EurekAlert! News by Subject: Social & Behavior - News by Subject: Social & Behavior

Social & Behavior

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 20-Jan-2026 08:11 ET (20-Jan-2026 13:11 GMT/UTC)

19-Jan-2026

Socio-environmental movements: key global guardians of biodiversity amid rising violence

Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona
Peer-Reviewed Publication

A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) reveals that organized civil society and social mobilizations are key, yet often unrecognized, agents of global biodiversity conservation. By analyzing a global dataset of 2,801 socio-environmental mobilizations from the Environmental Justice Atlas (EJAtlas), the research identifies that local struggles against polluting industries are critical for protecting the planet’s biodiversity most sensitive regions.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

19-Jan-2026

Journal of Environmental Sciences Review explores micro(nano)plastic distribution and transport in hyporheic zones and groundwater

Editorial Office of Journal of Environmental Sciences

Micro(nano)plastics (MNPs) pose a global concern as an emerging environmental pollutant. However, their transport properties currently lack complete theoretical interpretation. In a recent review, researchers from China now provide a comprehensive summary of the present pollution status of MNPs in hyporheic zones and groundwater systems, explaining their transport process and proposing future research directions on MNPs.

Journal: Journal of Environmental Sciences

19-Jan-2026

When aging affects the young: Revealing the weight of caregiving on teenagers

Osaka Metropolitan University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Osaka Metropolitan University researchers conducted two surveys on young carers aged 15 to 19 across Japan during and after the COVID-19 pandemic to clarify how caregiving burdens affect their psychology and emotions.

Journal: Scientific Reports
Funder: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Women Researchers’ Support Office of Osaka Metropolitan University

18-Jan-2026

Autistic and non-autistic faces may “speak a different language” when expressing emotion

University of Birmingham
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Autistic and non-autistic people express emotions differently through their facial movements, according to a new study published in Autism Research, which may help to explain why emotional expressions are sometimes misinterpreted between the two groups. The landmark study conducted at the University of Birmingham produced 265 million data points while mapping facial expressions among autistic and non-autistic individuals.

Journal: Autism Research

16-Jan-2026

University of Phoenix releases white paper on Credit for Prior Learning as a catalyst for internal mobility and retention

University of Phoenix
Reports and Proceedings

A new white paper about credit for prior learning experience from University of Phoenix looks at how CPL can redefine how employers see professional development.

16-Jan-2026

Research suggests nationwide racial bias in media reporting on gun violence

University of California - Davis
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Mass shootings in white-majority neighborhoods received roughly twice the news coverage of mass shootings in neighborhoods where a majority of residents were people of color, while coverage of police-involved shootings was disproportionately high in majority-minority communities, according to new research.

This study by researchers at the University of California, Davis, Northwestern University and the University of Washington is thought to be the first to systematically document bias on gun-violence reporting in a large-scale, nationally representative sample of news media coverage, researchers said.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

16-Jan-2026

Public views about opioid overdose and people with opioid use disorder

JAMA Network
Peer-Reviewed Publication

About The Study: In this 2025 survey study, U.S. adults viewed opioid overdose as a serious problem. Different views on the degree to which individuals who use opioids, pharmaceutical companies, and governments are responsible for reducing overdose suggest that preferences for future actions to address overdose may vary among conservatives, moderates, and liberals.

Journal: JAMA Network Open