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I Had to Teach My NYU Psych Class to 360 Students From a Cell Phone While Trapped In an Elevator With My Kids. It Went Surprisingly Well.
On September 23, I had to teach my afternoon Introduction to Psychology class today to over 300 students from my cell phone while I was trapped in my apartment building elevator with my two young kids. Even by the standards of 2020, this has to go down as the most stressful — and surreal — teaching experience of my life. I'm currently teaching a huge Intro to Psychology class this fall. But given the risks of the pandemic as well as public health guidelines, I was forced to teach the class virtually.
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The Trump Administration Says Diversity Training Can Be Harmful. What Does the Research Say?
With an executive order this month, the Trump administration took aim at the anti-racism training that is becoming commonplace at colleges and other workplaces. The directive bars federal departments and agencies, government contractors, and any recipients of federal grants from holding such training for employees.
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“We’re So Freaking Polarized”: See How Americans With Opposing Views Interpret the Same Situation
This year, some Republicans have accused Democrats of wanting "to destroy the country" and "spewing hatred," while some Democrats can be heard saying Republicans are "fascists, ruining this country" — a far cry from what would be called ideological debate. A growing number of researchers believe politics has the ability to alter one's perception of reality and others. "It's getting worse, and I don't see it unwinding anytime soon," said New York University psychology professor Jay Van Bavel. "Political identities are one of the most important and powerful identities that people have right now in this country.
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There Won’t Be a Clear End to the Pandemic
The pandemic has rendered many activities unsafe, but thankfully it can’t stop us from fantasizing about them. A common balm that people reach for is the sentence construction “When this is over, I’m going to ____.” It seems to help, if only in a fleeting way, for them to imagine all of the vacations they’ll go on, all of the concerts they’ll attend, and all of the hugs they’ll give, as soon as they’re able to. Unfortunately, the sublime post-pandemic period that so many are longing for will likely not arrive all at once, like a clock striking midnight on New Year’s Eve.
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Don’t Just Lead Your People Through Trauma. Help Them Grow.
The last several months have stacked painful experiences on top of each other: a global pandemic, economic collapse, and new reminders of perennial racial injustice and police violence. This July, rates of depression and anxiety in the U.S. were more than triple those of early 2019. The simple question, “How are you?” has turned into an emotional minefield. Workplaces are saturated with trauma, too, and leaders are agonizing over how to keep their teams healthy as everyone works remotely and juggles any number of stressors.
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The Surprising Benefits of Talking to Strangers
Imagine you die. You wake up in a world only made up of people you remember. “All your old lovers. Your boss, your grandmothers, and the waitress who served your food each day at lunch… It is a blissful opportunity to spend quality time with your 1,000 connections, to renew fading ties, to catch up with those you let slip away. It is only after several weeks of this that you begin to feel forlorn. You wonder what’s different as you saunter through the vast quiet parks with a friend or two. No strangers grace the empty park benches.
