CCARE

Positive Psychology News Digest | October – December 2016

mappalicious_news_oct_dec_17My favorite pieces covering Positive Psychology and adjacent from the last three months.

New York Magazine: Success Depends on Your Personality More Than IQ by Drake Baer

New York Magazine: The 4 ‘Spaces’ Cities Need to Make People Happier by Drake Baer

New York Magazine: What Good Is Hope? by Drake Baer

Positive Prescription: Looking for Purpose? Ask Yourself These 5 Questions by Samantha Boardman

Huffington Post: Helping others is the key to longevity, study finds by Carolyn Gregoire

Greater Good Science Center: What Will the Theme of Your Life Be in 2017? by Kira Newman

New York Magazine: To Feel More Productive, Take a Break to Do Something Selfless by Cari Romm

New York Magazine: In 2017, Pursue Meaning Instead of Happiness by Esfahani Smith & Jennifer Aaker

Psychology Today: Applying Psychological Science to Meet Your Goals by Erlanger Turner

CNN: How to become more optimistic, no author

Bakadesuyo: Stoicism Reveals 4 Rituals That Will Make You Mentally Strong by Eric Barker

Guardian: Why time management is ruining our lives by Oliver Burkeman

Scientific American: One Skeptical Scientist’s Mindfulness Journey by Scott Barry Kaufman

New York Times: What the West Can Learn From Japan About the Cultural Value of Work by John Lanchester

Psychology Today: Why Wellbeing Is Harder Than It Looks by Michelle McQuaid (Interview with Peggy Kern)

Gallup: The Damage Inflicted by Poor Managers by Marco Nink & Jennifer Robison

Big Think: Compassion Is Weaved Throughout Our Nervous System, Researchers Have Found by Philip Perry

Fast Company: Try This Exercise In Radical Empathy To Minimize Conflict by Elisabeth Segran

CCARE: A Compassionate Resolution for this Season by Monica Worline & Jane Dutton

New York Magazine: Why Danes Think They’re Always The Happiest Country by Drake Baer

The Week: 4 ways to bring more meaning into your life by Eric Barker

Guardian: Are you too old to find success? by Oliver Burkeman

Atlantic: Praise is a consolation prize (about Carol Dweck’s work in growth mindset) by Christine Gross-Loh

Atlantic: Awesomeness Is Everything by Matthew Hutson

Guardian: Happiness depends on health and friends, not money, says new study by Phillip Inman

Washington Post: Leaders are more powerful when they’re humble, new research shows by Ashley Merryman

Psychology Today: Want Your Work to Flourish? Link Strengths and Goals by Ryan Niemiec

New York Magazine: To Be More Productive, First Figure Out Your Productivity Style by Cari Romm

Science Daily: People’s energy in the workplace is key to staff retention, no author

Greater Good Science Center: Is Your Empathy Determined by Your Genes? by Summer Allen

Psychology Today: The Happy Brain by Mark Banschick

Wall Street Journal: The perils of empathy by Paul Bloom

New York Times: How to Choose Happiness by Marie Kondo

Redlands Daily Facts: President Obama — our positive psychologist-in-chief: Guest commentary by Sonja Lyubomirsky

Gallup: What Strengths Tell Us About Men and Women by Jane Miller and Amy Adkins

Creativity Post: 3 Foolproof Ways to Prevent Work Burnout, Backed by Science by Emma Seppälä

Greater Good Science Center: Would the World Be Better Off without Empathy? by Jill Suttie

USA Today: Key to money happiness may be in how you spend it by Russ Wiles

Positive.News: Why now is the time for serious optimism by Seán Dagan Wood

Atlantic: Self-Control Is Just Empathy With Your Future Self by Ed Yong

Heleo: Beyond Grit: The Science of Creativity, Purpose, and Motivation (feat. Angela Duckworth & Adam Grant), no author

New York Magazine: It’s Possible to Train Yourself to Be More Optimistic by Drake Baer

Bakadesuyo: 4 Easy Tricks That Will Make You Productive by Eric Barker

APA: Motivate Employees By Supporting Their Autonomy by Christopher Budnick

Psychology Today: Thinking Errors in Depression by Neil Burton

Greater Good Science Center: How to Only Do Things You Actually Want to Do by Christine Carter

Psychology Today: How to Remain Optimistic Through Change by Susanna Halonen

Quartz: Can money buy happiness? by Catherine Jansson-Boyd

Psychology Today: Is Positive Psychology Proven? (Interview with my Capstone advisor Margaret “Peggy” Kern) by Michelle McQuaid

Harvard Business Review: How to Bring Mindfulness to Your Company’s Leadership by Megan Reitz & Michael Chaskalson

New York Magazine: To Be Happier, Do One Creative Thing Every Day by Cari Romm

Greater Good Science Center: Why Is It So Hard to Make Positive Changes? by Jill Suttie

Guardian: Reasons to be cheerful: how putting other people first will make you happy by Dan Ariely

New York Magazine: The Chinese Word for Anger Shows the Best Way to Get Mad by Drake Baer

Guardian: Why rewards can backfire by Oliver Burkeman

Science for Work: Trust: does it impact team performance… or not? by Wendy Hirsch

Psychology Today: Can We Simplify Wellbeing? (Interview with Aaron Jarden) by Michelle McQuaid

Psychology Today: The Impostor Syndrome and How To Handle It by Adam Molinsky

World Economic Forum: Do you trust your boss? Your answer may depend on where you live by Joe Myers

Wall Street Journal: Civility at Work Helps Everyone Get Ahead by Christine Porath

World Economic Forum: 10 companies that are great at empathy by Stéphanie Thomson

New York Times: Actually, Let’s Not Be in the Moment by Ruth Whippman

New York Magazine: Yes, Quitting Facebook May Make You Happier by Drake Baer

Psychology Today: Can You Be Vulnerable at Work? by Megan Dalla-Camina

Center for Positive Organizations: For a better workplace, make first moments matter feat. Jane Dutton

Harvard Business Review: If You Can’t Empathize with Your Employees, You’d Better Learn To by Annie McKee

Guardian: The pursuit of happiness: could a ‘happy city index’ end Bristol’s blues? by Arit Niranjan

The Positive Organization: Repairing Relationships at Work by Robert Quinn

New York Times: How Exercise Might Keep Depression at Bay by Gretchen Reynolds

Greater Good Science Center: How the Growth Mindset Can Increase Cooperation by Alex Shashkevich

Psychology Today: 7 Ways to Be Awe-Inspired in Everyday Life by Andy Tix

Psychology Today: Neuroscience Research Shows How Mood Impacts Perception by Susan Krauss Whitbourne

New York Magazine: How to (Kind of) Master Your Neuroticism by Drake Baer

New York Magazine: People Really Are Happier When the Sun Is Out Longer by Drake Baer

Psychology Today: Positive Thinking? Overrated by Samantha Boardman

Entrepreneur: 11 Habits of Truly Happy People by Travis Bradberry

New York Magazine: Power Reveals Who You Really Are by Melissa Dahl

Creativity Post: LinkedIn + Positive Psychology: Applying Science To The Way We Work by Stephanie Harrison

Huffington Post: Can You Create Positive Changes From The Bottom Up? (Interview with Chris White) by Michelle McQuaid

Greater Good Science Center: Five Science-Backed Strategies to Build Resilience by Kira Newman

Psychology Today: Positive Emotions and Wellbeing by Marianna Pogosyan

New York Times: The end of Relaxation by Sadie Stein

Huffington Post UK: Have More Conversations That Matter by Mark Williamson

APA.org: Growth after Trauma by Lorna Collier

Guardian: The placebo effect: is there something in it after all? Steve Connor

New York Magazine: Empathy Is Nice, But It’s Not Exactly Necessary by Melissa Dahl

New York Times: Behind Our Anxiety, the Fear of Being Unneeded by The Dalai Lama & Arthur Brooks

New York Post: Are Mormons the happiest people in America? by Mackenzie Dawson

New York Times: Nudges That Help Struggling Students Succeed by David Kirp

Vox: The myth of self-control by Brian Resnick

Psychology Today: How to Have a Positive Powerful Presence by Marcia Reynolds

Psychology Today: Why Don’t We Trust Each Other More? by Nan Russell

Psychology Today: Emotions and Rationality in Leadership by Eyal Winter

New York Magazine: 3 Ways to Get Over ‘Status Quo Bias’ at Work by Drake Baer

Forbes: The Psychology Of Professional Purpose: How To Follow Your Calling by Caroline Beaton

Psychology Today: The Happiness Myth: Why the pursuit of Happiness will make you miserable by Atalanta Beaumont

Atlantic: How to Build a Happier Brain by Julie Beck

Guardian: Want to ‘train your brain’? Forget apps, learn a musical Instrument by Mo Costandi

New York Magazine: By the Way, You Don’t Have to Stop Power Posing by Melissa Dahl

Psychology Today: 3 Fascinating Discoveries About Laughter by Todd Kashdan

Quartz: Scientists explain how happiness makes us less creative by Ephrat Livni

Quartz: Google’s former happiness guru developed a three-second brain exercise for finding joy by Lila MacLellan

The Positive Organization: The Choice to be Transformational by Robert Quinn

New York Magazine: Want to Make Better Decisions? Try ‘Temptation Bundling’ by Jesse Singal

Pursuit (University of Melbourne): Positive Psychology much more than Happyology by Katerine Smith (Interview with my MAPP Capstone advisor Peggy Kern)

Quartz: The Japanese practice of ‘forest bathing’ is scientifically proven to improve your health by Ephrat Livni

Quartz: Positive psychology is rooted in the radical idea that you are not a problem to fix by Tim Lomas

Guardian: Our children are paying a high price for society’s vision of success by Tim Lott

Forbes: Five Behaviors Of People Who Are Happy At Work by Rebecca Newton

GQ: The World’s Happiest Man Wishes You Wouldn’t Call Him That by Michael Paterniti

Psychology Today: The Secret to Achieving Your Dreams No One Tells You About by Emma Seppälä

Mindful.org: How to Free Yourself from Your Personal Stories by Bob Stahl & Steve Flowers

Greater Good Science Center: People Who Trust Technology Are Happier by Deborah Yip

Heleo: Nir Eyal and Monica Worline on Why Cultivating Compassion is Crucial for Success in Business, no author

Science Daily: In the workplace, incivility begets incivility, new study shows, no author

BBC: School league tables ‘should show well-being’ by Sean Coughlin

New York Magazine: A Little Loneliness Can Be a Very Good Thing by Melissa Dahl

Psychology Today: Stoic Truths for a Digital World by John Sean Doyle

The Conversation: Can money buy you happiness? It’s complicated by Cathrine Jansson-Boyd

Inc: The Negative People in your Life are literally Killing you by Jessica Stillman

New York Times: The Art of Making (and Not Making) Plans by Verena von Pfetten

Fast Company: Science-Backed Ways To Build Confidence When You Feel Like You’re Out Of Your League by Stephanie Vozza

Huffington Post: In Defense of Doers by Chris White

Scientific American: Depressed? Do What You Love by Daisy Yuhas

Yahoo Finance: 99 Percent of Employees With High Well-Being and Organizational Support Say Their Employer Is a Good Place to Work, no author

New York Magazine: A Smart Sense of Humor Helps People Survive Being Alive by Drake Baer

Bakadesuyo: This Is How To Unlock Meaning In Life: 4 Proven Secrets by Eric Barker

Greater Good Science Center: How to Teach Happiness at School by Ilona Boniwell

New York Times: Teaching Your Child Emotional Agility KJ Dell’Antonia

Harvard Business Reciew: How Microsoft Uses a Growth Mindset to Develop Leaders by Carol Dweck & Kathleen Hogan

Forbes: How To Train These Six Senses Of Happiness by Jessica Hagy

Psychology Today: The Subtle but Very Real Human Costs of Reorganizations by Victor Lipman

Psychology Today: The Science of Accomplishing Your Goals by Ralph Ryback

Psychology Today: The Top 3 Insights of Highly Innovative Leaders by Emma Seppälä

Creativity Post: You Can’t Clone Talent and Wisdom by Steve Tobak

Psychology Today: How Leaders Can Bring Calm to Chaotic Organizations by Ray Williams

Mappalicious - Positive Psychology news Digest

Positive Psychology News Digest on Mappalicious | No. 51/2016

My favorite pieces covering Positive Psychology and adjacent from (roughly) the last seven days.

Bakadesuyo: Stoicism Reveals 4 Rituals That Will Make You Mentally Strong by Eric Barker

Guardian: Why time management is ruining our lives by Oliver Burkeman

Scientific American: One Skeptical Scientist’s Mindfulness Journey by Scott Barry Kaufman

New York Times: What the West Can Learn From Japan About the Cultural Value of Work by John Lanchester

Psychology Today: Why Wellbeing Is Harder Than It Looks by Michelle McQuaid (Interview with Peggy Kern)

Gallup: The Damage Inflicted by Poor Managers by Marco Nink & Jennifer Robison

Big Think: Compassion Is Weaved Throughout Our Nervous System, Researchers Have Found by Philip Perry

Fast Company: Try This Exercise In Radical Empathy To Minimize Conflict by Elisabeth Segran

CCARE: A Compassionate Resolution for this Season by Monica Worline & Jane Dutton

IMG_7977-4

The Scientific Benefits of Compassion [Infographic]

This fabulous infographic on the scientific benefits of compassion was originally created by Emma Seppälä, Science Director of Stanford University’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE) and author of The Happiness Track. For more of her awesome work, please visit her homepage.

scientific-benefits-of-compassion

Hacking your brain for happiness | James Doty | TEDx

James Doty explains the neurological benefits of compassion.

“Project Compassion” has now turned into a leading research and educational institution and the only institution solely focused on the study of Compassion, Altruism and Empathy. Compassion improves the world; yet the world around us seems ever in need of greater feats of compassion.

How, then, can we create more compassion and inspire compassionate acts? And how is it that the brain and the heart work together to create compassion in the first place?
James Robert Doty, M.D., tackles these tough questions, examining the neural, mental, and social bases of compassion. He serves as Professor of Neurosurgery at Stanford University School of Medicine and Founder and Director of Stanford University’s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE) – of which the Dalai Lama is the founding benefactor.

He serves as Chairman of the Dalai Lama Foundation and as a member of the International Advisory Board of the Council of the Parliament of the World’s Religion.

Positive Psychology News Digest | January – March (+130 Articles)

Mappalicious_Wordle_Q1_16Just in case you´ve missed some of my weekly updates – here are all the featured Positive Psychology-related articles from January to March 2016:

Time: The Most Inspiring Way to Be Happier and More Motivated by Eric Barker

New York Times: Don’t Grade Schools on Grit by Angela Duckworth

Harvard Business Review: 28 Years of Stock Market Data Shows a Link Between Employee Satisfaction and Long-Term Value by Alex Edmans

Tech.co: Study Finds Inner Kindness Is the Key to Success, Happiness by Cameron Glover (feat. Emma Seppälä)

Psychology Today: Why Is Happiness Fleeting? by Itai Ivtzan

The Atlantic: One Simple Phrase That Turns Anxiety Into Success by Olga Khazan

The Telegraph: Mental illness mostly caused by life events not genetics, argue psychologists by Sarah Knapton

The Guardian: Three things you think will make you happier at work (but won’t) by Charlotte Seager

TLNT: Is A Happy Workplace One Of Your Core Values? by Ron Thomas

Fast Company: How To Design Happiness: Experts from Lippincott, Disney, and SoulCycle weigh in on how they craft happy experiences by Mark Wilson

Greater Good Science Center: How Happy Brains Respond to Negative Things by Summer Allen & Jeremy Adam Smith

Fortune: The Massive Difference between Negative and Positive Leadership by Bill George

Washington Post: Why smart people are better off with fewer friends by Christopher Ingraham

Psychology Today: Where does the Word “Mindfulness” come from? by Tim Lomas

Philly.com: Swarthmore colleagues, students choose to honor an expert (Barry Schwartz) on choices by Justine McDaniel

Greater Good Science Center: Why Does Happiness Inequality Matter? by Kira Newman

Huffington Post UK: World Happiness Report 2016 Update – Five Key Implications for Education by Frederika Roberts

Forbes: How To Be A Happier Human Being Even When You’re Failing by Brett Steenbarger

Time/Money: Watching cat videos at work could make you more productive by Martha White

Huffington Post: Why Governments Should Stay Out of the Happiness Business by Ruth Wippman

Greater Good Science Center: You Will Never Find Work-Life Balance by Christine Carter

New York Times: Denmark Ranks as Happiest Country; Burundi, Not So Much by Sewell Chan

Fulfillment Daily: Happiness at Work: Get a Big Boost from Small Frequent Pleasures by Ron Friedman

Psychology Today: How Can Positive Psychology Be More Open to the Negative? by Todd Kashdan

Psychology Today : Expectations, Dopamine and Louis CK by Alex Korb

Quartz: This four-letter word is the Swedish key to happiness at work by Anne Quito

Huffington Post (Education): Why Being Tired of Grit is Tiresome by Stuart Rhoden

Chicago Tribune: Stanford psychologist tells us how to fight workplace burnout by Nara Schoenberg

Intelligent HQ: Why is Positive Psychology So Misunderstood? by Ana Teresa Silva

New York Times: Rethinking the Work-Life Equation by Susan Dominus

Inc: 7 things remarkably happy people do every single day by Peter Economy

Slate: A whole field of psychology research may be bunk by Daniel Engber

Brookings: Some good news for International Women’s Day: Women are (usually) happier than men by Carol Graham

Harvard Business Review: How to practice mindfulness throughout your workday by Rasmus Hougaard & Jacqueline Carter

Psychology Today: Positive Psychology: What Does “Positive” Mean? by Itai Ivtzan

Rewire Happiness: Transformative Technologies and Their Impact on Well-Being by Sophie Janicke

NPR: Is ‘Grit’ Doomed To Be The New Self-Esteem? by Anya Kamenetz

Washington Post: The worst kind of boss is not the one who’s always a jerk by Jena McGregor

Irish Times: Can you teach wellbeing? Martin Seligman thinks so by Ronan McGreevy

The Psych Report: The Paradoxes of Creativity: Sensitive Rockers, Mindful Daydreamers, and Celebrated Outcasts by Evan Nesterak

New York Times (Well): Why Doctors Care About Happiness by Danielle Ofri

Evening Standard: Older people are ‘happier in their late 60s’ by Hannah Al-Othman

PsyBlog: How To Naturally Boost The Brain Chemicals Sapped By Depression by Jeremy Dean

Quartz: Neuroscience says these five rituals will help your brain stay in peak condition by Vivian Giang

Positive Psychology News Daily: Workplace Positivity? What’s the Right Amount? And Why? by Donna Hemmert

Inc: Want to Be Truly Happy? Harvard Researchers Say This Is the One Thing You Need by Bill Murphy Jr.

Wharton Knowledge: The New Success Track: Happiness by Emma Seppälä

Huffington Post UK: It is Time to Embrace Stress as a Mental Wellbeing Issue by Simon Stevens

Greater Good Science Center: How Nature Can Make You Kinder, Happier, and More Creative by Jill Suttie

Fast Company: 7 ways turn your current job into your dream Job by Stephanie Vozza

New York Times: Testing for Joy and Grit? Schools Nationwide Push to Measure Students’ Emotional Skills by Kate Zernike

Washington Post: We all know exercise makes you live longer. But this will actually get you off the Couch by David Brown

Harvard Business Review: How to Build a Culture of Originality by Adam Grant

Psychology Today: Second Wave Positive Psychology: An Introduction by Tim Lomas

Think Advisor: Advisors in Pursuit of Happiness by Olivia Mellan

Psychology Today: Being Positive: It’s Not Mindfulness, It’s Savoring by Ryan Niemiec

Psychology Today: 4 Science-Backed Tips For Achieving Your Dreams by Emma Seppälä

Psychology Today: The Hard Data on Self-Love and Why It Leads to Success by Emma Seppälä

MIT Technology Review: First Evidence for the Happiness Paradox: That Your Friends Are Happier than You Are, no author

Inc: 11 Signs You Have the Grit You Need to Succeed by Travis Bradberry

Forbes: The Surprising Power Of Appreciation At Work by Chris Cancialosi

Greater Good Science Center: Can Helping Others Help You Find Meaning in Life? by Elizabeth Hopper

New Yorker: How People Learn to Become Resilient by Maria Konnikova

Wall Street Journal: ‘Resilience’ skills help you remain positive and productive under stress by Laura Landro

Forbes: Amy Cuddy: How Leaders Can Be More Present In The Workplace by Dan Schawbel

Boston Globe: How nice bosses get ahead by Emma Seppälä

Washington Post: What people around the world mean when they say they’re happy by Ana Swanson

Psychology Today: Re-setting Your Happiness Set Point Part 1 | Part 2 by Linda and Charlie Bloom

Talent Management: 6 Resolutions for Career Happiness in 2016 by Dan Bowling

PsyBlog: 33 Surprisingly Simple Things That Make People Happiest by Jeremy Dean

NBC News: United Arab Emirates Names Official ‘Minister for Happiness’ by Alex Johnson

Scientific American: How to Be an Optimal Human by Scott Barry Kaufman

Scientific American Mind: Can Positive Thinking Be Negative? by Scott Lilienfeld

The Guardian: Banish those midlife blues – the secret to happiness starts with one small step by Tracy McVeigh

Washington Post: The end of college rankings as we know them by Jeffrey Selingo

Washington Post: A Stanford psychologist explains why spacing out and goofing off is so good for you by Emma Seppälä

Penn Current: Penn professor explores what it means to be positive by Michele Berger

Financial Times: Companies with a purpose beyond profit tend to make more money by Simon Caulkin

Greater Good Science Center: Five Ways to Put Self-Compassion into Therapy by Tim Desmond

Gizmodo: English is Surprisingly Devoid of Emotionally Positive Words by George Dvorsky

New York Times: How to Raise a Creative Child. Step One: Back Off by Adam Grant

Psychology Today: Is It a Good Idea To Build on Signature Strengths? by Todd Kashdan

Scientific American: The Differences Between Happiness and Meaning in Life by Scott Barry Kaufman

Psychology Today: Can You Help Others Find Meaning In Their Work? by Michelle McQuaid

Cosmopolitan: 12 Ways to Feel Happier at Work – Yes, even at the job you hate by Judith Ohikuare

Psychology Today: The Surprising Link Between Compassion and Success by Emma Seppälä

Forbes: How To Light The Fire When You’re Burned Out by Brett Steenbarger

New York Times: You Are Stronger Than You (and Your Therapist) Think by Michael Bennett

Scientific American: The Science of Healing Thoughts by Gareth Cook

The Guardian: Is mindfulness making us ill? by Dawn Foster

Penn Current: Q&A with Scott Barry Kaufman by Lauren Hertzler

Stanford GSB: Should Employees Design Their Own Jobs? by Louise Lee

Fast Company: It takes more than just being a good person yourself to inspire ethical conduct in employees by David Mayer

Knowledge@Wharton: Why Compassion Serves You Better Than Self-interest by Emma Seppälä

Fast Company: The Surprising Link Between Compassion And Success by Emma Seppälä

Forbes: One Powerful Step That Can Turn Around Your Trading Psychology by Brett Steenbarger

Greater Good Science Center: What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Kinder by Jill Suttie

Quartz: The Stanford professor who pioneered praising kids for effort says we’ve totally missed the point by Jenny Anderson

Harvard Business Review: Manage your Emotional Culture by Sigal Barsade & Olivia O’Neill

Harvard Business Review: We Learn More When We Learn Together by Jane Dutton & Emily Heaphy

New York Times: Why I Taught Myself to Procrastinate by Adam Grant

Fulfillment Daily: The Surprising Benefit Of Going Through Hard Times by Carolyn Gregoire

PositiveSharing.com: The 5 most important findings from the science of happiness that apply at work by Alexander Kjerulf

Forbes: Mapping World Happiness And Conflict Through Global News And Image Mining by Kalev Leetaru

Psychology Today: The One Thing To Know About Happiness by Andrea Polard

Psychology Today: 6 Surefire Ways To Increase Your Charisma – Backed by Science by Emma Seppälä

New York Times: Having Friends Is Good for You, Starting in Your Teens by Nicholas Bakalar

Quartz: In our pursuit of happiness, Americans are losing sight of what actually makes us happy by Geoff Chang

Forbes: How To Bring Presence To Your Biggest Challenges by Paula Davis-Laack

Harvard Business Review: Income Inequality Makes Whole Countries Less Happy by Jan-Emmanuel De Neve &  Powdthavee Nattavudh

BPS Research Digest: Follow your heart – Having an unanswered calling in life is worse than having no calling at all by Alex Fradera

New York Magazine: How Expressing Gratitude Might Change Your Brain by Christian Jarrett

Washington Post: Your relationships are just as important to your health as diet and exercise by Elahe Izadi

Huffington Post: The science of happiness: Everything you need to know about the feeling we all crave by Jason March et al.

New York Times: ‘Design Thinking’ for a Better You by Tara Parker-Pope

Fast Company: Countries Do Get Happier When They Get Richer–But Only If They Share The Wealth by Ben Schiller

Wall Street Journal: Latest Game Theory: Mixing Work and Play by Rachel Emma Silverman

Greater Good Science Center: How Humility Will Make You the Greatest Person Ever by Vicki Zakrzewski

Science Daily: Brain can be trained to regulate negative emotions, study shows, no author

New York Magazine: 3 Insights From a New Book About Creativity by Melissa Dahl

Psychology Today: 10 Questions to Help You Reflect on 2015 by Paula Davis-Laack

Harvard Business Review: Strengths-Based Coaching Can Actually Weaken You by Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic

New York Times: How to Cultivate the Art of Serendipity by Pagan Kennedy

Business Insider: A Harvard psychiatrist says 3 things are the secret to real happiness by Tanya Lewis

Greater Good Science Center: To Change Yourself, Change Your World by Kira Newman

Psychology Today: 3 Things Extraordinary Leaders Do by Emma Seppälä

Fulfillment Daily: The Joy of Imperfection: How Not to Drive Yourself and Others Nuts in 2016 by Mona Shah Joshi

Positive Psychology News Daily: Instead of a Resolution, Try a New Year Routine by Jan Stanley

Forbes: The Positive Psychology Of Job Interviewing by Brett Steenbarger

News Digest - Mappalicious

The Scientific Case for Compassion – feat. a TEDx Talk by Dacher Keltner

Even though the idea of compassion lies at the heart of virtually each and every religious and spiritual movement (with Buddhism and the Dalai Lama problably being the frontrunner), psychological science has ignored this important feature of our human nature for quite a long time, describing it as a subtype of other, more primary emotions. Starting with research on meditation, such as carried out by pioneers such as Jon Kabat-Zinn, the topic has slowly but surely entered the “regular” academic discourse. Nowadays, the science of compassion is a full-blown discipline, being researched, e.g., at Stanford´s Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education (CCARE) or Berkeley´s Greater Good Science Center (GGSC).

In 2010, researchers Jennifer L. Goetz, Dacher Keltner, and Emiliana Simon-Thomas authored a review article that sought to make a case for the idea that compassion is a truly distinctive feature on the continuum of human behavior and emotion. Here´s what they have to say in their conclusion:

Our review reveals compassion to arise out of distinct appraisal processes, to have distinct display behaviors, distinct experiences, and an approach-related physiological response. The state like experience of compassion, and the trait like tendency to feel compassion, fall under the purview of three evolutionary arguments: that compassion evolved as part of a caregiving response to vulnerable offspring, that compassionate individuals were preferred in mate selection processes, and that compassion emerged as a desirable trait in cooperative relations between non-kin.

If you want to hear the full story, please read the aforementioned article. You may also want to watch this TEDx talk by Dacher Keltner (who´s the director of the aforementioned GGSC). Enjoy!