Bruce Bower

Bruce Bower

Behavioral Sciences Writer

Bruce Bower has written about the behavioral sciences since 1984. He often writes about psychology, anthropology, archaeology and mental health issues. Bruce has a master's degree in psychology from Pepperdine University and a master's degree in journalism from the University of Missouri. Following an internship at Science News in 1981, he worked as a reporter at Psychiatric News, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association, until joining Science News as a staff writer. In 1996, the American Psychological Association appointed Bruce a Science Writer Fellow, with a grant to visit psychological scientists of his own choosing. Early stints as an aide in a day school for children and teenagers with severe psychological problems and as a counselor in a drug diversion center provided Bruce with a surprisingly good background for a career in science journalism.

All Stories by Bruce Bower

  1. Psychology

    Word-detecting baboons are a tough read

    New models offer contrasting views of monkeys’ ability to identify frequently seen letter pairs.

  2. Humans

    Oldest examples of hunting weapon uncovered in South Africa

    A common ancestor of people and Neandertals may have flung stone-tipped shafts at animal prey.

  3. Humans

    Ancient hominid had an unusual diet

    A long-extinct member of the human evolutionary family had an uncommon taste for grasses and sedges.

  4. Humans

    An ancient civilization’s wet ascent, dry demise

    Cave data suggest that ancient rainfall patterns swayed the course of Classic Maya societies.

  5. Psychology

    Too little money, too much borrowing

    A contested study suggests that poverty contracts attention and detracts from financial decisions.

  6. Humans

    Shoulder fossil may put Lucy’s kind up a tree

    Fossils of an ancient child suggest the more than 3-million-year-old hominid mixed climbing with walking.

  7. Psychology

    Delaying gratification is about worldview as much as willpower

    Preschoolers’ social expectations influence how long they’re willing to hold out for extra goodies.

  8. Science & Society

    Banks err by confusing risk, uncertainty

    Too much information prompted bad currency projections by international money firms, a psychologist contends, and may have blinded them to the global financial crisis.

  9. Humans

    Human-Neandertal mating gets a new date

    Late Stone Age interbreeding between Neandertals and people may have left a mark on Europeans’ DNA.

  10. Humans

    In New Guinea, peace comes with a price

    Conflict resolution in small-scale societies may have contributed to declines in state-sponsored violence.

  11. Humans

    Feather finds hint at Neandertal art

    Plumage found at ancient sites may indicate capability for abstract thought among humans’ Stone Age cousins.

  12. Humans

    A moving lift for poor families

    Federal housing subsidies didn’t fight poverty as hoped, but trading public housing for new neighborhoods brought psychological benefits.