more, to work as a sexual team. I think it's because of what we see in the media, but the funny thing about that is there's so much planning that goes into those scenes — a whole production team is there, actors memorize their lines,” says Katarina Kovacevic, a registered psychotherapist specializing in romantic relationships and sexual issues, and PhD student at .

“What our new study found was that while many people do endorse the ideal of spontaneous sex, there was no difference in their reported satisfaction of their last actual sexual encounter – whether it was planned or unplanned.”

For this research, published today in the Journal of Sex Research, two studies were conducted by Kovacevic, her supervisor, 91��ɫ Psychology Professor Amy Muise, and their collaborators. The first looked at more than 300 individuals in romantic relationships and asked them questions via an online survey. The second, had more than a hundred couples respond to daily surveys about their romantic and sex lives for three weeks. In both cases, they wanted to look at people’s beliefs about planned versus spontaneous sex, but also if these beliefs would translate into satisfaction with actual sexual encounters.

In the first part of the study, they did find that endorsing the idea of spontaneous sex being better, did correlate with reported satisfaction. While in the second study, when looking at participants’ last sexual encounter, they found there was no difference in how satisfying a sexual encounter was reported to be — based on whether it was planned or happened spontaneously – regardless of people’s beliefs.

“Generally, we did find that people endorsed the spontaneous sex ideal,” says Muise. “But, despite these beliefs, across our two studies we did not find strong support that people actually experience spontaneous sex as more satisfying than planned sex.”

Kovacevic says when therapists like herself talk about planned sex, they don’t necessarily mean scheduling it, and while planning sex may seem like a chore to some, anticipation can also sometimes lead to desire.

Psychology Professor Amy Muise

“When we suggest that couples or other romantic configurations carve out that time, we're not necessarily saying you put it into a calendar — like 7 p.m. on a Tuesday, after putting dinner in the oven and before folding the socks,” she says. “But the intentionality behind it can be transformative in the sense that we don't wait around for the right moment, because sometimes the mood just never strikes, really, for some people, and that might deter them.”

Additionally, Muise and Kovacevic remind us of how much planning goes into the important and enjoyable aspects of our lives, like going on vacation or pursuing a rewarding career, and that there is no reason sex cannot be the same. Since sex is important to many people, and has many health and relationship benefits, it makes sense to prioritize and approach sex in the same way.

With Valentine’s Day approaching, some folks might want to plan for sex ahead of time, but the key is “intention, versus expectation.” Kovacevic says expectations for sex during holidays, anniversaries, and birthdays can lead to folks feeling pressure. Instead, she recommends that romantic partners plan to regularly spend quality time together, without distractions, to keep the spark alive. If you are planning to have sex this Valentine’s Day, Muise says to “try to have it before the big meal and glasses of wine.”

Watch of video of Kovacevic .

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91��ɫ is a modern, multi-campus, urban university located in Toronto, Ontario. Backed by a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners, we bring a uniquely global perspective to help solve societal challenges, drive positive change, and prepare our students for success. 91��ɫ's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education. 91��ɫ’s campuses in Costa Rica and India offer students exceptional transnational learning opportunities and innovative programs. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.

Media Contact:

Emina Gamulin, 91��ɫ Media Relations, 437-217-6362, egamulin@yorku.ca

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Anti-Black bias can persist despite kids’ tendency to favour same-gender peers

egamulin — Wed, 01 Feb 2023 16:01:10 +0000

91��ɫ researcher says talking to children about race and racism in age-appropriate ways can help combat biases

TORONTO, Feb 1 2023 — Children as young as five can display more positive associations with white children over Black children on measures of unconscious bias and this can be true even when taking into consideration kids’ tendencies to favour same-gender peers. Taking an own-gender lens does, however, increase positive associations towards Black children, pointing to both the persistence of anti-Black racism, but also its contextual nature.

“I think for many Black parents this would not be a surprising finding, given their own lived experience,” says lead author Jennifer Steele, psychology professor with 91��ɫ’s Faculty of Health. “Racism continues to persist in our society and children are picking up on that. What it also points to is kids looking at race through a lens that can come in and out of focus, depending on what they are paying attention to.”

Steele has studied racial bias since she was a graduate student at Harvard and has led multiple studies on children’s implicit biases around race at 91��ɫ as director of the University’s . While she acknowledges that it can be uncomfortable to think of young children as displaying racial bias, she says it can be useful to acknowledge and discuss issues of racism on the path to tackling them.

Professor Jennifer Steele

“We like to believe that children are innocent beings that are naive to many of the realities in the world, and at times they are. But simultaneously, they're watching the way the world works and they are picking up on things that adults transmit, sometimes unintentionally. So, in some ways it’s surprising, in some ways it’s not that surprising that they start to show racial biases from quite early in development.”

For the study, recently published in the American Psychological Association’s Developmental Psychology, more than 200 non-Black children were recruited to complete an Implicit Association Test used to measure unconscious bias. Children were shown pictures of Black children, who they did not know and who were their same gender, and pictures of white children who were not their gender. That is, girls saw Black girls and white boys, while boys saw Black boys and white girls. Steele and her research partner found that the level of bias depended largely on how children thought about the faces.

When the girls were asked to think of the Black girls as girls, their positive associations increased relative to white boys, but when asked to think of the Black girls as Black, they favoured the white boys. The boys in the study showed the same pattern of own-gender favouritism when they were asked to think about Black boys and white girls as boys and girls. But racial bias was still found when these same faces were seen through the lens of race.

These findings suggest that racial bias can persist, but can also come in and out of focus, making it sometimes harder to consistently identify. While not explored in this particular study, Steele says that one important way for parents and educators to work on reducing bias, is through representation and having age-appropriate conversations about race.

“It is important for children to see many examples of the diversity of amazing people, from all walks of life, who contribute positively to our society,” she says.

About 91��ɫ

Media Contacts: Emina Gamulin, 91��ɫ Media Relations and External Communications, 437-217-6362, egamulin@yorku.ca

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Kids are surprisingly adultlike in their memory recall, 91��ɫ research shows

egamulin — Fri, 27 Jan 2023 15:00:44 +0000

TORONTO, Jan. 27 2023 – Planning a trip to the zoo this weekend? Why is it that after a visit, a four-year-old might remember seeing a lion, a tiger, and a bear, while a 10-year-old might also recall seeing a giraffe, a kangaroo, a pygmy hippo, a Komodo dragon, a ring-tailed lemur, and maybe even a West African dwarf crocodile? shows that while older kids have a superior memory, children as young as four show evidence of the sophisticated technique known as ‘temporal clustering,’ when recalling information.

“We often underestimate what children are capable of,” says from the Faculty of Health and Director of . “Our study — looking at kids not in a research lab, but out ‘in the wild’ — shows these universal memory properties are established at a very early age.”

The study’s authors, who also included 91��ɫ PhD students Lina Deker and Mark Christopher Adkins, and 91��ɫ undergraduate student Puneet Kaur Parmar, looked at children who took part in a week-long summer camp at the Toronto Zoo – a deliberate choice for Pathman, who has previously conducted research at various science centres and museums. “When we can get out into the world and capture real-life events to answer our research question, it helps to bolster what we're finding and make it more ecologically valid,” Pathman explains.

The children were on set schedules for visiting different exhibits, so the researchers knew which animals the kids saw when. The kids were divided into groups of four- to five-year-olds (defined as being in early childhood), six- to seven-year-olds (middle childhood) and eight- to 10-year-olds (late childhood). At the end of the week, the children were asked one simple question: ‘can you tell me all the animals you saw this week?’

“We were interested in how many animals children of different ages recalled. We found the expected pattern that older children recalled more animals than younger children. But we were especially interested in the order of their recall. Were children showing temporal clustering? And we found that they were.”

Temporal clustering — the idea that people remember things in groupings based on the timing of those experiences – is a well-documented process in adults. Pathman and her team have discovered that children as young as four search for memories using this same process.

“If a child’s recall response was ‘ostrich, gorilla,’ those would be animals that they saw in different spatial and temporal contexts. That is not an example of temporal clustering. But if the child said ‘ostrich, zebra’ — these animals were experienced together, so the response would show temporal clustering.”

Creating memories in space and time relies on a part of the brain called the hippocampus. Pathman says current research suggests this part of the brain continues to develop later into childhood than previously thought.

This study supports earlier findings by Pathman and others suggesting there is a jump in memory around age seven or eight and older kids do not display much difference in their memory processes compared to adults – especially when that memory is tested in a more naturalistic environment like a trip to the zoo, rather than a lab setting.

“I think a lot of attention has been paid to infancy, and the emergence of memory, but there's something that's happening in middle-to-late childhood that's really fascinating.”

About 91��ɫ

Media Contacts: Emina Gamulin, 91��ɫ Media Relations and External Communications, 437-217-6362, egamulin@yorku.ca

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Intercultural romantic relationships aid personal growth, 91��ɫ U researcher says

suhasini — Thu, 06 Oct 2022 14:05:44 +0000

Research by Social Psychologist Amy Muise and her team offers first look at how cultural differences can facilitate personal growth and relationship success

91��ɫ U Social Psychologist

TORONTO, Oct. 6, 2022 – Couples in intercultural romantic relationships benefit from each other’s cultural differences, as they are exposed to new perspectives, knowledge and identities, three recent studies conducted by 91��ɫ researchers indicate.

“Intercultural romantic relationships are increasingly common and although the obstacles such couples face are well-documented, the factors that facilitate their success are less studied,” says Social Psychologist, in the Faculty of Health at 91��ɫ, who is the senior author of a new paper. “Our current study results show that personal growth was associated with relationship quality and identity outcomes.”

” published today in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, is a research paper based on studies using cross-sectional, dyadic, over time, and experimental methods to understand the opportunities for growth through cultural sharing in a relationship.

The studies indicate that personal growth through a partner’s culture was uniquely related to identity outcomes, such as a greater cultural awareness, beyond general growth through the relationship. “Also, actively sharing cultures and discussing their differences was linked to more cultural and relational self-expansion, which in turn, differentially predicted partners’ relationship quality and cultural identities,” points out Muise, who is also the 91��ɫ Research Chair in Relationships and Sexuality.

These studies provide a first look at the role of self-expansion in intercultural relationships – demonstrating that the way couples negotiate their cultures is linked to both relational and personal outcomes.

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91��ɫ is a modern, multi-campus, urban university located in Toronto, Ontario. Backed by a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners, we bring a uniquely global perspective to help solve societal challenges, drive positive change and prepare our students for success. 91��ɫ's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education. 91��ɫ’s campuses in Costa Rica and India offer students exceptional transnational learning opportunities and innovative programs. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.

Media Contact:

Gloria Suhasini, 91��ɫ Media Relations, 647.463.4354, suhasini@yorku.ca

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Dancing with music can halt most debilitating symptoms of Parkinson’s disease

roshanp — Wed, 07 Jul 2021 12:44:33 +0000

First-of-its-kind 91��ɫ U study shows participating in weekly dance training improves daily living and motor function for those with mild-to-moderate��Parkinson’s

TORONTO, July 7, 2021 – A new study published in�� today, shows patients with mild-to-moderate��Parkinson’s disease��(PD) can slow the progress of the disease by participating in dance training with music for one-and-a-quarter hours per week. Over the course of three years, this activity was found to reduce daily motor issues such as those related to balance and speech, which often lead to social isolation.

Joseph��DeSouza,��senior author, principal investigator and associate professor in the Department of Psychology at 91��ɫ and PhD candidate Karolina��Bearss, found people with Parkinson’s (PwPD) who participated in weekly dance training, had less motor impairment and showed significant improvement in areas related to speech, tremors, balance and rigidity compared to those who did not do any dance exercise. Their data showed significant improvements in experiences of daily living,��which include cognitive impairment, hallucinations,��depression��and anxious mood such as sadness.��The study showed overall that��non-motor aspects of daily living, motor��experiences��of daily living, motor examination symptoms and motor complications did not show any impairment across time among the dance-trained PwPD group compared to PwPD who do not dance.

Photo Credit: Joseph DeSouza

The study is the first of its kind to follow PwPD over a three-year period during weekly dance participation with music, providing��additional��information regarding the nature of progression of motor and��non-motor PD symptoms.

“The experience of performing and being in a studio environment with dance instructors appears to provide benefits for these individuals,” said DeSouza. “Generally, what we know is that dance activates brain areas in those without PD. For those with Parkinson’s disease even when it’s mild motor impairment can impact their daily functioning — how they feel about themselves. Many of these motor symptoms lead to isolation because once they get extreme, these people don’t want to go out. These motor symptoms lead to further psychological issues, depression, social isolation and eventually the symptoms do get worse over time. Our study shows that training with dance and music can slow this down and improve their daily living and daily function.”

The goal of the research was to create a long-term��neurorehabilitation��strategy��to combat the symptoms of PD. In the study, researchers looked at how a��multi-sensory��activity, (like dance with music learning) which��incorporated��the use and stimulation of several sensory modalities in the dance environment including vision, audition, tactile perception, proprioception,��kinesthesia, social organization and expression, olfactory, vestibular and balance control��— may influence many of the mood, cognitive, motor and neural challenges faced by PwPD.

Researchers followed collected data from PwPD over three-and-a-half years while they learned choreography over the first year and performed it, that is designed to be adaptable to the disease stage and current symptoms for PwPD.

In the study, 16 participants with mild-to-moderate PD (11 males, five females) with an average age of 69, were tested between��October��2014 and��November��2017. They were matched for age and severity of disease. Each participant took part in a 1.25-hour dance class at Canada’s National Ballet School (NBS) and Trinity St. Paul’s church locations. Dancers participated in dance exercises which provided both aerobic and anaerobic movements. This group was then compared to 16��non-dance PwPD participants (the reference group) chosen from a larger PwPD ��cohort from the Parkinson’s Progression Marker Initiative (PPMI), a longitudinal research project funded by the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) and related funding partners.

Classes began with live music accompaniment during the seated warm-up, followed by barre work, and ended with moving across the floor. All participants learned choreography for an��upcoming performance. Researchers recorded videos, conducted paper and pen questionnaires of all participants and performed statistical��analyses.

“Dance is so complex, it’s a multi-sensory type of environment,” said Bearss. “It incorporates and stimulates your auditory, tactile, visual and kinesthetic senses and adds an interactive social aspect. Regular exercise does not offer these aspects. There’s so much more to dance.”

Researchers will next examine what occurs in the brain immediately before and after a dance class to determine what neurological changes take place.

“Currently there is no precise intervention with PD and usual remedies are pharmacological interventions, but not many options are given for��alternate��exercises or��additional interventions to push their brains,” said DeSouza. “Hopefully this data will shed light on��additional therapies for this group and be used in the treatment process. There may be changes in the brain that occur with dance with music, but more research is necessary.”

About 91��ɫ

91��ɫ��is a modern, multi-campus, urban university located in Toronto, Ontario. Backed by a diverse group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners, we bring a uniquely global perspective to help solve societal challenges, drive positive change and prepare our students for success. 91��ɫ's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education. 91��ɫ’s campuses in Costa Rica and India offer students exceptional transnational learning opportunities and innovative programs. Together, we can make things right for our communities, our planet, and our future.

��

Media contact:��Anjum Nayyar, 91��ɫ Media Relations, cell 437 242 1547,��anayyar@yorku.ca

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New research finds increased levels of brain activity during perceived altered state of consciousness

roshanp — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 14:23:04 +0000

TORONTO, April 19, 2021 − You feel like you’re floating or flying, or you have a hyper-awareness to light, smell and sound −��that perception of an altered state of consciousness is a result of increases in the brain’s signals and activity, according to a new study by 91��ɫ psychology researchers.

“We have a hint that there could be brain modulations that induce someone to get into a trance state through training,” says Psychology Professor Joseph DeSouza. “Our results show how, when a person thinks they are in an altered state, their brain activity actually changes. No one has been able to show this in consciousness studies. This is our first step toward scanning what is happening in the brain during trance.”

DeSouza, a member of 91��ɫ’s Centre for Vision Research, former postgraduate student Rebecca Rogerson, and postdoctoral researcher Rebecca Barnstaple,��conducted the study published in��.

During the study, the brain was scanned while the subject was in a trance state and the scan showed alterations in�� brain signals. The researchers found that regions in the brain were activated through music to induce this altered state of consciousness (ASC).

This is the first study to show heightened levels of brain activity in relation to perception of an altered state of consciousness − specifically trance − the researchers say. The findings may help shed light on how attention, volition, activation, and/or suppression of neural networks can play a role in consciousness.

In the research, researchers scanned the brain over eight minutes while the subject listened to five minutes��of trance-inducing music.�� The subject was observed to be in a trance state for two to five minutes and data from brain activation in both the auditory and orbitofrontal cortex were collected. Specific areas in the brain showed heightened modulations, including auditory (sound) and orbitofrontal. During the scan, the subject reported feeling physical sensations of tingling fingers, nausea, and a hyperawareness to light, odour, and sound normally associated with entering trance, saw themself flying or floating above an unknown locale and the subject also reported rapid fluttering of the eyelids, increased breathing, and an ecstatic feeling or sensation.

An altered state of consciousness can��change��how the��brain��works by diverting blood flow from the front of the��brain��to other areas.��Other common experiences that create��altered��states of��consciousness��are sleeping or daydreaming, sleep deprivation, euphoria or panic.�� Previous research has shown that meditation and hypnosis are other methods that can induce an altered state of consciousness and reduce stress and anxiety.

In some cultures, traditional healers are practitioners of ancient spiritual healing who commonly enter a trance state through fast rhythmic drumming techniques. During a trance state, the brain is able to supress external stimuli such as sounds. Despite the long history of trance by traditional healers, little is known about what happens in the brain and neural correlates.

DeSouza says that a task-specific brain network is created when these individuals train to become traditional healers, similar to those observed in�� professional musicians or dancers.

“Brain plasticity is achieved through training the brain and now can be seen in our study during an altered state of consciousness.�� This is a one-subject case study and needs to be replicated by our group and others.”

��

Media Contact:��

Anjum Nayyar, 91��ɫ Media Relations, cell 437 242 1547,��anayyar@yorku.ca

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Biases against bicultural people: 91��ɫ U research reveals unique societal challenges

roshanp — Wed, 12 Aug 2020 17:15:54 +0000

TORONTO, Aug. 12, 2020��–��New research from 91��ɫ found that even as those who belong to two different cultural groups in North America strive to be true to themselves and their cultural roots, they face social consequences when changing their behaviour to adapt and navigate different cultural situations.

In the new paper published in Alexandria West, a recent 91��ɫ PhD graduate working with Amy Muise, an assistant professor in the department of psychology in the Faculty of Health and 91��ɫ Research Chair in Relationships and Sexuality, showed, across several experiments, how “frame switching,” or adapting to different cultural frames, is perceived negatively. The research shows that in North America, frame switching bicultural people are seen as inauthentic, and in turn, are seen as less likeable, less trustworthy and not as warm or competent compared to biculturals who do not frame switch.

“Most people hold multiple social identities, cultural or otherwise, and the different groups we affiliate with may have different norms and values,” says Muise. “When you have multiple cultural identities you might do things to adapt your behaviour to meet the cultural expectations of your different groups. You can imagine in some cultures the way you treat elders may be different from greetings to hugs, or even the clothing you wear on certain holidays. Speaking one language in one culture or how you celebrate cultural occasions can all be part of frame switching.”

Researchers defined biculturals as people who belong to at least two cultural groups and can include immigrants and their progeny, biracials, and people who are immersed in multiple cultures. Previous research has found that frame switching helps biculturals gain acceptance and maintain relationships within each of their cultural groups, fostering better well-being. West and Muise found that frame switching by biculturals can be perceived as inauthentic to majority North Americans and this can have downstream social and relational consequences.

“The implications of the results of this research point to sources of conflict specifically, these perceived differences that we build up in our minds about people with multiple cultural backgrounds that make us behave in an ‘us versus them’ way,” says West. “We’re trying to shed light on what are these sources of bias that keep us from understanding each other and from being suspicious of each other. We also need to better understand how we can break away from external influences and better understand authenticity of people and their identities.”

In the first of three studies conducted, North American participants were randomly assigned to read and provide their impressions of one of three vignettes online: a) switching; where a person from two cultural groups changed behaviour depending on which cultural group they were with, b) no switching; the bicultural’s behaviour was the same no matter which group they were with and c) neutral; only the background information of a bicultural was provided, with no information on behaviour. Here, the analysis showed that participants saw the bicultural as less authentic when the frame switched than when the bicultural did not.

Study 2 replicated Study 1 but added information for participants that included a reason why the bicultural was changing their behaviour or frame switching. It was explained that they were not trying to deceive or manipulate others through this behaviour and instead were trying to be authentic to their dual identity. The results showed that this slightly mitigated participants’ perception of mistrust of the bicultural but not all negative perceptions were alleviated.

Study 3 looked at how frame switching by biculturals can impact romantic relationship prospects. ��Participants were led to believe they would see single men’s profiles from one or more cultural-niche dating sites. Instead, they only saw profiles created by the same bicultural highlighting different aspects of himself depending on the cultural context of the site. The analysis showed women viewing this profile formed less favourable impressions when the bicultural was frame switching and reduced participants’ attraction to him physically, and their endorsement of him as a dating partner.

“Most people hold multiple social identities, cultural or not,” says West. ��“More and more people are identifying as more than one culture at a time and that’s because they’re first or second-generation immigrants or they’re biracial or they’ve spent a long time in another culture and have become personally connected to it. All of these people who are naturally adapting through frame switching are facing these biases. We don’t as a culture have a good way of accommodating them mentally.”

Muise and West say as many nations become increasingly diverse, it is more important than ever to identify and break down these barriers to intercultural relations. Researchers add being bicultural can be challenging—not only must biculturals negotiate different cultural norms but they also face misunderstandings and discrimination from others.

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91��ɫ champions new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-disciplinary programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. 91��ɫ students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world’s most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. 91��ɫ U is an internationally recognized research university – our 11 faculties and 25 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, 91��ɫ is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 300,000 alumni. 91��ɫ U's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.

Media Contact:
Anjum Nayyar, 91��ɫ Media Relations, cell 437-242-1547,��anayyar@yorku.ca

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