Positive Psychology
Adverse Childhood Experiences Influence Life Satisfaction in Adulthood
We know that childhood experiences lay the foundation for mental health in adulthood. But is it possible to determine what consequences a single traumatic event in childhood might have for long-term psychological wellbeing? For an individual, the answer is no, at least for now. For groups of people, though, it’s possible to look at how…
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How Much of Life Is Spent Mind-Wandering?
The human mind is hard to pin down. It goes where it wants, not necessarily where it’s supposed to, and it’s averse to sitting still. But how much does the mind wander? How much of our time do we spend focused on something other than what’s in front of us? The most commonly cited answer…
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Children With Warm Parents Flourish as Adults
What makes a good parent? That’s a complex question, maybe an impossible one. But warmth doesn’t seem to hurt. A new study from researchers at Harvard University suggests that children who experience more parental warmth go on to flourish in middle age. In the study, adults across the United States were asked to recall how…
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Mistaking Narcissism for Self-Esteem Might Explain Why People Are Drawn to Narcissists
If I asked you to list five traits you value in your friends, narcissism probably won’t make the cut. Yet narcissists are often able to make a good impression and draw people to themselves. A new study in the Journal of Personality provides more evidence for the surprising charisma of narcissists, and also points to…
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Giving Advice Might Be Better Than Receiving It
You find yourself in a situation where you’re struggling. You don’t know what to do. Your confidence is starting to flag. Is it time to seek out some advice from other people? Actually, it might be time for you to give advice. In a new paper titled Dear Abby: Should I Give Advice or Receive…
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How to Cope With Waiting
Waiting isn’t known for being fun. It’s not generally fun when you’re waiting in line at the supermarket, and it’s really not fun when you’re waiting for a piece of life-altering news like a job offer. In fact, previous research has found that, on average, people consider waiting for uncertain news as unpleasant as receiving…
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4 Steps to Prevent Burnout
Burnout at work is a common phenomenon, but it’s still one that mental health professionals don’t completely understand. Why do some people eventually become emotionally exhausted by their jobs? And is this a workplace problem or a mental health problem? Psychologists don’t even agree on whether burnout is the same as depression, or whether it’s…
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More Evidence That Happier People Live Longer
A new study adds weight to the idea that happiness and physical health go hand-in-hand. The study, by researchers in Singapore, looks at two groups of people who have been previously underrepresented in research on the health effects of happiness: people over the age of 60 and people in non-Western countries. In the study, 4,478…
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We Need to Learn More About People Who Flourish After Depression
We know a decent amount about people with depression. At this point, quite a few studies have been done on people who have depression. But we know less about people who used to have depression – and especially about people who used to have depression but are now flourishing. A new paper by researchers from…
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Why Meaning in Life Means Better Mental Health for Teens
As I’ve written about before, having a sense of purpose in life is consistently linked with better mental health. It’s hard to be happy when you’re also wondering what the point of it all is. Of course, people’s sense of meaning in life isn’t necessary a fixed quantity. Some studies have suggested a general tendency…
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