A blog about human brains and behavior for students of psychology.
Our traditional ideas about how people are “supposed” express emotions are often tied up with gender stereotypes. Since managing emotions is a key part of mental health for anyone of any gender, viewing emotions in terms of gender has consequences
The idea that drugs can be an escape from negative emotions is well known. A recently published study from researchers at Harvard University gives us some more evidence for that idea, but adds a new twist. As it turns out,
Being able to focus on the positive is something we can all benefit from, and it may be a skill that becomes easier with age. Psychology researchers have found that older adults tend to remember positive information better than negative
Teaching is a stressful job. From managing a classroom, to taking work home at night, to trying to adequately explain new concepts and keep pace with a curriculum at the same time, teachers have a lot of demands to juggle.
Humans are evolved to recognize emotions in each other’s nonverbal behavior. To some extent, we apply that ability not just to other humans but to animals as well. Nowhere is this more true, perhaps, than in the case of dogs.
The more psychologists learn about awe, the more they’re coming to see it as an emotion that brings out some of the best of human behavior. Awe seems to drive scientific inquiry, with scientists being more prone to awe and
People seem to have real differences in how we react to the stressful situations we inevitably encounter in everyday life. Given that stress is intertwined with mental and physical health, figuring out what interventions might help people respond to stress
Socializing and consuming alcohol are two activities that often go together. Both also have the potential to alter your mood – so it can be hard to untangle whether you’re feeling the effects of one or the other! For psychology
How do we manage difficult emotions and direct them in a positive direction? Psychologists have identified different strategies people use for emotional regulation, some of which seem to work better than others. Three of the strategies commonly mentioned are: Reappraisal:
Of the different ways we might deal with negative emotions, eating isn’t necessarily the healthiest. Sure, we might want to reach for a candy bar when we’re feeling down, but eating too many candy bars can bring its own problems!
