The Teenage Mind

The internal experience of the young adult

Jann Gumbiner Ph.D.

Communicating With Your Dog

Dogs do not speak in words but they communicate with us through sounds, postures, tail positions, and other non-verbal cues. Our job is to listen.

"Us" and "Them"

Many of the principles studied by social psychologists after WWII apply to our current political climate.

Money Management Skills for Children

Teach your children good money management skills and spare them a lifetime of debt.

Day Care Is Much More Than Babysitting

Quality day care fosters cognitive, physical, and social development. Day care is more than babysitting, much more.

Five Inspirational Films

There is a huge creative outpouring of film these days and a lot of it focuses on kids and teachers.

Navajo Math Circles

Youth who previously failed at math and saw it as unrelated to their lives are finding joy in math. How did this happen?

The Invention of Nature: a Book Review

Andrea Wulf's Invention of Nature surpassed my expectations. Rated as one of 2015's best books by Science Friday radio show, I rate it even higher.

'Inside Out'

"Inside Out" is a fun movie and a great resource for parents, teachers, and therapists, but the real meat is in the bonus materials.

How Did Dogs Become Our Best Friends?

Ever wonder how dogs became our best friends? Dr. Brian Hare developed a research program to understand how dogs evolved to read human gestures.

Spurious Correlations by Tyler Vigen: A Book Review

Public school enrollment and sour cream consumption are highly correlated. Does this mean if I eat more sour cream that more teens will stay in school?

The Teen Brain

Recent brain scan imaging research explains risky behavior in adolescents as a failure of emotional and logical centers of the brain to communicate with each other. Normal adolescent growth improves neural connectivity explaining improved self-control by the middle twenties.

Mental Fitness for Seniors

Baby boomers are one of the largest aging cohorts ever. Given that more seniors than ever will be driving, traveling, and working, there is an urgency to staying mentally fit.

Do Dogs Listen to Our Words or Voice Tone?

Dogs are more similar to us than we like to believe.

Childhood Obesity

Obese children become obese adults.

Sesame Street Creates Mobile Vocabulary App

Sesame Street creates a mobile app for preschoolers aimed at increasing vocabulary and concept development. With the new camera phone, children can learn anywhere and anytime. Is this an effective educational tool or a replacement for face time with parents?

Placebo Effect in Dogs

Placebos have been found to reduce barking, scratching, and crying when dogs are separated from their owners.

Should We Get a Dog?

Children can learn responsibility, nurturance, and a sense of being needed from a pet.

Train Your Dog the Psychological Way

No more wild dogs. Simply master a few principles of learning theory and you can teach your dog all the basic commands.

Communicating With Dogs

It has long been known that dogs respond to human gestures and voice tone. But can they understand our words? Are they more similar to us than we previously believed?

Teen Heroes of 2013

My role models are friends, neighbors, and colleagues—not celebrities and their manufactured images.

Dogs Don't Bite When a Growl Will Do: a Book Review

This is a delightful book about what we can learn from our dogs.

The Over Prescription of ADHD Medications

I have been worried about the random use of ADHD medications for about a decade.

Can Dogs Feel Our Emotions?

if contagious yawning is a form of empathy between dogs and owners, it may be a powerful tool to understanding cross-species evolution.

Dogs Are Good For Your Health

The take home message is get a dog and walk it.

The Lucifer Effect

If you haven't read Phil Zimbardo's book, The Lucifer Effect, drop everything and read it right now.

Letting Go of College Kids

Life is a stern teacher. You get the test first and then the lesson.

Zoobiquity: A Review

The best thing about this book, Zoobiguity, is the title. But, the originality stops there and it is weak in science.

Marijuana for Recreational Use in California

If marijuana becomes legal, cheaper, easier to get, and marketed to teens, what new problems will this cause?

Overdiagnosis of A.D.H.D.

When I was in college in the 1970s, the prevalence of A.D.D. was 5-10 percent. Years later in 2004, nearly every 5-year-old boy referred to our clinic was diagnosed with A.D.H.D. and automatically prescribed medication.

Motivate Your Teen

Libraries and book stores are packed with books on motivational strategies, but few are helpful.

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