Category: Psychology

Dr. Robert A. Emmons’ new positive psychology book, ‘thanks!‘, argues that practising gratitude benefits our happiness, satisfaction with life and physical health.

“Gratitude is the secret to life” – Albert Schweitzer

“Dear God, we paid for all this stuff ourselves, so thanks for nothing.” – Bart Simpson

Invoking the words of the great philosopher Bart Simpson, along with other mere mortals, Dr Robert Emmons makes a great case for the importance of gratitude in life. Thankfully it’s not just the words of Bart Simpson and a few nicely chosen anecdotes on which Emmons is relying, he has scientific evidence. Emmons opens the book with experimental evidence showing how gratefulness can increase happiness by 25%.

Continue reading “‘thanks!’ by Robert A. Emmons (Book Review)”

Psychology is now the third most popular subject at degree level in the UK. If you’re thinking of studying for a psychology degree and you’re not sure whether it’s for you, then these free Psych 101 lectures from Berkeley are just the thing.

The course covers some basic areas of psychology: learning, sensation, perception, personality and development. The instructor on this course, Professor John Kihlstrom, is a highly respected psychologist at Berkeley, so well worth listening to. You can download the courses to your computer or mp3 player to listen to on the move.

Continue reading “Thinking of a Psychology Degree? Free Lectures from University of California at Berkeley”

In my countdown of the top ten psychology studies of all time, in which 588 votes have been cast, the clear front runner is former Yale and Harvard social psychologist, Stanley Milgram. His series of experiments on obedience to authority are amongst the best known in psychology. They have such clear implications for our view of human nature that they are impossible to ignore. The very idea that we so readily obey others is at once both a powerful insight and deeply disturbing.

Continue reading “Nominate Your Favourite Social Psychology Studies”

Hollywood actor Owen Wilson’s recent suicide attempt once more raises the question of what leads people to take their own life. Research into suicidal poets provides some clues.

This week it was confirmed that Owen Wilson, the Hollywood actor, attempted suicide. The question ‘why?’ naturally arises in these circumstances. While people’s specific reasons vary greatly, psychologists are, of course, interested in the general factors that lead to suicidal behaviour. Some fascinating evidence about what these general factors are comes from a study on poets, who appear particularly prone to suicide.

Continue reading “Why Attempt Suicide? Evidence from the Poetry of Suicidal Poets”

…despite appearances:

[Photo by Mr November]

Continue reading “Men and Women Are Psychologically Very Similar”

This week (well last week now!) from my psychology notepad…

The science of magic is always fascinating; this New York Times article is no exception. MindHacks has a little background on this.

The excellent BPS Research Digest is running a ‘behind the news‘ series which gives links to the scholarly articles and lead authors on which news items are based. Two entries so far – long may it continue.

Continue reading “This Week in Psychology”

…although we’re just as likely to provide support to optimists, pessimists and realists alike.

Being an optimist is supposed to be good for health, success and happiness. But does optimism have a downside in that other people think you’re self-deluded, mindless and just plain annoying? And on the flipside, how do people view pessimists? In particular, do we tend to shy away from helping out pessimists when they are in trouble?

Continue reading “Optimists and Realists Seen In Better Light Than Pessimists”