Scott examines psychological phenomena attributed to the unconscious mind, noting many have failed to replicate, and suggests a shift away from the power of the unconscious in psychological research. Longer summary

This post explores the concept of 'voodoo death' and its parallels in psychology, suggesting that many psychological phenomena previously attributed to the power of the unconscious mind may be less significant than once thought. Scott examines several examples, including the placebo effect, stereotype threat, self-esteem, and social priming, noting that many of these effects have failed to replicate in recent studies. He proposes a pattern of shifting away from the power of the unconscious in psychological research, while acknowledging the limitations of his analysis. The post concludes by considering the implications for Freudian psychology and suggesting a need to reevaluate our understanding of the unconscious mind. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander critiques a study on gender gaps in academia, arguing it ignores actual measures of ability which better explain the disparities. Longer summary

Scott Alexander critiques a study claiming that women are underrepresented in fields perceived to require innate talent. He argues that the study ignores actual measures of ability like GRE scores, which correlate more strongly with gender representation. Scott shows that when controlling for GRE quantitative scores, there is little left to explain in terms of gender gaps in fields like mathematics. He suggests the study's findings are an artifact of using perceptions as a proxy for actual ability, and criticizes how the media has misinterpreted the results. Shorter summary

Scott Alexander critiques a study suggesting knowledge of ApoE4 gene status affects memory performance, arguing the results may be due to priming or stereotype threat rather than actual memory decline. Longer summary

Scott Alexander discusses a study by Lineweaver et al. that tested elderly adults for the ApoE4 gene, a risk factor for Alzheimer's. The study found that subjects who knew they had ApoE4 performed worse on memory tests than those who had it but didn't know. Scott critiques the study's methodology and interpretation, suggesting that the results might be due to priming effects or stereotype threat rather than actual memory decline. He expresses concern that the medical community might overinterpret these results and discourage genetic testing without sufficient evidence of harm. Shorter summary