The final section of "Critical Thinking and mastery of Child Development Concepts", and a reference list.Some Ways to Foster Critical ThinkingIt is very possible that most students will not advance in critical thinking on their own, without instruction, emphasis, modeling, and guidance. Read More

The World Cup - England's chance for sporting glory, heroism and immortality! Er, well apparently not on the basis of their last two performances. By all accounts the England team were one of the favorite's going into the competition, but something's gone very very wrong. In their first match against the USA (who, in terms of world rankings, they were really supposed to beat), goalie Robert Green let in a massive howler. Last night's 0-0 draw with Algeria was simply embarrassing ... Read More

Ideal love is often described as providing us with the meaning of life. Thus, Stevie Wonder sings that "you are the sunshine of my life... You are the apple of my eye." In their song, The Beatles go one step further and say that: "All you need is love." Is the shift from the subjective meaning (in Stevie Wonder's song) to the more objective description (expressed by the Beatles) justified?   Read More

In contemporary Western societies, singles who like their single lives, singles who don't, and those who are in between all face dilemmas.  Read More

This post is the fourth part of "Critical Thinking and Mastery of Child Development Concepts".Critical Thinking Problems Related to Topics in Developmental ScienceIn this section, I will describe some specific problems of critical thinking-- incidents where many thinkers make systematic errors-- and their relevance to some topics and problems of developmental science. Read More

My father was hauled off to prison when I was 3 years old, so I never got to know him.  Six decades later, with father’s day approaching, I did a search for the psychological consequences of father absence, and found at least one surprise. Read More

From what I have gleaned from fellow PT bloggers, some of their entries excite readers in a bad way. On occasion, they get hundreds of hostile comments in response to what they write. That's good, I guess, in a hit sense, but I do not feel envious. Besides an occasional comment telling me that I'm stupid or that I don't understand the Bible, no one gets too bent out of shape by my essays. Read More

On The Strategic Use of Swear Words Read More

Is Being or Not Being A Prototypical Leader Of Relevance to President Obama? Read More

Squirrels and people display compassion and Zimbabwe calls off a wildlife trade deal with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea  Read More

All absolute perception is religious.Novalis      Too often we are frantically occupied with the business of today, as well as stewing on the conflicts of yesterday, and worries of tomorrow. Read More

I recently scoured academic journals and consulted a host of animal behaviorists for examples of pet-keeping in other species. I only found one. Read More

Already at 9am, the air is hot and heavy in the workshop tent. Fifty or sixty people are present, most of them quite young, taking notes, wonderfully attentive and responsive. They are a bit shy at first, but as we all introduce ourselves, they offer stories of trembling bodies, panicked hearts, of sights beyond endurance— Read More

Amy came in this week feeling quite defeated. Although she had previously been doing quite well with making food plans and sticking to them, she had been on a business trip earlier this week and hadn't been able to write down her food. She viewed the trip as a complete "failure," which left her feeling demoralized and unmotivated.  Read More

Alcohol, according to conventional wisdom, is a depressant. Yet, people often drink to liven up a party, not mellow it out. A few drinks can spark energy, elation and excitement; it gives you a buzz.  Is the conventional wisdom wrong? Read More

An acquaintance recently revealed that someone had sent him a link to an on-line video of his 19-year-old daughter having sex with two boys at a college frat party while a gaggle of both male and female onlookers stood by, shouting encouragement. Aside from the more obvious concerns such an artifact brings up, the larger societal issue it presents for consideration is the role played by convergent media in perpetuating our confessional culture, its immediacy, its permanence and the apparent lack of regard and consideration by Gen Xers and, often to an even greater degree Gen Nexters, for this circumstance. Read More

Entrepreneurial ventures are particularly attractive to creative types and recent college graduates frustrated with the slow job market and uninspiring entry-level positions. But the decision to go into business requires planning and careful financial analysis; something that not every creative type or recent graduate is knowledgeable about or even naturally inclined to do. Enter a visually attractive and helpful guide, The Creative Entrepreneur by Lisa Sonora Beam. Read More

 Kai Hibbard, who was a finalist during season 3 of the weight-loss reality show The Biggest Loser, says she developed an eating disorder while participating in the show.  Read More

When I see something about writer's block, I immediately think of Robert Boice's work on procrastination and blocking. He has also written an excellent book about new faculty. Here are two more strategies to add to Bill Knaus' list of tips based on Boice's research. Read More

There is a place for reason and emotion in human decision-making. How the two relate to each other is a matter of considerable complexity. If emotions sometimes help us choose well, how do we know when to listen to them? There are some clues, but don't expect simple answers (Always follow your heart, not!).  Read More

Does procrastination make us happy? Does it improve performance? The short answer from the accumulated research literature is "no" on both accounts. So, why does this myth persist? Read More

What's harder than working with, living near or sharing the road (or your life) with an overly entitled person? Being that person. While they may get their way more often than others, what they don't get as much of is happiness. Read More

How close is that glass of water, that gift card, that woman? Your perception of distance depends. How thirsty are you? How much money is the card worth? How attractive is the woman? What you want may appear closer than it actually is.  Read More

I recently finished reading Dr. Nancy Rappaport's excellent book In Her Wake, and it reminded me once again that our lives are works of art - or at least they can be works of art if we choose to make them so. Read More

The U.S. was totally robbed of the victory in their World Cup match today against Slovenia. Read More

One of the best hand gestures to use in business meetings is the palm-up cue. Around the globe, palm-up speaking gestures make an emotional appeal for listener support, cooperation, and understanding. Palm-up is a universal gesture made with the fingers extended and the hand rotated to an upward (or supinated) position parallel to the ceiling. Read More

I don't know about you, but I put stuff off - procrastinate - especially when something feels too tough, too dull, or too unimportant. Which is why I neglect chores inside and outside my house until I can't stand it any longer. Read More

I recently made a new friend, Maia Szalavitz, and I was thrilled when I got my hands on her new book (with co-author Bruce Perry), Born for Love: Why Empathy Is Essential--and Endangered. Empathy, and the ties that bind people into relationships, are key elementsof happiness. The book has many fascinating sections. For example, I was struck by this passage: Read More

The ancient philosophical debate about whether ethics is primarily a matter of reason or emotion has spilled over into psychology, where there is much current discussion about the nature of ethical thinking.  But sufficiently rich theories of inference and emotion can clarify how moral judgments at their best should be both rational and emotional. Read More

The Unfaithful Widow is a collection of essays by Barbara Barth, describing her first year alone after her husband's death. "I blush to say that everything in the book happened to me, or rather I did it all, " says Barbara. "Saying I did it all has more power to it, which is the message in my book." I spoke to Barbara about the role that friendships played during that life-changing year. Read More