-
The Science of Older and Wiser
The New York Times: Since ancient times, the elusive concept of wisdom has figured prominently in philosophical and religious texts. The question remains compelling: What is wisdom, and how does it play out in individual lives? Most psychologists agree that if you define wisdom as maintaining positive well-being and kindness in the face of challenges, it is one of the most important qualities one can possess to age successfully — and to face physical decline and death. Vivian Clayton, a geriatric neuropsychologist in Orinda, Calif., developed a definition of wisdom in the 1970s, when she was a graduate student, that has served as a foundation for research on the subject ever since.
-
Have a Patience Problem? Here’s a Solution
Inc.: Gratefulness and patience don't always come easily--especially in the tough, early days of a startup. However, recent research suggests that one trait might naturally boost the other, which is something you can use to your benefit the next time you're feeling antsy. According to a blog post on the Association for Psychological Science website, adopting a grateful attitude could be a tool for practicing patience. A forthcoming study, which will appear in the journal Psychological Science, looked at the impact that gratitude and happiness have on an individual's propensity to wait for an outcome.
-
Parents, Wired to Distraction
The New York Times: Every age of parenthood — and parenthood at every age — yields some discouraging metric, some new rating system on which parents can be judged and found wanting. We endlessly jury family dinner rituals, day care and nannies, parents’ readiness to follow schedules, or to ignore the rules and follow their child’s directives. Whatever you are doing is probably wrong. Yes, you, yes, right now. Put down that cellphone and listen to me. In a study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics, researchers observed diners in Boston-area fast food restaurants, looking at the new family configuration of adult, child and mobile device.
-
How Actors Create Emotions: A Problematic Psychology
The Atlantic: Early on in her career, Deborah Margolin realized that she was a woman nobody liked, not even herself. She was a “homely person who was pregnant all the time”—not because she enjoyed sex, according to Margolin, but because of a sense of self-loathing that led her toward the same dead end, over and over again. She was married to a man but wished that she were with a woman. Or, rather, she wished that she were a woman—a different one. She wished she were Patience or Sarah, two women whom everyone around her seemed to want. Historical-fiction buffs might recognize the name Patience and Sarah as a novel set in the 19th-century adapted for stage.
-
Q&A: Designing Game-Based Assessments That Engage Students
Education Week: Game-based assessments are making it easier for teachers to more quickly evaluate students in a dizzying number of ways. Arthur C. Graesser, a University of Memphis professor of experimental and cognitive psychology and the 2011 winner of the American Psychological Association's award for distinguished contributions of applications of psychology to education and training, spoke with Technology Counts Contributing Writer Robin L. Flanigan in a telephone interview about the current and future role of game-based assessments in the classroom. Read the whole story: Education Week
-
Little kid brains vs. college smarts
San Francisco Chronicle: Guess what happened when some researchers gave an unusual gadget to both preschoolers and college students and asked them to figure out how it worked. Most parents already know the answer. Yep. The preschoolers took the college students to school. In short, the 4- and 5-year-old kids were more flexible, more willing to consider unlikely possibilities to make an seemingly unpredictable machine work, according to Alison Gopnik, UC Berkeley developmental psychologist and senior author of the paper released Thursday and published online in the journal, “Cognition.” Read the whole story: San Francisco Chronicle
