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The Secret to Happiness? These Experts Say It’s Feeling Loved by Others
There are plenty of theories about the source of happiness. Who doesn’t think they would be happier with more money and success? We talked to happiness researcher Sonja Lyubomirsky, a professor of psychology at the University of California at Riverside, and relationship expert Harry Reis, a psychologist at the University of Rochester, about their recently published book, “How to Feel Loved: The Five Mindsets That Get You More of What Matters Most.”
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When Honesty Is Overrated in Relationships
From childhood, honesty is framed as a moral north star. Tell the truth. Don’t lie. Say what you mean, no matter the cost. But adult relationships quickly expose the limits of that lesson. Instead of building closeness, some truths erode it—especially when honesty is delivered without care, context, or concern for the person on the receiving end. ... Engler points to Gottman's Four Horsemen—criticism, contempt, defensiveness, and stonewalling—identified by psychologists John and Julie Gottman to describe what they call the four destructive communication patterns that often cause a relationship to break down.
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2026 National Academy of Sciences Award Recipients Announced
Congrats to APS Fellows Deanna Barch, M.J. Crockett, Tor Wager! Deanna M. Barch, Washington University in St. Louis, and Tor D. Wager, Dartmouth College, will each receive an Atkinson Prize in Psychological and Cognitive Sciences. With these awards, the Academy recognizes Barch for her seminal contributions to advancing understanding of developmental psychopathology, and Wager for his pioneering research revealing how the brain shapes pain, emotion, and belief. Each will receive a $100,000 prize. ... M.J. Crockett, Princeton University, and Jason D.
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Did Social Media Break a Generation — Or Just Change It?
Is tech rewiring childhood or exposing what's already broken? Jonathan Haidt, Catherine Price, and a Gen Z advocate debate social media bans, attention and what "fun" looks like off-screen.
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A Psychologist Says This Exercise Can Make You More Hopeful In 14 Days
STANARDSVILLE, Va. — For much of my life, winter was something to be endured. Preferably, indoors. ... Another surprise finding: The emotional benefits are just as powerful in winter as in the rest of the year. That was the same conclusion reached by University of Chicago neuroscientist Marc Berman, author of the 2025 book “Nature and the Mind.” He measured the benefits of a 50-minute walk in the Ann Arbor arboretum and discovered that those who walked in January experienced the same benefit as those who walked in June.
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How to Get Through the Rest of Winter
The tail end of winter can be a bit rough. In the Northeast, I’ve had enough of extreme cold, gray skies and piles of snow that refuse to melt. The holidays are a dim memory. I’m sick of my giant parka. Spring doesn’t arrive until March 20. “By this time of year, winter can feel like it drags,” said Mark Seery, a professor of psychology at the University at Buffalo who studies coping and resilience. But telling yourself that “this is going to be crap for the next month,” is not the best strategy, he added. Instead, Dr. Seery recommended “finding things you can control around the edges.”
