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Religion Replenishes Self-Control
There are many theories about why religion exists, most of them unproven. Now, in an article published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, psychologist Kevin Rounding of Queen’s University, Ontario, offers a new idea, and some preliminary evidence to back it up. The primary purpose of religious belief is to enhance the basic cognitive process of self-control, says Rounding, which in turn promotes any number of valuable social behaviors. He ran four experiments in which he primed volunteers to think about religious matters. Those volunteers showed more discipline than controls, and more ability to delay gratification.
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Tried And Tested Ways To Get Hired To Do Something You Actually Love
Business Insider: A recent Pew study reveals what many of us have already observed: re-employed workers — those who lose their jobs and are then hired elsewhere — are more likely to consider themselves overqualified for what becomes their current position and are less likely to get a sense of identify from their work. In other words, they end up at jobs they don’t really want. Whether you’ve lost your job and are looking to be the exception to this rule, or you’d like to trade your current position for one that better matches your qualifications, here are three strategies to help you receive an offer for the job that you actually want Read the whole story: Business Insider
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Women in Traditionally Male Jobs Judged More Harshly
Business News Daily: You’ve heard about the ‘glass ceiling,’ but do you know about the glass cliff? If you’re a woman in a traditionally male job, you probably have. New research from Yale University finds that when a person has a high level job traditionally held by the opposite gender, they are judged more harshly for their mistakes. Getting a job with high status isn’t enough, said Victoria Brescoll, a psychological scientist at Yale University and first author of the study. “You have to keep it.” Brescoll said she suspected that people who have a job not normally associated with their gender would be under closer scrutiny and more likely to get in trouble for mistakes.
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Kreislauf der Geschenke
Süddeutsche.de: Warum es in Ordnung ist, Präsente weiterzugeben Geburtstag, Hochzeit, Kommunion, Konfirmation, Einschulung und bald wieder Muttertag: Ständig soll irgendjemand beschenkt werden. Das stresst, und am Ende wird wieder etwas wenig Kreatives in Geschenkpapier versteckt. Emotionale Entlastung lässt sich nun aus einer Studie ziehen, die im Fachblatt Psychological Science (online) erscheint. Gabrielle Adams von der London Business School belegt darin wieder einmal, wie sehr die Vorstellungen von Schenkenden und Beschenkten auseinanderklaffen.
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‘Myopic Misery’: The Financial Cost of Sadness
Nobody likes to feel bad. Sadness saps our energy and motivation. Melancholy wrecks our health and invites disease. Misery leaves us—well, miserable. Yet many experts believe that these negative emotions have an upside, that they clarify our thinking and foster more deliberate and careful decision making. Some even say that sadness is a reality check on unwarranted optimism and self-regard. That’s the so-called “sadder but wiser” theory. But is it true? Isn’t it equally as plausible that sadness and melancholy sabotage some kinds of thinking, and lead to questionable choices and judgments?
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Why the Powerful Lie, Cheat and Steal
Discovery News: The trial of former Sen. John Edwards, who is currently facing charges of allegedly diverting funds from his failed 2008 presidential campaign to his former mistress, Rielle Hunter, raises a question that comes up whenever any famous name pops up in the presses with news of underhanded conduct or outright malfeasance: Why are powerful people seemingly so powerless to prevent their own transgressions? A study published in the journal Psychological Science in 2010 offers some explanation. Read the whole story: Discovery News
