Citation	Abstract	Link
2026
Flóra Hann, Levente Rónai, Szabolcs Kéri, Bertalan Polner (2026). Usually, I don’t ruminate, only from time to time: disentangling the associations between trait and state measures of rumination and affect at multiple timescales. Cognition And Emotion, 1-20	Recent experience sampling research on affective functioning has emphasised the importance of short-term dynamics, yet rarely evaluates whether momentary measures are better explained by stable individual differences or by within-individual fluctuations. To address this issue, we (1) decomposed the variance in momentary affect explained by rumination across the between- and within-person levels, and (2) compared the predictive validity of state-based (mean state) and global (trait) self-report rumination measures of between-person differences. Our sample comprised 247 individuals who received eight questionnaires every day for up to 28 days, assessing their momentary affective states and emotion regulation, yielding 14,265 observations. Our results showed that rumination indices explained 2–3 times more variance in momentary negative affect at the between-individual level than at the within-individual …	Link
Szilárd Holka, Dániel Sörnyei, Ágota Vass, Levente Rónai, Kinga Farkas (2026). The network model of mentalization, social vulnerability and the self in autism: a comparison with neurotypical adults. Osf,	Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by alterations in social understanding and self-related experience that overlap with broader dimensions of psychosocial vulnerability. These domains are tightly interconnected, motivating the use of analytic approaches that can capture their organization as complex associations rather than as isolated dimensions. We applied network analysis to individuals with autism (N= 156) and matched neurotypical controls (N= 454). Gaussian graphical models were estimated using sum scores of psychosocial constructs, and networks were compared using centrality metrics and the Network Comparison Test. Compared to neurotypical participants, individuals with ASD showed higher levels of psychosocial difficulties and lower global network strength. Mentalization emerged as a central node in both groups, while autistic traits were more central in the neurotypical network and trait anxiety showed relatively higher centrality in the ASD network. These findings suggest that psychosocial vulnerability in autism is characterized by a distinct and less integrated network organization, with mentalization playing a central organizing role across groups and anxiety exerting a relatively greater influence in ASD. Network-based approaches may therefore help identify mechanism-relevant targets for intervention and refine dimensional models of social and self-related functioning in autism.	Link
2025
Tamás Nagy, Jane Hergert, Mahmoud Elsheriff, Lukas Wallrich, Kathleen Schmidt, Tal Waltzer, Jason Payne, Biljana Gjoneska, …, Eva Rubínová (2025). Bestiary of questionable research practices in psychology. Advances In Methods And Practices In Psychological Science, 8 (3)	Questionable research practices (QRPs) pose a significant threat to the quality of scientific research. However, historically, they remain ill-defined, and a comprehensive list of QRPs is lacking. In this article, we address this concern by defining, collecting, and categorizing QRPs using a community-consensus method. Collaborators of the study agreed on the following definition: QRPs are ways of producing, maintaining, sharing, analyzing, or interpreting data that are likely to produce misleading conclusions, typically in the interest of the researcher. QRPs are not normally considered to include research practices that are prohibited or proscribed in the researcher’s field (e.g., fraud, research misconduct). Neither do they include random researcher error (e.g., accidental data loss). Drawing from both iterative discussions and existing literature, we collected, defined, and categorized 40 QRPs for quantitative research …	Link
Erin M Buchanan, Kelly Cuccolo, Tom Heyman, Niels Van Berkel, Nicholas A Coles, Aishwarya Iyer, Kim Peters, Anna E van’t Veer, …, Hesam Ghasemi (2025). Measuring the semantic priming effect across many languages. Nature Human Behaviour, 1-20	Semantic priming has been studied for nearly 50 years across various experimental manipulations and theoretical frameworks. Although previous studies provide insight into the cognitive underpinnings of semantic representations, they have suffered from small sample sizes and a lack of linguistic and cultural diversity. In this Registered Report, we measured the size and the variability of the semantic priming effect across 19 languages (n = 25,163 participants analysed) by creating the largest available database of semantic priming values using an adaptive sampling procedure. We found evidence for semantic priming in terms of differences in response latencies between related word-pair conditions and unrelated word-pair conditions. Model comparisons showed that the inclusion of a random intercept for language improved model fit, providing support for variability in semantic priming across languages. This …	Link
Atakan M Akil, Renáta Cserjési, Dezső Németh, Tamás Nagy, Zsolt Demetrovics, HN Alexander Logemann (2025). The effect of transcranial direct current stimulation on frontal alpha asymmetry and visuospatial attention in food-reward contexts: a triple-blind randomized sham-controlled study. Bmc Psychology, 13 (1), 695	BackgroundResearch indicates a connection between right frontal brain activity dominance and the inhibitory system. However, the underlying brain mechanism regarding attentional control remains unclear. In this preregistered experiment, we explored the association between frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) — which is an electrophysiological measure of the difference in alpha power between the left and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex — and the behavioral and brain activity components of attentional bias and disengagement, as observed in a visuospatial cueing (VSC) task.MethodWe used a triple-blind randomized sham-controlled design with 65 (Mage = 23.93; SDage = 6.08; 46 female) healthy humans. Participants’ resting-state EEG was recorded to calculate FAA scores before and after 2 mA anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to the right frontal site for 20 min. They also completed a …	Link
Levente Rónai, Flóra Hann, Szabolcs Kéri, Bertalan Polner (2025). Thoughts Falling Apart: Disorganized Schizotypy Specifically Predicts Both Psychotic‐and Stress‐Reactivity in Daily Life. Journal Of Personality,	Objective Schizotypal personality traits, such as unusual experiences, odd beliefs, or social anhedonia, predict psychotic‐like experiences (PLEs) and heightened stress‐reactivity in daily life. Yet, in previous studies, stressor appraisal, but not exposure, was used to predict stress‐reactivity, which might be a consequence of behavioral sensitization rather than a valid predictor of it. Method We conducted an experience sampling study where 126 participants reported PLEs, event appraisals, and exposure to stressors, yielding 4611 observations. We tested the association of schizotypal traits with PLEs and event‐unpleasantness in interaction with stressor exposure. Results Disorganized (but not positive or negative) schizotypy predicted not only more intense PLEs but also higher PLEs in periods when stressor exposure had risen. However, in higher negative schizotypy, such PLE‐reactivity to stressors was …	Link
Levente Rónai (2025). Complex methods for capturing affect and cognition dynamics in the study of psychosis vulnerability and stress. __,	Cognition and affective functioning show considerable within individual variability that cannot be explained by individual differences. Understanding how psychological processes interact dynamically within individuals might contribute to mental health research. The psychopathological network approach models mental disorders as complex systems and the experience sampling method (ESM) captures real-time fluctuations in affect, cognition, and behavior. We used the ESM and the network framework along with other advanced statistical models across four studies to examine the between and within-individual associations of cognitive control, psychosis vulnerability, stress reactivity and emotion regulation. In Study I, we critically evaluated the psychopathological network approach, highlighting its strengths in identifying central components of psychological constructs and generating data-driven hypotheses. We also discussed concerns and critiques related to the psychopathological network approach. In Study II, we fit the network model to schizotypal traits in the general population. Cognitive disorganization emerged as the most central dimension, aligning with classical and recent theories of psychosis vulnerability and suggesting a key role in etiology of psychosis spectrum disorders. In Study III, we used ESM and multilevel models to investigate schizotypal traits and stress-reactivity. Again, disorganized schizotypy emerged as the strongest predictor of psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) and stress-reactivity in daily life, highlighting its role in psychosis vulnerability. In Study IV, fitting multilevel models, we explored the relationship between …	Link
2024
Luca Csirmaz, Tamás Nagy, Fanni Vikor, Krisztian Kasos (2024). Cognitive behavioral digital interventions are effective in reducing anxiety in children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal Of Prevention, 45 (2), 237-267	Anxiety disorders are the most prevalent mental health issues in childhood, yet most children do not receive treatment. With recent advances in technology, a growing number of digital anxiety interventions are becoming accessible. This study is the first meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness and usefulness of digital cognitive-behavioral anxiety interventions for individuals under the age of 18. Five electronic databases (PsycNET, Web of Science, Science Direct, Pub Med, SAGE Journals.) were systematically searched in 2021. Inclusion criteria were: randomized control trials with a wait list no treatment control, standalone to blended care with minimal therapist involvement, diagnosed anxiety disorder or elevated levels of anxiety, outcome anxiety levels had to be assessed by a clinician, or the patients themselves by a validated anxiety measure. We assessed and controlled for publication bias, and considered …	Link
Briana Oshiro, William HB McAuliffe, Raymond Luong, Anabela C Santos, Andrej Findor, Anna O Kuzminska, Anthony Lantian, Asil A Özdoğru, …, Jessica Kay Flake (2024). Structural validity evidence for the Oxford utilitarianism scale across 15 languages. Psychological Test Adaptation And Development,	Background: The Psychological Science Accelerator (PSA) recently completed a large-scale moral psychology study using translated versions of the Oxford Utilitarianism Scale (OUS). However, the translated versions have no validity evidence. Objective: The study investigated the structural validity evidence of the OUS across 15 translated versions and produced version-specific validity reports. Methods: We analyzed OUS data from the PSA, which was collected internationally on a centralized online questionnaire. We also collected qualitative feedback from experts for each translated version. Results: For each version, we produced version-specific psychometric reports which include the following:(1) descriptive item and demographics analyses,(2) factor structure evidence using confirmatory factor analyses,(3) measurement invariance testing across languages using multiple-group confirmatory factor analyses …	Link
Atakan M Akil, Renáta Cserjési, Tamás Nagy, Zsolt Demetrovics, Dezső Németh, HN Alexander Logemann (2024). The relationship between frontal alpha asymmetry and behavioral and brain activity indices of reactive inhibitory control. Journal Of Neurophysiology, 132 (2), 362-374	Reactive inhibitory control plays an important role in phenotype of different diseases/different phases of a disease. One candidate electrophysiological marker of inhibitory control is frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA). FAA reflects the relative difference in contralateral frontal brain activity. However, the relationship between FAA and potential behavioral/brain activity indices of reactive inhibitory control is not yet clear. We assessed the relationship between resting-state FAA and indicators of reactive inhibitory control. Additionally, we investigated the effect of modulation of FAA via transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). We implemented a randomized sham-controlled design with 65 healthy humans (Mage = 23.93, SDage = 6.08; 46 female). Before and after 2-mA anodal tDCS of the right frontal site (with the cathode at the contralateral site) for 20 min, we collected EEG data and reactive inhibitory performance in …	Link
Tamas Nagy, Henriett Ipacs, Eszter Ferentzi, Ferenc Köteles (2024). Heart rate perception and expectation impact laboratory-induced perceived stress. International Journal Of Psychophysiology, 199, 112326	Previous studies have shown that the human capacity to gauge one's own physiological state is notoriously flawed. The cause for the mismatch between perceived and physiological stress has not yet been properly identified. In this study, we assumed that cardioceptive accuracy (CAc) is positively associated with cardiovascular reactivity, and CAc and expectation about stress might account for the discrepancy between perceived and physiological stress. In a crossover experiment, we assessed cardioceptive accuracy in two ways (mental heartbeat tracking task and perception of heart rate), and induced physiological (handgrip exercise) and mental (N-back task) stress in 64 university students (51 % male, mean age 22.2). We assessed cardiac and electrodermal activity, and expected and perceived stress. We found that indicators of cardioceptive accuracy were not associated with cardiovascular reactivity …	Link
Nándor Hajdú, Barnabás Szászi, Balázs Aczél, Tamás Nagy (2024). Felügyelt gépi tanulási módszerek alkalmazása a pszichológiai kutatásokban. Magyar Pszichológiai Szemle, 79 (2), 171-193	A pszichológiai kutatások számos területén hasznosítható a felügyelt gépi tanulás, amelynek alkalmazásával összetettebb adatok elemzése válik lehetségessé. Célunk, hogy bemutassuk a felügyelt gépi tanulás fajtáit, működését és használatát a pszichológiai kutatásokban. Áttekintjük a gépi tanulás előnyeit, valamint a túlillesztés, torzítási hiba és adatvariabilitás fogalmait, amelyek segítenek a modellválasztásban, és az eredmények robusztusságának biztosításában. Röviden bemutatjuk továbbá a legfontosabb felügyelt gépi tanulási algoritmusokat, és leírjuk a változók és adatok előkészítésének legfontosabb lépéseit. Egy példaelemzés keretében bemutatjuk, hogyan modellezhető egyetemi hallgatók lépcső és lift közötti választása felügyelt gépi tanulással. A cikk végén kitérünk a gépi tanulás korlátaira és annak helyére a pszichológusok oktatásában. Reméljük, hogy a bemutatott ismeretek segítenek a …	Link
Atakan M Akil, Renáta Cserjési, Tamás Nagy, Zsolt Demetrovics, HN Alexander Logemann (2024). The effect of unilateral hand muscle contraction on frontal alpha asymmetry and inhibitory control in intrinsic reward contexts, a randomized controlled trial. Scientific Reports, 14 (1), 27289	Challenged inhibitory control has been implicated in various disorders, including addiction. Previous research suggests that asymmetry of frontal brain activity, indexed by frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA), is associated with inhibitory control and could be a target for neuromodulatory intervention. Some evidence suggests that unilateral muscle contraction (UMC) can modulate FAA; however, experimental evidence is scarce. We conducted a randomized controlled trial, with 65 participants (Mage = 26.6; SD = 7.4), 37 of whom were females. We collected EEG data to calculate FAA and assessed inhibitory performance using the Stop Signal Task (SST) in neutral and intrinsic reward (palatable food) conditions, both before and after a unilateral left-hand muscle contraction task aimed at enhancing right relative to left frontal activity. We found a significant main effect of group on FAA. Specifically, UMC group was …	Link
Levente Rónai, Flóra Hann, Szabolcs Kéri, Ulrich Ettinger, Bertalan Polner (2024). Emotions under control? Better cognitive control is associated with reduced negative emotionality but increased negative emotional reactivity within individuals.. Behaviour Research And Therapy, 173, 104462	Associations between impaired cognitive control and maladaptive emotion regulation have been extensively studied between individuals. However, it remains unclear if this relationship holds within individuals. In this study, we tested the assumption that momentary within-person fluctuation in cognitive control (working memory updating and response inhibition) is associated with emotional reactivity in everyday life. We conducted an experience sampling study (eight two-hourly prompts daily) where participants repeatedly performed short 2-back and Go/no-go tasks in daily life. We assessed negative and positive affective states, and unpleasantness of a recent event to capture emotional reactivity. We analyzed two overlapping samples: a Go/no-go and a 2-back dataset (N = 161/158). Our results showed that better momentary working memory updating was associated with decreased negative affect if the recent …	Link
2023
Suzanne Hoogeveen, Alexandra Sarafoglou, Balazs Aczel, Yonathan Aditya, Alexandra J Alayan, Peter J Allen, Sacha Altay, Shilaan Alzahawi, …, Gustav Nilsonne (2023). A many-analysts approach to the relation between religiosity and well-being. Religion, Brain & Behavior, 13 (3), 237-283	The relation between religiosity and well-being is one of the most researched topics in the psychology of religion, yet the directionality and robustness of the effect remains debated. Here, we adopted a many-analysts approach to assess the robustness of this relation based on a new cross-cultural dataset ( participants from 24 countries). We recruited 120 analysis teams to investigate (1) whether religious people self-report higher well-being, and (2) whether the relation between religiosity and self-reported well-being depends on perceived cultural norms of religion (i.e., whether it is considered normal and desirable to be religious in a given country). In a two-stage procedure, the teams first created an analysis plan and then executed their planned analysis on the data. For the first research question, all but 3 teams reported positive effect sizes with credible/confidence intervals excluding zero (median reported …	Link
Patrik Koncz, Zsolt Demetrovics, Zsofia K Takacs, Mark D Griffiths, Tamás Nagy, Orsolya Király (2023). The emerging evidence on the association between symptoms of ADHD and gaming disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 106, 102343	The co-existence of gaming disorder (GD) with other mental health problems has been widely reported. Despite the growing research interest in the comorbidity of GD with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), to date, no quantitative synthesis has been performed. The present study comprised a systematic literature search using Scopus, Science Direct, Web of Science, and PubMed databases. Three types of studies were included in the analyses: studies reporting (i) correlation coefficients between the symptoms of GD and ADHD, (ii) means, and standard deviations for comparison of GD severity between ADHD/non-ADHD individuals, and (iii) comparison of ADHD severity between GD/non-GD individuals. The results indicated a moderate relationship between GD and ADHD symptom severity when both subdomains of ADHD were combined (r = 0.296), and also when only inattention (r = 0.306) or …	Link
Janos Salamon, Brian D Blume, Gábor Orosz, Tamás Nagy (2023). The moderating effect of coworkers’ training participation on the influence of peer support in the transfer process. European Journal Of Training And Development, 47 (10), 15-36	Purpose The impact of the number of coworkers participating in training on transfer outcomes has largely been overlooked. This paper aims to examine whether the number of coworkers participating in training interacts with peer support (PS) to influence training motivation and transfer. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected using a cross-sectional survey from a sample of 688 employees working in 14 midsize and large companies. All participants were recent trainees in various open skill (e.g. leadership) training programs. Moderated mediation was used to test the hypotheses. Findings Motivation to transfer (MTT) mediated the relationship between PS and perceived training transfer. When more coworkers participated in the training, PS had a stronger influence on trainee MTT. Practical implications Organizations should …	Link
Jenny Terry, Robert M Ross, Tamás Nagy, Mauricio Salgado, Patricia Garrido-Vásquez, Jacob O Sarfo, AH van Hoogmoed, SHG van der Ven, …, AP Field (2023). Data from an international multi-centre study of statistics and mathematics anxieties and related variables in university students (the SMARVUS dataset). __,	This large, international dataset contains survey responses from N = 12,570 students from 100 universities in 35 countries, collected in 21 languages. We measured anxieties (statistics, mathematics, test, trait, social interaction, performance, creativity, intolerance of uncertainty, and fear of negative evaluation), self-efficacy, persistence, and the cognitive reflection test, and collected demographics, previous mathematics grades, self-reported and official statistics grades, and statistics module details. Data reuse potential is broad, including testing links between anxieties and statistics/mathematics education factors, and examining instruments’ psychometric properties across different languages and contexts. Data and metadata are stored on the Open Science Framework website [https://osf.io/mhg94/].	Link
Tamás Nagy, Kata Sik, Lilla Török, Beáta Bőthe, Zsofia K Takacs, Gabor Orosz (2023). Brief growth mindset and mindfulness inductions to facilitate task persistence after negative feedback. Collabra: Psychology, 9 (1), 74253	Negative feedback in academic settings is often unavoidable, although it may directly interfere with the ultimate goal of education, as setbacks can diminish motivation, and may even lead to dropping out of school. Previous research suggests that certain predispositions, inductions, and interventions might mitigate the harmful effects of negative feedback. Among others, growth mindset beliefs and mindfulness meditation were proposed as the most promising candidates that may help students to retain motivation. In a pre-registered, randomized experiment, we gave a disappointing evaluation to 383 university students in a bogus laboratory IQ test situation. Half of the participants previously received a growth mindset induction referring to intelligence as a malleable characteristic, while the other half received a fixed mindset induction referring to intelligence as a stable characteristic that cannot be changed. Then …	Link
Nándor Hajdú, Barnabás Szaszi, Balázs Aczél, Tamás Nagy (2023). Using supervised machine learning methods in psychological research. Osf,	Supervised machine learning can be used in many areas of psychological research, enabling the analysis of more complex data. Our aim is to describe the types, operation and use of supervised machine learning in psychological research. We review the benefits of machine learning, as well as the concepts of overfitting, bias, and variance that help in model selection and ensure robustness of the results. We also briefly describe the most important supervised machine learning algorithms and describe the key steps in the preparation of variables and data. An example analysis is presented to illustrate how the choice between stairs and elevator of university students can be modelled using supervised machine learning. At the end of the paper, we discuss the limitations of machine learning and its place in the education of psychologists. We hope that the knowledge presented will help psychologists to use machine learning more effectively and creatively.	Link
Flóra Hann, Levente Rónai, Szabolcs Kéri, Bertalan Polner (2023). Usually, I don’t ruminate, only from time to time: the predictive value of trait and state measures of rumination for the intensity of affective states. Osf,	Emotions and their regulation are essential in adapting to our environment. Individuals differ in their ability to regulate emotions, and this ability fluctuates over time. Repeated measures designs appear suitable to capture this variability within individual. Rumination is the cognitive process of passively dwelling on negative feelings and their consequences. Recent results suggest only a weak correlation between state and trait rumination. Also, increased state (but not trait) rumination is associated with higher emotional reactivity, the emotional reactions experienced in response to a negative occurrence. However, the temporal, within-person examination of rumination may predict emotional reactivity even more accurately.	Link