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The “charismatic air” of narcissists– from their flashy attire, to their self-assured behaviors, to their charming glances, to their witty humor– often makes a big first impression. At the same time, people seem to be really good at accurately perceiving narcissism in others based on minimal information (even just physical appearance is usually enough of […]

This month at The Psychology Podcast we discussed the origins of the universe and the search for meaning with physicist Sean Carroll, how the mind and culture evolve with evolutionary psychologist Steve Stewart-Williams, the importance of gratitude with author and self-experimenter A.J. Jacobs, and the laws of human nature with author Robert Greene. On the […]

Since a large part of my research program is investigating the importance of openness to experience, I get asked all the time: Can openness be improved? I always hedge at this question, simply because there is such a dearth of research addressing this topic. I mean, we know the correlations. And there are a lot […]

“Healthy personality is a way for a person to act, guided by intelligence and respect for life, so that personal needs are satisfied and so that the person will grow in awareness, competence, and the capacity to love the self, the natural environment, and other people.” — Sidney Jourard In the 50 and 60s humanistic […]

“There is now emerging over the horizon a new conception of human sickness and of human health, a psychology that I find so thrilling and so full of wonderful possibilities…” –Abraham Maslow, Toward a Psychology of Being On June 8, 1970, Abraham Maslow was writing furiously in his notebook by the pool at his home […]

This month at The Psychology Podcast we discussed the most taboo sexual fantasies with Justin Lehmiller, the importance of going “with the grain” of you nature with Robert Plomin, the importance of choosing the best environment to create habit change with James Clear, and  the importance of timing for virtually everything you do in your […]

“First there was the “Me Generation” then “Generation Me”. Now we have empirical evidence that we live in what will become known as the “Asshole Age” otherwise known as the Twitter Era…” — Personality Psychologist Brent Roberts on twitter “Our movement is about replacing a failed and corrupt political establishment with a new government controlled […]

The state of awe is an unusual and complex emotion, mixing emotions that don’t tend to go with each other, such as ecstasy and fear. Surely such a complex emotion that is so deeply personal, cannot be quantified or captured in any scientific manner, right? Well, maybe it can. While the concept of awe and […]

“We experience ourselves, our thoughts and feelings as something separate from the rest. A kind of optical delusion of consciousness.” — Albert Einstein “In our quest for happiness and the avoidance of suffering, we are all fundamentally the same, and therefore equal. Despite the characteristics that differentiate us – race, language, religion, gender, wealth and […]

The subtitle of Susan Cain’s bestseller “Quiet” is “The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking.” The idea that introverts can still flourish despite the cultural message of the “extravert ideal” clearly resonated with a lot of people. However, until recently, the science of well-being really didn’t support this idea. Study after […]

This month at The Psychology Podcast we discussed the importance of viewpoint diversity with Jonathan Haidt, the key elements of positive relationships with Sarah Algoe, and whether we’ll ever be able to figure out the mysteries of consciousness, free will, and God with Michael Shermer and Philip Goff. Have a listen below! The Coddling of the […]

“I think the misunderstanding — or, at least, one of them — is that it’s only the perseverance part that matters. But I think that the passion piece is at least as important. I mean, if you are really, really tenacious and dogged about a goal that’s not meaningful to you, and not interesting to […]