Posts Tagged ‘perspective-taking’
New book encourages readers to embrace uncertainty in order to improve decision-making, mental health, and more
Life is uncertain. We never know what will happen, and many things are unknowable. This can make us feel stressed or worried, since the unknown is associated with danger. But as journalist Maggie Jackson argues in her new book, Uncertain: The Wisdom and Wonder of Being Unsure, there are many benefits to allowing ourselves to…
Read MoreStudy finds the limits of putting oneself in another’s shoes (instead, ask and listen)
___ I still remember the time I tried to comfort one of my best friends when her father died. Because I’d lost my own parents years before, I thought I understood her pain. But, when I offered sympathy, she balked. Her father’s death had been transcendent, filled with love and family connection. She didn’t feel…
Read MoreWhat to Do and Not to Do to Boost Self-Control
More and more research suggests that our brains have difficulty differentiating between observing an action and actually participating in it. Empathy, for example, seems to hinge in part on our ability to “take on” another’s emotions through vicarious experience. I always think of this when watching a comedian fall flat. I can feel the embarrassment…
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