Intellectually Entertaining. Socially Relevant.
It was a historic day in this country just a couple of short weeks ago, when on June 28th, the Supreme Court voted to uphold the Affordable Care Act, thereby paving the way to expand health coverage for millions of previously uninsured Americans. For a moment, let’s put aside the fact that in nearly every Read More
In my previous article, I discussed a phenomenon that is often overlooked by policymakers and pundits: how the experience of poverty produces its own psychology. Living in constant poverty, for example, is detrimental to both the decision-making process and to overall memory function. Clinically, I often describe the experience of poverty as being similar to Read More
Whenever I teach Intro to Psychology, one of my favorite topics to cover is the cognitive revolution. During the continuing revolution, much attention has been paid to human decision-making processes. Most of us like to believe that our intellect, our experiences and our perceived expertise lead us to make rational and well-informed decisions. But, mountains Read More
I find that many thoughts tend to keep me up at night, since I am quite fond of pondering our collective futures: the type of world we wish to leave our grandchildren, the manner in which we preserve our biosphere, and how we can become better global citizens. Such endeavors require effective leadership to galvanize Read More
In a talk that followed the publishing of his 2010 book, The Empathic Civilization: A Race to Global Consciousness in a World Crisis, economist Jeremy Rifkin challenged individuals to examine their place in a global society that has become increasingly obsessed with individualistic attainment versus global prosperity. A rather poignant part of the talk was turned Read More
We are in the last days of the time of year that can strike fear into the hearts of even the most rugged individual. It’s tax time! ‘Tis the season for frustration, moaning and gnashing of teeth. And it is as inevitable as a sunrise that a cursory search of Facebook statuses will yield a Read More
Unless you have been living under a rock, almost all of you who are reading this article are familiar with the recent killing of young Trayvon Martin at the hands of a delusional vigilante. What I find almost equally disturbing is the reactions that some have had to this incident. While most are correct to Read More
I recall a recent debate I was having with a friend of mine on an educational issue. I proceeded to inform him of the copious amounts of data that did not support his assertions. He then began his counterargument with, “Well, regardless of the facts…” Sigh. Many of you may wonder why it is, for Read More
We human beings are interesting creatures. We view the world through various social lenses, and use that information to make interpretations about everything that surrounds us. During times of desperation or uncertainty, however, those social lenses are distorted by fear and a desire to quickly identify a source of such distress, aided by those who Read More
With Valentine’s Day in our rear-view mirror, we are left with the memories of nice surprises, romantic dinners, and quality time spent with the person with whom you hope to (or already) spend the rest of your life. However, for a significant number of you who read this article today, these hopes would have not Read More