Landmark 35-year research project yields surprising findings about happiness, relationships, generational differences and more
In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the differences between generations and the sociological forces defining their worldviews and behaviour. Stereotypes abound: the silent generation is inflexibly conventional, the baby boomers are narcissistic, generation X members are lazy. And millennials just take too long to grow up. But few of these assumptions…
It may be that the impact stress has on our health has less to do with its cause and more to do with how we think about it
Social science seems to have found the secret to a long and happy life. Psychologist Kelly McGonigal tells us, “Go after what creates meaning in your life and then trust yourself to handle the stress that follows.” In recent years, however, we’ve looked at stress as our enemy, seeking instead to live in complete ease.…
Social media has become immersive entertainment. But it’s also ruthless and stressful for many people
Each of us has an agenda (however fleeting) to influence people around us. We want them to agree with our perspective, our angst even. Sometimes we succeed in gaining momentum with a group – raising dissenting voices into a fevered pitch that results in others (the accidental audience members) being hooked into the current melee.…
We’re often reluctant to establish a line when dealing with others because we don’t want to be seen as difficult. So instead we stew in our anger and resentment
Have you ever lived near or worked with someone who seemed to have a problem respecting personal space? About 15 years ago, a neighbour decided he wanted to build a garage. There was a tree on his property line that he didn’t want to take down, so he figured he would just appropriate needed space…
Study of fashion blogger’s account of wearing the same dress every day for a year shows how much we depend on possessions
When you exclaim “I love that!” about a favourite possession, do you really mean it? A University of Alberta study based on a fashion blog is asking people to think more deeply about what they own – and whether they really need to buy more. A year of reflections in Frock Around the Clock, a blog about…
Working from home could enhance your work-life balance, but negatively impact your development and career trajectory
As we approach three months working in pandemic lockdown, many organizations are toying with the idea of making remote work a more permanent fixture. The potential advantages are obvious: financial savings from reduced office space, reduced commuting time for employees, the ability to hire from outside the region. For many organizations, the experiment with virtual…
Besides creating an economic crisis, COVID-19 is bringing conflict into some homes. Rate (and improve) your relationship
Not all of us are living happily ever after. Are you surprised? I didn’t think so! If absence makes the heart grow fonder, the opposite might also be true about too much time spent together in close quarters. A former colleague recently told me that call volumes for domestic disputes are on the rise. This…
Social isolation has become a defining feature of modern Western societies and there’s a growing concern about its effects
When people look back at this pandemic, they will remember many things, but perhaps most of all they will recall the changes in social behaviour. There’s the obsessive washing of hands, not touching our face, forgoing handshakes, hoarding toilet paper, wearing masks, working from home and, of course, social distancing – or, more accurately, physical…
If you have to choose between what I’m saying and how I look while saying it, you will intuitively discount my words and believe what you see
If I am dropping eye contact or checking texts messages or rotating my shoulders while you are speaking, you don’t feel heard – even if I tell you I’m listening and can repeat every word you just said. Here’s why . . . Most explanations of human behaviour assume that people are strongly influenced by…
We’re living proof that people are naturally active and creative, when given the time. COVID-19 has given many of us that time
The COVID-19 crisis has been a challenge for many of us. We’re used to interacting freely and going where we want to go. Now many of us are forced to work from home and others are not able to work at all. Our movement is limited, we have to practise social distancing and we’re constantly…
In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the differences between generations and the sociological forces defining their worldviews and behaviour. Stereotypes abound: the silent generation is inflexibly conventional, the baby boomers are narcissistic, generation X members are lazy. And millennials just take too long to grow up. But few of these assumptions…
