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Encountering Connections May Make Life Feel More Meaningful
Experiencing connections, regularities, and coherence in their environment may lead people to feel a greater sense of meaning in life, according to a new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. The research, conducted by graduate student Samantha Heintzelman of the University of Missouri, along with advisor Laura King and fellow graduate student Jason Trent, suggests that meaning in life has an important adaptive function, connecting people to the world that surrounds them and, thereby, boosting their chances of survival. “Meaning in life tells the individual when the world is making sense,” say Heintzelman and colleagues.
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Shhh, The Kids Can Hear You Arguing (Even When They’re Asleep)
NPR: For years now, psychologists have been telling couples who yell at one another to stop for the sake of the kids. Such conflict in the home — even when no violence is involved — is associated with a host of negative behavioral and life outcomes for children. Some strands of research have gone so far as to suggest that dissolving a marriage might be better for kids than exposing them to high levels of conflict within a bad marriage. Still, the effects of parental conflict do not appear to be experienced equally by all children. Some kids do badly when exposed to conflict; others seem to cope much better.
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Is Retail Therapy for Real? 5 Ways Shopping Is Actually Good for You
TIME: You know the phrase, “When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping”? There just may be some wisdom in that. A survey conducted by TNS Global on behalf of Ebates.com found that more than half of Americans (52%, including 64% of women and 40% of men) admit to engaging in “retail therapy”—the act of shopping and spending to improve one’s mood. This echoes a previous study, published in the Journal of Psychology and Marketing, that revealed 62% of shoppers had purchased something to cheer themselves up, and another 28% had purchased as a form of celebration. But beyond the quick rush provided by making a purchase, is “retail therapy” actually therapeutic?
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American Voices: Dan Ariely
PBS: For many people, saving money isn’t just difficult; it’s a foreign concept. A recent study found that 58% of Americans do not have a formal retirement plan in place.¹ Why is even thinking about saving money so daunting to so many of us? We spoke with Dan Ariely, professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. He says that many people have difficulty saving their income because our minds and our environments are not naturally suited to thinking about money in the long term. In fact, our minds are not very good at thinking about the concept of money at all.
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Vulnerability to depression can be contagious, study shows
The Telegraph: Researchers have found that the gloomy mindset of students vulnerable to depression can be contagious, making their friends more likely to suffer the condition six months later. The research, published in the journal Clinical Psychological Science, follows up on studies showing that people who respond negatively to stressful life events, interpreting the events as the result of factors they can't change and as a reflection of their own deficiency, are more vulnerable to depression. ...
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Surviving Tragedy: The Various Paths Beyond
NPR: Survivors of sudden, unexpected events, like the bombings at the Boston Marathon, the explosion in West, Texas and natural disasters, may deal with a wide variety of emotions. Some may discover a newfound appreciation for life, while others may experience extreme feelings of guilt. ... Richard Tedeschi, professor of clinical psychology at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, is our guest. And joining us now is George Bonanno, professor of clinical psychology at Columbia University, author of "The Other Side of Sadness: What the New Science of Bereavement Tells Us About Life After Loss." Read the whole story: NPR
