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Basic InformationLatest NewsAHA News: Why Experts Say a Good Mood Can Lead to Good HealthGrumpy? Depressed? Try a More Regular Sleep ScheduleCold Facts on Avoiding Snow and Ice DangersDrivers May Be Inhaling Dangerous Carcinogens Inside Their CarsAHA News: Watch Your Heart Rate, But Don't Obsess About ItMany U.S. Adults Aren't Getting Healthy Amounts of Fruits, VegetablesPoll Finds Americans Highly Stressed by Politics, PandemicCould Working Outside Help Prevent Breast Cancer?Kiss Chapped Lips Goodbye This WinterAHA News: 5 Things Nutrition Experts Want You to Know About New Federal Dietary GuidelinesLockdowns Might Not Have Long-Term Psychological Effect: StudyAre the Moon's Phases Affecting Your Sleep?AHA News: The Head Is Connected to the Heart – and Can Influence HealthMaybe Money Can Help Buy Happiness, After AllStressed Out By the News? Here's Tips to Help CopeVision Problems? Here's a Guide to Which Specialist Is Right for YouFacebook Posts Big Drivers in Vaccine Resistance, Study FindsGym Closed? You Don't Need Exercise Equipment to Stay Fit, Study Shows'Pandemic Fatigue' Setting in? Here's How to Stay Safe and StrongGot Wanderlust? Travel Makes Folks Happier, Study ShowsTips for Making 2021 a Healthier YearHow to Sleep Better in 2021AHA News: Here's to a Healthy 2021, With Resolutions From Heart DoctorsWhat Loneliness Looks Like in the BrainHow to Guard Against Home Heating HazardsAs Social Media Use Rises, So Does Belief in COVID MisinformationAHA News: Keep Your Holiday Drinking on the Moderate Side With This AdviceLoneliness Continues to Rise for Americans Under LockdownToo Much Social Media Time Could Raise Risk of DepressionWorking From Home Brings Its Own Health Perils: SurveyPets Are Helping Many Americans Get Through LockdownAHA News: The Best Foods for Brain HealthAre You Happy? Your Answer May Depend on Where You LiveBooze Robbing Many Americans of Their SleepJunk Food, Booze Often Star in America's Hit MoviesCoping With Lockdown Loneliness During the HolidaysMany Young Americans Lonely, Depressed During Pandemic: SurveyStay Home This Holiday, CDC and Medical Groups UrgeElection Outcome Hasn't Lowered Americans' Stress Levels: PollWith Cold Weather Forcing Patrons Inside, How Safe Are Restaurants?Are You Feeling 'Pandemic Fatigue'?What the Pandemic Did to WorkoutsBirth Control Pill Won't Raise Depression RiskAHA News: Despite the Pandemic, Keep Social Connections Strong This Holiday SeasonTips to Cope With Lockdown as Cold Weather ArrivesGreen Spaces Do a Heart GoodLiving Healthy Good for Your Heart, Even if You're on MedsWho Are The Loneliest Americans? The Answer May Surprise YouMultivitamins' 'Benefits' Are All in Your Head: StudyDid Your Candidate Lose the Election? Study Finds Depression May Follow Blog EntriesYoga For Mental HealthHow Technology is Changing How We RelateThe Realm of Giving and GenerosityMindfulness for Busy PeopleEffective Listening in Small GroupsBelieve It’s Possible3 Ways to Know If You’re Saying Yes Too MuchWords of WisdomWarm Up This Winter By Embracing MistakesHelping Yourself Speak Your TruthWhat is Toxic Shame?What's YOUR Biggest Challenge for the New Year?Navigating Life's ChallengesImproving the Quality of Life as We AgeThe Third Noble Truth – The Noble Truth of the End of SufferingThe Second Noble Truth – The Noble Truth of the Cause of SufferingWhy Are We So Busy?The First Noble Truth – The Noble Truth of SufferingDiscovering Your Best Personal-Professional Energy: Reconnecting with Your Spiritual Homeland - Part IIDiscovering Your Best Personal-Professional Energy: In the Context of Health, Aging & Time - Part IGive Yourself a Break!Get a Better Night's SleepChanging the Machinery of UpsetWhy We Lie to OurselvesToo Much PretendingExcuses, ExcusesA Mistake Is but an Error: An Ironic-Poetic Odyssey for Human Authenticity and Audacity 9 Clever Ways to Gain ConfidenceUnderstanding Human BehaviorEmotional Needs - More Subtle and Sensible Than You Think Thought Versus RealityLife Goals and the Perception of Time: Do It Now!The Myth of Emotional SecurityHow Emotionally Intelligent Are You?Being at Peace with the Pain of OthersCelebrating Transitions in This Season of ChangeThinking and BeliefsWhat Will You Do With the Rest of Your Life? The Key to Overcoming ProcrastinationEight Ways to Take Care of Yourself During a Health CrisisIt's Not Only Okay to Reach Out During a Health Crisis - It's RecommendedThe Machinery of UpsetHow to Be Mentally StrongAntidote to Busy: 5 Simple Ways to Find Time for YouIs the Intention a Goal or Already Realized?Being Proactive About Problem-Solving Natural SPEED: Stress Resiliency Shrink Rap™: Safe Stress Survival StrategiesBe Amazed10 Things You Should Never Give Up For a RelationshipEmotion in the BrainBe Mind Full of GoodSteps to Self RelianceExpressing Your IntentionsKindness to You is Kindness to Me; Kindness to Me is Kindness to YouUsing Your "Free" Time to Enrich Your LifeIntegration of Mind and BrainThe Meaning of LifeCan You Truly Be Yourself At Work? Grow a Key Inner StrengthFive Tips to Make You More SuccessfulAre You a People-Pleaser?Evolutionary Neurobiology of ShameIs Laughter Really the Best Medicine?Whose Decision is It Anyway?What is the Mind?Getting the Respect You DeserveVolunteering in Later Life: Rewarding or Stressful?What Is Mindful Presence?How to Say No to People You Care AboutAre Your Needs Getting Met?Key Points of Letting GoDiscovering Love in the Face of Imminent DeathFeel WholeEmpathy: Your Most Potent Skill For Building Closer RelationshipsWould You Let a Crowd Diagnose You?Intention of HarmlessnessWeak and StrongThe Art of Letting GoGames and Manipulation: The Games People PlayU.S. Army's Wounded Warrior Program Aims for Multifaceted WellnessRight IntentionWhat Do Running And Knitting Have in Common? Both Can Make Us Feel BetterDeveloping a “Buddha Brain” Through GratitudeTickets To Paradise: A Good-Hearted TaleDo FreelyOrthorexia Nervosa on the Rise in the Quest to Eat HealthyWholesome Intentions – The Neurology of IntentionDeveloping An Inner Protector"Hope Dealers" Inspire Youth to Achieve True WellbeingLearned OptimismKey Points of AwarenessIt's Far Too Simple: An Adapted Zen ParablePerfectionism's Trap: Matthew McConaughey's Impossible ChaseThe Secrets of PersuasionRelax Needless Fear Around OthersEveryman's Dance Troupe Teaches Lessons about How to Live WellIncessant Drip, Drip, Drip — A Universal StoryYour Opinion is the One That Counts!How the Three Pillars of Exercise Benefit Mental HealthCore Beliefs and HappinessDo Life Challenges Make Us More Creative?A Meditation on GratitudeStop "Shoulding" All Over Yourself and Others-Everything in Life is a ChoiceA Caring, Joyful HeartThe Secrets of People That "Get It"How Socrates' Students Chose Themselves Helping Adult Children Affects Well-Being of Older ParentsAnticipation Versus Doing10 Secrets of Successful PeopleBinge TV Watching on the RiseMind Changing Brain Changing MindBeing Sedentary Changes the Brain (And Not for the Better)Are Workplace Wellness Programs Worth It?The Fun House of Mirrors — Seeing Light in EveryoneWhy Do We Fail to See Beauty? Thoughts on the Joshua Bell Experiment The Power of Intention Conquering Inertia Water Your Fruit TreeAnxiety Free New Year’s ResolutionsOne Trick to Break Bad HabitsLearning from the Fatal FlawFreeing the Sculpture From the StoneWhat Does the Latest Dream Research Tell Us? Not MuchEssential Fatty Acids and Mental HealthInstant Gratification Cowardice or Choice: From Vice to VoiceRaising a Grateful Family A Beautiful Mind — Saying Goodbye to What Cannot Be TrueFive Ways to Escape the Cycle of RuminationCreating Lasting Happiness in the New YearWhen Self-Focus Becomes a HazardEmpathy Versus Sympathy: Brene BrownMy Cup Overflows: A Zen Tale Adapted Three Favorite Ego Games Enjoy SobrietyHow Will You Use Your Gifts?Seeing Through the Ego's Fantasy-Reality Gap Accept DifficultyWorrying Too Much?The Beauty of Saying "No"Can Neurofeedback Help Musical Performance?Handling Blocks to Any Inner Practice—Meditation, Yoga, Gratitude, MindfulnessThe Ego's Way of Handling the NowAre You Mentally Strong?5 Ways to Train a Calmer Mind in 5 MinutesIV Drip Bars: Is This the New Path to Wellness?The Psychological Importance of Gratitude and GratefulnessLate Sociologist Warned About Multitasking's Effect on WellnessAffirming Your True, Authentic SelfThe Importance of Gratitude and Gladness for a Happy LifeCelebrate the Ordinary!Train the Healer WithinTurning a Negative Nelly Into a Positive PollyThe Benefits of Suffering and the Costs of Well Being: Secondary Gains and LossesOptimism Bias, Ignoring Warning SignsThe Evolution of Our SpeciesReframing: Finding Solutions Through a New LensHow to be More HopefulLet It GoA Walking, Talking, Breathing Miracle—Y-O-U! A One-In-Several-Billion ShotLet Things ChangeQuestions To Live ByFive Ways to See a Problem in a New LightAccept Them as They AreThree Components of a Commitment: A Universal ToolThe Long Term Consequences of Being BulliedBe Smarter than Your SmartphoneAccept ItHistory Shows that Exercise Boosts MoodMake a Difference Grow Inner StrengthsMeaning Depends Upon Context, Egos Make Up All the Meanings & the Context of All That's Real is Being Aware of Awareness ItselfPossible Direct Control - Staying on the Playing FieldMust You Win an Argument and Lose a Friend?Enjoy Four Kinds of PeaceLive Longer By Believing You WillWhat Do You "Have To" Do in Life?Posture and How it Changes Your FeelingsThe Five Businesses and an Inner Meter on Manipulation What You Look for Is What You Get: Learn 5 Ways To Change Your LookingOffending Rules, Bending Rules and Upending Rulers While Defending the Rule of LifeFree Yourself from Self SabotageIntroversion Gaining the Respect It DeservesEmbrace Your Introverted SelfTo Escape the Box, Embrace ParadoxA Better Way to Get Healthy Habits to StickTaming Our Inner DialogueSeeing Three Domains - Illusory, Empirical World, and AbsoluteThe Pros and the Cons of Cosmetic Surgery from a Psychologist's ViewpointHow to Cultivate GratitudeMotivation: What to do When You Don't Feel ItWhen Nostalgia is a Good ThingBeing Presence Itself - Enliven the Quality of Your LifeRelationships and the Meaning of CourageThe Power of Witnessing: How Would a Fish Know It is in Water?The Visionary Emperor EncounterSeeing Through the Unreal, Reveals Purely What is RealGet Out of the War10 Ways to Stick to an Exercise ProgramDealing with LiarsWant to Change Careers? 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What is Natural Happiness?Drop the LoadSleeping, Eating & Gaming, Oh My: The Blood Sugar-Blood Pressure-Out for Blood TriangleHow to Create Great Personal GoalsChoice - Level III: The "Will" without a Willful Doer ChoosesYou Can Always Begin AgainWhat Makes People Happy?Essential Steps to Self-Forgiveness and Overcoming GuiltChoice - Level II: Developing a Workable Structure For ChoiceHow Exercise can Change the World: Discovering your Hidden SelfThe Mozart Effect: Fact or Fiction?Choice - Level I: Seeing Through Obstacles to Living by ChoiceWhat Defines a Successful Life?Nurture HappinessBe GenerousFeelings Are Authentic and Valid — Perceptions and Beliefs Are SuspectPractice Being Here24/7 SPEED/Resiliency Shrink Rap™:Safe Stress Survival StrategiesThe Importance of Feeling SafeAre Good Surprises Ever Harmful?Accept Dependence Your Diet Affects Brain Function, New Study ShowsFind Greatness in Yourself Can Stress Make You Fat?How Negative Energy Effects Adults, Teenagers and Children: What We Can Do To Change itCritical Thinking is Not Critical, Just Looking for Truth & Reality: The Heart of Asking Questions That Reveal "What Is"On Becoming More Perceptually Objective, Empathic and Accurate: Or Getting Your Head Out of the Clouds of Negative Assumptions and Premature JudgmentsChange How You Think and Change Your LifeBeing an Outstanding Steward of Life Itself — What We Can Learn From Animals The Art of HappinessA Virtual Mindfulness World in the MakingHealthy Feeling ProcessingAre Emotions a Choice?Personal Identity: Meanings over Memories Give Them What They WantHow Social Norms Affect Our DecisionsThe Power of Personal BoundariesBuild Self-TrustHave Your Ethics Slipped? Recognize Suffering in OthersThe Sixteen Laws of Emotions: Recognizing Moods and Emotions to Return to Healthy Feeling ProcessingWhy Time Management is So YesterdayTo Stabilize Weight and Improve your Self-Esteem, Research Shows the HAES Approach Is a Winner! “Let’s Just Wait and Watch It” — Let’s NOT! The Mentality of “If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It” Can Kill You3 Days to Prime a HabitTransform Ill WillHospitals Take Notice of Bedside Manner - FinallySocial Isolation May Affect Mortality More Than Simply Feeling Lonely Ego Can Be a Superb Servant and a Tyrannical Master: Recognize Four Functions of EgoCultivate Good WillHow Giving to Others Can Improve Your MoodCome to CenterKids, Cupcakes, and Guns: How Our Cognitive Distortions Suffocate Our ChildrenProtecting Your Brain: New Research Points the WaySister Jean is a Picture of Wellness at 93 Years “Good Enough” Isn’t Even CloseMake Good BargainsThe Lure of FacebookMediterranean Diet May Benefit Your Noggin as Well as Your HeartHow Does Exercise Improve Mental Health? It's ComplicatedWill's Five Dynamic Laws of the UniverseThe Final Five "N & N" Tools and Techniques for Saying "No" (and Meaning It) - Part IIIDo You Believe in Miracles?Why Self-Compassion Trumps Self-EsteemBe Kind to Yourself: You Just Might Age BetterTaking It Easy Can Actually Boost Your ProductivitySocial Traps and Beyond: The Situation is Hopeless But Not Serious"N & N" - No & Negotiate - Tools and Techniques for Saying "No": Establishing Priorities, Setting Limits, and Solving Problems - Part IIThe Greater the Effort, the Sweeter the Reward (and the Harder the Loss)Speak TrulyRewiring a More Balanced Brain Have You Lost Your Sense of Wonder?Integrative Health Care: The Prince of Wales is Right on the MoneyThe Greatest Barrier and Passageway to Effective Communication at Work: “You”!Does Emotion Help or Hurt Your Performance?Why Is It Hard to "Just Say 'No'"?: Ten Barriers to Asserting Your Individuality, Intentionality, and Integrity - Part IMindfulness Research Makes Us Take a Deep BreathBenefits of Meditation and How to Get StartedHow Does Your Income Determine Your Well-Being?Own Being Responsible? — Absolutely, Make Others Responsible? — You Must Be Kidding!Facebook and Emotional Well-Being: Three Ways to Keep Things PositiveLived by LoveWant A Mental Health Boost? Connect Kids to MindfulnessDo We Need Anxiety? Thoughts for Entering the New YearReaching Out: Strategies for Addressing LonelinessDump the Resolution and Adopt an Acronym What I Learned about Engagement, Motivation, and Leadership from a 13-Month Old - Part ITelehealth: A Modern Path to WellnessWant Relief? Spread It OutDon't QuarrelIs Lack of Sleep Hurting Your Health?Attention Restoration Theory: Was Thoreau onto Something?Why Can't I Stick to My New Year's Resolutions?In These Heart Breaking Times, Remember: We Are The Other.Message for 2013: The Beauty of CompassionWellness Resolutions for the New Year5 Tips on How to Keep New Years' ResolutionsTrust in LoveDo You Seek Happiness?Twenty Ways to Promote Peace in Our WorldTrust the Teacher WithinMake a DifferenceHoliday Blues? 9 Tips to Cope with Holiday Depression Bruce Springsteen in Concert: What Life Lessons Does He Teach Us?Open Your Eyes and Alleviate the Winter BluesOne Breath at a TimeA Caring Request to Keep Your Feet (and ALL of your toes) on the GroundThe Intricate Ties between Depression and InsecurityLean into Good on First WakingDo You Eat at Café Gratitude or Bitter Bistro? Empathy: It's About Happiness, TooBelieve It Or Not: Skeptics Brains Are DifferentSee Deep WantsLife Cannot Be Reduced To NumbersWant to Feel More Peace? Look at Your ExpectationsThe Anatomy of a Poker FaceThanksgiving and Gratitude in Hard TimesEmbarrassment: Powerful and PuzzlingDon't Rain on the ParadeHow to Make an Anti-Bullying Program a Bad Thing (Do Not Try This at Home)Community Development: An Untapped Resource in Mental Health TreatmentWant to Get Tougher in Life? Be Vulnerable.Regret: How You Can Reshape the Past See Good IntentionsShame: The Core of Addiction and CodependencyShould Doctors Prescribe Lifestyle Changes?We Don't Need to Wait for ThanksgivingNow and Then, Stress Is a Good ThingDon't Let Waiting Become RegretSee ProgressThree Errors in Judgment We are All Too Inclined to MakeTo Caffeinate or Not to Caffeinate? Making Personal Health Decisions Must Remain PersonalPurpose, Purpose, PurposeSpeak WiselyBe Sure to Taste Your WordsFeeling Bad about Being SadCultivating Patience in Everyday LifeUnexpected Causes of TirednessSee Life from an Infant's EyesNew and Old Friendships Alike Help Us Age Successfully6 Ways Mindfulness Can Improve Your Daily Life Drop the "Shoulds"If You're Happy and You Know It…Wag Your Tail?How to be Wise About FearLet It R.A.I.N.Why I Love Rock 'n' Roll: Healing Music for the SoulThe Art of RoutineWays We Think That Can Make or Break Us - Part 2Insisting on Fairness & Justice is a Recipe For Conflict, Misery & SufferingAre You Blind? He Said...Put the "I" in IndependenceWays We Think That Can Make or Break Us - Part 1Find Your Own WayThe Brain in Your GutHow Our Brains Adapt to Trust and BetrayalTech Support to Help Us Count Our BlessingsThe Risk and Reward of Emotional Agility: How to Know When to Let GoChoose Beginner’s MindAre Compassion and Pride Mutually Exclusive?Garbage Detection and Brilliance SpottingCan You Predict Your Emotional Future?What You Need to Know About Generation XhaustedWake Up to Good NewsWhat We Can Learn from Our KidsBehold the SuperAgers!Change the ChannelMental Health First Aid: A New Concept Helping CommunitiesFind ConnectionBottom-Up or Top-Down? How We Generate EmotionsFind StillnessThe Thoughts that Hold Us Back - And What to Do About Them"Off With Their Heads!"—Danger! Danger! Guillotiners Ahead! - Identifying and Protecting Yourself From Expediency-Driven Guillotiners4 Steps to ForgivenessForgiveEnjoy the Little ThingsAn Interview with Margaret Moore, B.S., M.B.A., on Organize Your Mind, Organize Your LifeCultivating Everyday Spiritual ExperiencesMinimize Painful ExperiencesConscientiousness and a Happier, Longer LifeTraining the Self-Care HabitFriends And MarriageRelax, You've ArrivedHow to Be Emotionally Aware - No Cat Ears RequiredHappiness, Sandwiches and George CarlinPeeling the Onion—Uncovering Our Wounds in TherapyHugging is Good MedicineHold Wants LightlySelf-Advocacy vs. Hypochondria: Where Do We Draw the Line?Trust Yourself and Take Some Baby StepsA Unified Theory of Happiness: Interview with Andrea Polard Psy.D.Why Support is Important for Dealing with Food, Weight + Body Image Issues Let It GoRule-Bound Adjustment is Deadening - Rule-Flexible Adaptiveness is EnliveningRest Your Weary HeadInclining Your Mind to Happiness: Just 5 ThingsThe Importance of Family Pets, Grieving the Loss of my Best Friend, Bonnie Exercise: Building the "Can Do" MuscleOur Obsession with "More"When Does Vicarious Trauma (VT) Become a Sign of Codependency? - Part IIGenerativity as a Path to WellnessWhy You Just Can't Stop Texting and DrivingGift YourselfWhen Does Vicarious Trauma (VT) Become a Sign of Codependency? - Part ICultivating Resilience before Mental Health Problems BeginA Mindful and Compassionate Approach to Anger in RelationshipsThe Essence of Healing, Governing, Service, Judgment and ContributionCreate Peace in YourselfThe Protective Effect of Having a Purpose in LifeEnjoy NowAre Mental Health Apps the New Generation of Self-Help Books?The Downside of ExpectationsIs Hating Someone Because They are Different a Mental Illness?Find What's SacredThich Nhat Hanh Shares Some Good NewsComplacency, Apathy and Resignation Be Banished and TransformedSuccessfully Negotiating the Crisis-Trauma, Grief-Transition Passage: Six Emo-Existential Questions The Benefits of Self-Questioning Part OneClean Air = Clear Thinking (Or How Pollution Undermines Cognitive Health)Having Trouble Exercising? Cultivate a Mindful HabitAvoid the RushMore Evidence That Staying Active is Good for the BrainSpring Cleaning for Your Social NetworkLessons Learned from Almost Dying: A Personal JourneySteps Back are Not Setbacks: Finding Solid Ground Can Be EssentialBridging the International Corporate Geo-Cultural Divide or Presenter Beware and Buyer Be AwareDefining Your Own Spiritual PathBeing Kind to Your Body is Healing to the MindTo Trust or Mistrust - Part IFind Your North StarChange Your Body, Change Your Mind Being Positional, Non-Positional and Taking a StandMen are from Earth and so are WomenMultidimensional Wellness: Powerful Concept and Practical ToolCling Less, Love MoreFollow Your Dreams Start Feeling Joy Now!What Can I Do? The Seven Options Available For You In Any SituationBe Grateful for the Good and Graceful During the BadIn Challenging Times, No More “Inner Child”: Boldly Bring Your Inner ChutzpahPay AttentionThree Components of a Commitment: A Universal ToolWhen Calmness is a Trigger for Fear and How to Change itRetraining Your Brain Toward Greater FreedomThe Grammar of Committed Action: Speaking That Brings Forth BeingThe Strength and Stamina of Your Willpower Make a Valentine's ResolutionAn Interview with Gerti Schoen on The Gentle SelfThe Secret Ingredient to Making Change StickBe BenevolentWhen is Compassion Idiotic?Inspiring Power and Partnership: An Interactive and Interdependent PerspectiveCatch A "Wild Pitch?" You Must Be Kidding!Breaking Bad Habits Using The Now EffectDon't Beat Yourself UpAre Reasons Complete Nonsense? A Three-Minute Course Admit Fault and Move OnPositivity in Relationships is ContagiousA Simple Life Lesson for Us All: The Late Shirley LevineAn Interview with Brenda Knight on The Gratitude Power WorkbookPut Yourself on Your Priority ListCan You Live Without the Internet?It's Shocking How Little People Settle For, How Much They Put Up With and How Much Better They Deserve5 Tips on How to Keep New Years' ResolutionsElisha Goldstein’s Top 10 2011 Mental Help PostsBe the BodyA Tip for Happiness: Turn Routine into WonderHoliday Blues and Depression Single and Alone for the Holidays? 6 Strategies for Surviving and Even Thriving the Holidays AloneWithdraw Attention, Interest and Feeding Unhappy Thoughts,and Natural Happiness Arises and BlossomsBack to BasicsKnowledge is an Obstacle to KnowledgeEnjoy Every Last SandwichThe Impact of Exercise on Your Mental HealthSee the Good in OthersThis Thanksgiving Try the Mindful Gratitude PracticeWant a Healthier Life? The Mindful DietStart Now: 3 Steps to Success in the New YearThis Holiday Give Yourself and Your Partner the Gift of your PresenceBe FriendlyPattern Recognition: A Key to Success in Doing Anything WellWho is the One with Mental Illness?Know You're a Good PersonJohn's Story: A Critical Reminder to Us AllStep into the Clouds: Relieving StressThe Mindful Freudian SlipThe Renew Your Life ChallengeDo You Ever Recover from Emotional Pain? The Answer is YesThe Architecture of All Change ProcessesSee Beings, Not BodiesDrop Tart ToneThe Top Seven Sources of Stress and Their RemediesLower the PressureReceive GenerosityBasics of Living: Breathing, Standing, Walking and Sitting: Safeguards of Well Being and Listening WithinAn Acronym that Guides us to Mental HealthBalancing Joining and Separation Keeping It Real — Do You Get It?You Can Feel Safer: Is There Really a Tiger in Those Bushes?Your Primary Spiritual Relationship - Love for YourselfAn Interview with Lama Tsering Everest21 Ways To Turn Ill Will to Good WillGROKKED: Being Seen, Heard and Known For Who You AreA Phrase to Save Your DayHow Did Humans Become Empathetic?Am I Normal?Dreams: More Than Fantasies and WishesThe Wolf of Hate7 Mindfulness and Psychotherapy Posts You Might Find InterestingSelf-Responsibility/Self-Accountability Qualifies You as an AdultTaking in The GoodAcknowledgment Transcends Pride and HumilityAltruism: The Power of Social MediaHealthy FriendshipCan you Improve Life Satisfaction by Changing Your Focus?Video Blog: Confidence3 Steps to Say Goodbye to Old Beliefs that Keep You StuckThe Brain in a Bucket Developing An Inner Meter on Manipulation — A Critical Life SkillFacebook: A Cold Hard LookLife: Bringing Back the Missing Puzzle PiecesWhy Do Smart and Successful People Do Dumb and Self-Sabotaging Things?What's Your 500 Year Plan for Humanity's Mental Health?My Beef with the "Secret"Beliefs, Roles and Stories Can Be Useful At Times or Create Suffering: Recognition, Disillusionment, Disidentification & Surrender is Freedom Itself Want to Make Change? Listen Beliefs Are Not to Be Believed6 Keys of Assertive CommunicationStraight Feeling Talk: "I Anger Myself", "I Delight Myself"—It's All An Inside Job What is the Gift You're Meant to Give?A Question to Balance Your BrainBecoming Happier: A Will and a WayAre Meditators Better Decision Makers?Is Lady Gaga Destroying America or Is She Holding up a Mirror for us to Reflect?Safety to Express Feelings: The IPA Spring RetreatMonitor Your Thoughts and Improve Your MoodThe Power of "I Can"Getting Unstuck: Changing How We See Difficulty3 Steps to Jumpstart Happiness TodayTen Tips to Improve HappinessAwash in Harm, Do No More Harm: The First Law of All Health, Healing, Wellness and Well BeingCan We Really Trust Our Intuition?Treating Depression with Medication: A Philosophical ApproachWhat an Apparent Poor Sense of Direction Revealed about the MindWithdraw Attention, Interest and Feeding Unhappy Thoughts, and Natural Happiness Arises and BlossomsWhat the Future Holds (From the Perspective of Two 30-Year-Olds)Three Components of a Commitment: What Qualifies as a Commitment and a Committed PersonTake My Advice, I'm Not Using ItTwisted Upside-Down CommunicationSurvival Tips for Singles During the Valentine’s SeasonAnother View of ForgivenessLessons From the Other Side of 80We All Need to Take This More SeriouslyObstacles and Obscurations The Benefits of RoutineNeedless: You Can Have Almost Anything You Want(So Long As You Don't Need It!)Mindfulness in Daily LifeThe Junction of Political Awareness and Mental HealthWhy We Fear Success and What to DoExcellent Self-Programming with the UnconsciousThe Four Thoughts that Turn the Mind: Part Four: Precious Human BirthThe New Year: Recognize, Release, RefocusRecharging Yourself Through Relationships and Giving to OthersA Fresh New Year Upon Which to Embrace ChangeRecognizing and Working Well with the UnconsciousThe Four Thoughts that Turn the Mind: Part Three: KarmaThe Four Thoughts that Turn the Mind: Part Two: SufferingThe Four Thoughts that Turn the Mind: Part One - Impermanence5 Steps to Connecting to the Good in LifeStrategies to Communicate and Maintain RelationshipsMindfulness, Intuition and the BrainA Vacation is Good For the Soul...and for the RelationshipThe Art of Pacing - Live Long and ProsperDepressed? Consider this Strategy TodayPrime Your Mind for GoodDid You Know? Some Surprising Data about Stress Can Increased Light Make You Fat? Your Mind: A Blessing and a CurseAn Expert Interview with Darrin Zeer on Managing Work Stress Lessons Learned: Like Bridges Burned?Can How you Eat Change What you Eat and What you Weigh?9 Ways Mindfulness Can Change Your LifeHow Lucky Are You?Musical Inspiration to Open to the Possibilities of Life 10 Ways To Finish The Race With The Bear On Your Back!"So What's the Point?" Help with Finding the Answers... New Research: Mindfulness and Adolescent Boys Change Your Mind, Your Brain and Your Life! A Bit of Humor that Can Change Your Day3 Steps to Turn Negative Self Talk into Emotional HealingHow a Flexible Body Makes a Flexible MindThe "Fallen" Realities of Human Nature5 Ways to Renew Your Life TodayThe Great Illusion of Good and Bad Feelings1-Minute Generosity: Helping Thousands in NeedThe Most Important Way to Start Your DayWhat is Docosahexaenoic acid and Why You Need to KnowThx: A 1 Minute Exercise Opening to the Space in Your Life: A Needed ReflectionSaturday: The 12 Hour Unplug Challenge New Research: 5 Minutes Outside Can Boost Your Self-Esteem and MoodPsychedelics Good for Your Mental Health?3 Questions to Consider on this Earth DayWhat You Need to Know about the Dangers of Meditating for Relaxation Four Steps to Bring On HappinessWho Killed Happiness and How to Get it Back! Resiliency: Rewiring the Brain from Self Harm to KindnessA Practice to Get Clear on Living the Life You WantFighting Stigma: Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Wellness for Law Enforcement PersonnelThe Dangers of Compassion Texting While Driving: Breaking the HabitFeeling Depressed? 3 Steps to HappinessHope: Our Greatest Antidepressant5 Factors of Resilience to Engage Today! Be Happy Right Now! What About the Good News? The Psychology of Twitter, Mindfulness and Your Mental Health Meaning in Life: What Golf Balls Can Teach UsPeace in Oneself, Peace in the WorldWake Up to What Makes You Happy!Want Mental Health? Lessons from a KingEco-Altruism and Your Mental HealthCan Blogs Really Help? A Fundamental Attitude to Rediscover for Your Mental HealthOne Strategy to be More Successful Day to Day1 Strategy for Everyday Mental HelpTrain Your Mind to Tame Your StressThis is it! Letting Go of Daily StruggleIs Web 2.0 a Source of Happiness or Addiction? 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On Becoming More Perceptually Objective, Empathic and Accurate: Or Getting Your Head Out of the Clouds of Negative Assumptions and Premature JudgmentsMark Gorkin, LCSW ("The Stress Doc") Updated: May 16th 2013After an exhilarating five days in the Tetons and Yellowstone National Park, the flight home quickly brought me down to earth. This trip also revealed how bias can easily cloud our thinking and judgment. Let me illustrate. I was sitting in a row with a young mother and her three-year old daughter, a real cutie. (We played a variety of games from peek-a-boo to patty cake.) Her two other children, no older than seven or eight, were sitting across the aisle. And after awhile the kids, not surprisingly, were getting restless. The three-year old even called out quietly to her mom to no avail. Where was mom? She was sleeping in her seat, in my mind, oblivious to her children. I couldn't help but wonder about another too young mother who was being unresponsive if not irresponsible.
At some point though, I noticed her black t-shirt with the following inscription in yellow letters: "Iraqi Veteran: Fighting the War on Global Terrorism." Curiosity began to replace judgment. I also began to hear that Twilight Zone theme music. While waiting at the Denver airport, just two hours before, I had had a phone conversation with a military wife and program planner from Fort Hood, Texas. She wanted a "Stress and Humor" workshop to help stateside families cope with the uncertainty and angst of having a spouse, parent and/or child heading to or already stationed in war torn Iraq.
When the young mother finally awoke, I commented on her shirt and the above-mentioned telephone conversation. Suddenly her eyes began to water. She agreed there was a real need for such a stress program. Alas, this woman more than proved the point. She explained that her husband, stepfather to her kids, had been killed in Iraq the week before. I immediately verbalized, "No wonder you need to sleep!" We then talked some about the importance of finding your own way to grieve when ready. Right now the young widow just wanted to scream but was afraid that if she started there would be no stopping. (And can anyone truly hear another's screams in the depths of that dark and despairing black hole?) She will be leaving her kids with their father and his parents for a couple of weeks to get the needed emotional support from her family and friends.
The Basis of Judgment, Otherwise and Objective
But the focus of this essay is not the poignancy of loss or the power of grief but about my capacity for too quick and negative assumptions about the sleeping mother's motives and seeming parental inattention. Actually, I had made a common perceptual mistake and misjudgment based on a social psychology framework called "Attribution Theory." Attribution theory examines how a perceiver or judger assesses another person's motives and behaviors. And a highlight of the model is the capacity for perceptual error based on whether an observer attributes a person's motives or actions to situational forces or personality factors. Here's an illustration. Let's say a colleague at work (whom you don't know well) has come in late two times in the last two weeks. It wouldn't be surprising if you began to start wondering about their motives and competencies, e.g., are they lazy, disorganized, disenchanted with work, or just plain old passive-aggressive? However, if you were to come in late a couple of times, or were asked to speculate about reasons for your hypothetical lateness, research indicates you would likely quickly note, for example, the traffic conditions, needing to get a child to daycare, illness in the family, etc.
Can you see the bias? When explaining our behavior we first focus on situational or outside conditions affecting intentions and actions, thus providing a rationale or protective cover for any outcomes or consequences. In contrast, while observing others our initial predilection is to assess based on personality or motivational traits not on environmental constraints. An assessment focused on the individual alone, not seen in context, often makes it harder to be empathic or forgiving, or even just truly curious. (For example, "I wonder why she behaves that way?" is often more a disguised judgment than a question of genuine concern.) And this tendency to broadly, quickly or indiscriminately place personal disposition over situation when observing and evaluating others is called "Attributional Error." And obviously, even the expert is susceptible!
Clearly, my assumption-like questions about this sleeping mother and the degree of parental responsiveness demonstrate attributional bias. If you had been sitting in my seat, what would your initial thought and judgment process have been? If you too were not perceptually objective, how might we reduce our one dimensional, too quick to negative judgment tendencies? Consider these "Three Steps for Achieving More "Fair and Balanced" Observations and Judgments":
1. Challenge the Quick Judgment Tendency. We all are creatures of habit; it's easy to fall into a prejudgment, especially if you've had a previous experience seemingly similar to the event or action being observed and evaluated, e.g., witnessed inattentive parenting. (Unless, of course, you can empathize by placing yourself both in the woman's seat and in her larger picture. More in a moment.) So the key is to put on your mental-judgmental brake before going any further with the attributional process.
2. Shift From Assumptions and Judgments to Genuine Questions. Giving thought even to a simple question as "What factors might be contributing to this woman's need to sleep?" surely would have raised some possibilities that would have tempered my negative assessment. In hindsight, I know I'd be exhausted having to travel with three kids.
3. Avoid All or None Thinking and Attribution. Even if it's appropriate to raise some questions or concerns about a person's motivational state or attitude, don't stop there. Think hard or ask questions about the context in which the person is operating. Are there background barriers or bridges potentially impeding or facilitating normal or typical behavior and expected options or outcomes? In general, what are the environmental constraints and supports, social or cultural conditions or obligations, and mental status variables affecting the person's mood, mindset or possible pathways?
Hopefully, this essay has dramatically demonstrated that when observing others' actions or inactions rushing to judgment often leads to rash assessments. Don't just get caught up in the figure. Take the time and effort to raise questions about and carefully examine the situational background. Words to help us not just be more observant but also more tolerant. And also a mindset to help one and all…Practice Safe Stress!
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