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Editor's Selections: Power and Corruption, and Physical Punishment

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American


Ed Note: Part of my online life includes editorial duties at ResearchBlogging.org, where I serve as the Social Sciences Editor. Each Thursday, I pick notable posts on research in anthropology, philosophy, social science, and research to share on the ResearchBlogging.org News site. To help highlight this writing, I also share my selections here on AiP.

This week on Research Blogging:

  • At Psych Your Mind, Juliana Breines takes a closer look at the idea that power corrupts. She dissects three myths associated with this sentiment and finds little empirical support.


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  • Dr. Stu's presents arguments for and against physically disciplining children. He presents an interesting summary of the points with support from stats in countries where physical discipline has been banned and places where it has not, noting that happy families are the best environment for children.

I'll be back next week with more from anthropology, philosophy, and research.