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The Purposeful Life (Hint: Don’t Wait for Retirement)
The Huffington Post: I have several close friends who are contemplating retirement, and a few have been teetering on that decision for a while. They are not hesitating over financial worries, but more over quality of life issues. They want to be sure that the next stage of life is at least as rich and purposeful as their working years have been. They want their days to be full. Who doesn't? But there are other reasons for planning a meaningful retirement, most notably the health benefits. Our later years bring added health risks, but accumulating evidence shows that older people with goals and a clear sense of purpose live longer. But why focus on just the old?
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Truth or lie – trust your instinct, says research
BBC: We are better at identifying liars when we rely on initial responses rather than thinking about it, say psychologists. Generally we are poor at spotting liars - managing only slightly better than flipping a coin. But our success rate rises when we harness the unconscious mind, according to a report in Psychological Science. "What interested us about the unconscious mind is that it just might really be the seat of where accurate lie detection lives," said Dr Leanne ten Brinke of the University of California, Berkeley.
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Therapists’ Apps Aim To Help With Mental Health Issues
NPR: Games like Flappy Bird and Candy Crush have helped many of us de-stress during long waits at the doctor's office and crowded Metro rides. But what if an app could actually help with mental health? Researchers from Hunter College and the City University of New York say they've developed an app that can reduce anxiety. In the game, called PersonalZen, players encounter two animated characters in a field of grass. One of them looks calm and friendly, while the other looks angry. Soothing music plays in the background. When one creature burrows into the grass, players must follow the rustling leaves and trace its path.
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New Research From Clinical Psychological Science
Read about the latest research published in Clinical Psychological Science: Influences of Ovarian Hormones on Dysregulated Eating: A Comparison of Associations in Women With Versus Women Without Binge Episodes Kelly L. Klump, Sarah E. Racine, Britny Hildebrandt, S. Alexandra Burt, Michael Neale, Cheryl L. Sisk, Steven Boker, and Pamela K. Keel Studies have shown an association between changes in ovarian hormones and amounts of emotional eating women engage in across their menstrual cycles; however, researchers are still unsure whether this relationship differs for women with clinically diagnosed binge-eating episodes.
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Your Personality and Career Sculpt Each Other
Some people’s personality traits just make them cut out for a certain type of job. But can your career affect your personality?
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Think you’re immune to video-game violence? Think again
USA Today: Wonder what could be so enticing that people globally spend 3 billion hours every week doing it? Try video games, that great electronic escape where virtual characters take over the story lines and real-world problems feel far away. As popularity of these games continues to grow, scientists are examining what compels people to invest so much time in fictitious worlds — and whether outcomes of these games have any relevance to reality. Some studies suggest that playing electronic games provides a form of stress relief; other research cites the social aspect of gaming with friends as a major benefit.
