The scientific study of society.
-4
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0answers
33 views
Is promiscuity a part of human genes? [closed]
I recently had quite an discussion with a female friend.
In my opinion humans are not monogamous by default, as this is not what we see in our closest relatives - bonobo chimps, and we likely to ...
-7
votes
2answers
461 views
Is Netherlands the least racist country in the world?
I have heard from my friends who are students of The Netherlands universities or are immigrants and live there with their families that this country is more welcoming to different people than the ...
2
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0answers
248 views
Do a third of Italian men live with their parents?
I have heard that Italian men live with their parents as a racial stereotype joke and from some Italian friends. They say that this is true because they have seen these people in their environments or ...
8
votes
2answers
665 views
Do casinos have a negative economic and social impact on the neighborhoods they are located in?
In a recent article of the Toronto Sun that discusses a proposed waterfront casino for the city of Toronto, the author Christopher Hume makes the following statement:
Experience around the world ...
6
votes
1answer
486 views
11
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2answers
472 views
Does “raising awareness” have a meaningful impact?
People often talk about the indirect value of "raising awareness" or "consciousness raising".
For issues that most people already know about (like cancer), is there value to raising awareness?
5
votes
1answer
482 views
Will people start running against glass doors if they cannot see through?
We have a bit of a discussion with the administration of our university about putting up posters on the glass doors in our campus buildings.
The hallways have a lot of doors made of glass which would ...
10
votes
1answer
579 views
Is preferred personal space affected by population density?
Many years ago, I learnt of the concept of "personal space" - the idea that people carry a small territory around them that they do not like strangers to invade.
In particular, the size of one's ...
12
votes
1answer
752 views
Is overpopulation a myth?
I happened across this website http://overpopulationisamyth.com, which raises some interesting arguments against the notion that overpopulation is a real problem.
Although it isn't obvious from the ...
10
votes
3answers
3k views
Is prostitution the oldest profession?
The Oxford Dictionary describes "Prostitution" as
the practice or occupation of engaging in sexual activity with someone
for payment
It is often referred to as "the oldest profession", e.g.
...
4
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0answers
161 views
Are there cultures who swear oaths of servitude for saving of a life?
In the book Robinson Crusoe (and to a lesser extent the movie Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves), there is a character who, when his life is saved by the protagonist, swears allegiance (and, basically, ...
8
votes
1answer
260 views
Does Santa Claus get more mail than any other fictional or divine entity?
Source
I was listening to the 2008 Christmas Special of the BBC radio programme The Unbelievable Truth, where the following was said to be true:
Santa has more mail than any other fictional or ...
3
votes
0answers
163 views
Does perceived peer acceptance have any significant influence on adult anti-social behavior?
This question was spawned as the result of a comment on another question
I am sure there are a number of jokes {about rape}! I am not so sure
that they are told so commonly to make any ...
47
votes
2answers
2k views
Are girls and boys pre-programmed to behave… like girls and boys?
My dad claims that even as toddlers, my sister and I knew which toys to play with. For example, I would always pick up toy guns, Action Man, and other similar toys. She would always pick up Barbie. He ...
17
votes
1answer
3k views
Are people who win the lottery more likely to go bankrupt?
It's been suggested that people who win the lottery are more likely to go bankrupt than if they had not. For example, an article on Smartmoney states:
More than 1,900 [lottery] winners went ...
9
votes
1answer
486 views
If 1 in 10 is convinced, will the rest follow?
This sounds completely bogus to me, but the source is reputable:
Scientists at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have found that when just 10 percent of the population holds an unshakable belief, ...
23
votes
3answers
839 views
Can the Overton Window be deliberately moved by espousing extremist views?
The Overton Window is a political theory that 'describes a "window" in the range of public reactions to ideas in public discourse, in a spectrum of all possible options on a particular issue.'
When I ...
9
votes
2answers
551 views
Are food deserts a real phenomenon?
According to Wikipedia, a food desert is a low income area where people there cannot access high quality or nutritional food, due to either a lack of transportation or a lack of real grocery stores.
...
24
votes
4answers
2k views
Do other animals have non-reproductive sex?
You can view the lecture here. At about the 11:40 point the claim is made that humans are the only species that engage in non-reproductive sex.
Is there solid evidence for or against the idea that ...
8
votes
1answer
1k views
Are children from divorced families more likely to become divorced themselves?
I've heard people making this claim both in real life and on TV; but I think one can also argue that children growing up with separated parents are more likely to be careful when getting married, and ...
13
votes
3answers
3k views
Is asexuality real?
I read here about human asexuality, and I cannot figure out if it's real or if people are just making stuff up. Have studies been done about this phenomenon and what explains it?
15
votes
2answers
4k views
Do dentists have an unusually high suicide rate?
Source
It seems to be a common belief and I have heard it mentioned in movies (e.g. The Whole Nine Yards) and TV shows (e.g. Seinfeld):
Dentists have the highest suicide rate
of any profession
...
12
votes
1answer
450 views
Does addressing the issues focused on by the Broken Windows theory have a measurable impact on crime?
These are excerpts from what could be considered the source for the Broken Windows theory (emphasis added):
[A]t the community level, disorder and crime are usually inextricably linked, in a kind ...
21
votes
1answer
2k views
Do nice guys finish last?
xkcd' #513 Friends by Randall Munroe
You might think this is something men parrot to justify their lack of luck with the ladies, but ask any androphile and we'll tell you there's just ...
11
votes
1answer
483 views
Does 'Rubber Necking' happen after an accident?
When two cars get into an accident the cars around them need to slow down to avoid hitting the cars involved in the collision. This causes a backup in traffic. People have often told me that traffic ...
12
votes
1answer
1k views
Are suicide rates higher during week-ends and holidays?
In the ever growing series of questions about time or weather dependencies of crime or other kinds of behavior, I have heard several times people pretend that the suicide (and attempted suicide) rate ...
4
votes
1answer
158 views
Have any questions where the underlying cause was thought to have had both a psychological and social component been thoroughly settled?
In an answer to Are human beings naturally predisposed to believe in God? one answer makes the following claims:
Note that social-mental questions as basic as "is Sex innate?" or "IQ, breeding or ...
23
votes
2answers
2k views
Were Kinsey's studies debunked?
To quote from a comment on my recent answer (emphasis mine):
Your quoting of Kinsey's bogus studies on homosexuality -- criticized heavily by famed statistician John Tukey -- makes me severely ...
20
votes
2answers
1k views
Is there any scientific evidence regarding measurable adverse effects (if any) of child rearing by homosexual human couples?
There is a widespread belief that there are adverse effects on children reared in same-sex-parents households compared to male+female household (I can add random googled cites if necessary, but the ...
