Scientific American

Anger Can Help You Meet Your Goals

Heather Lench — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 14:30:00 GMT

This emotion can push people to overcome obstacles, though results are best when people keep their long-term aims in mind

Peach Fuzz Is Pantone's Color of the Year--And It's Everywhere in Nature

Allison Parshall, Liz Tormes — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 11:45:00 GMT

This warm, fuzzy color can be found all over the natural world, from land to sea to space

People Have Very Different Understandings of Even the Simplest Words

Simon Makin — Thu, 01 Feb 2024 12:00:00 GMT

Distinctive meanings for a word like “risk” can have a big impact on public messaging, especially when it comes to issues like climate change

Here's the Happiness Research that Stands Up to Scrutiny

Amber Dance, Knowable Magazine — Wed, 31 Jan 2024 11:45:00 GMT

From meditation to smiling, researchers take a second look at studies claiming to reveal what makes us happy

The Secret to Accomplishing Big Goals Lies in Breaking Them into Flexible, Bite-Size Chunks

Aneesh Rai, Marissa Sharif, Edward Chang, Katy Milkman, Angela Duckworth — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 13:00:00 GMT

Subgoals can make all the difference when ambitious targets seem too daunting

The Internet's 'Dog Mom' Talks the Science of the Human-Dog Bond

Andrea Thompson — Tue, 23 Jan 2024 11:45:00 GMT

Jen Golbeck, “dog mom” to a group of golden retrievers called the Golden Ratio on social media, talks about the science of the bond between humans and their dogs and all the ways that the canines benefit people

Children Anticipate What Others Want, But Great Apes Don't

Joanna Thompson — Wed, 17 Jan 2024 19:00:00 GMT

New cross-species research suggests a theory of mind is one thing that sets humans apart from apes

Preventing Child Abuse Should Not Be Controversial. My Own Hate Mail Reveals That It Is

Allyn Walker — Mon, 15 Jan 2024 12:30:00 GMT

A deep dive into one scholar’s correspondence shows society prefers blame and punishment over protecting children from sexual violence

Psychology Hacks for Resisting Trash Talk

Jessica Hullinger — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 15:00:00 GMT

A new book explores the science of trash talk—and why some people are more immune to it than others

The Curious Joy of Being Wrong

Daryl Van Tongeren, The Conversation US — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 12:00:00 GMT

Cultivating intellectual humility can offer individual and social benefits, a psychologist explains

Water Scarcity Changes How People Think

Thomas Talhelm, Hamidreza Harati — Fri, 15 Dec 2023 16:00:00 GMT

Lacking money makes people focus on the present—but lacking water makes them plan for the future