The Essential Read

We all want a supportive spouse. Here's how to get the right amount and the best kind when we need it. Read More

A recent study shows that, contrary to expectations, the ban on the use of hand-held devices like cell phones while driving has not reduced the number of accidents on the road.  How could that be? Read More

A new blog has been making the rounds of the twittersphere for the past couple of weeks, inspiring lots of knowing giggles among design enthusiasts. The blog, Unhappy Hipsters, takes images from the popular architecture and design magazine Dwell, and offers new captions about the emotional states of the people in the photos. With the rewritten captions, the blog shines a light on the mirthless style of modern design magazine photography, where people are shot in solitary, pensive poses or in strangely non-interactive groups. But it also begs a question — why are these hipsters so unhappy? Read More

Some studies indicate that married people live longer, benefit from better health, earn more money, accumulate more wealth, feel happier, enjoy more satisfying sexual relationships, and have happier and more successful children than those who remain single, cohabit, or get divorced. Despite such benefits, about half of all recent marriages currently end in divorce and many people choose to be single parents. Although marriage offers great benefits, many people do not want to be married. This is the marriage paradox.  Read More

The old saying goes that you never get a second chance to make a first impression. Why would that be? Surely, getting to know someone ought to give you more valuable information about who they are than just a brief encounter. And clearly first impressions can be mistaken. A favorite storyline in the featured wedding in the Sunday New York Times is that the couple didn't like each other when they first met even though their friends were all convinced that they were right for each other.

What is going on with these snap judgments? Read More

Satoshi Kanazawa (not pictured) wrote a blistering blog post last week entitled British Newspapers Make Things Up. Guess what? British media may not be alone.

Psychological Science recently published a fascinating new study on jealousy. I was interested to read Newsweek's 1300-word article covering the research by their science editor, Sharon Begley. But part-way through the article, I thought, Huh, that's not what I recall the study saying. Read More

Trying new things requires a willingness to take risks. However, risk taking is not binary.  Read More

In a paper soon to be published in Personality and Individual Differences, researchers discuss the practical implications of their study in terms of maximizing work performance. This recommendation includes a combination of personality, motivation orientation and organizational climate. Read More

Buy and read Amy Alkon’s new book I See Rude People:  One Woman’s Battle to Beat Some Manners into Impolite Society.  It will be the funniest book you read this decade. Read More