Posts Tagged ‘theory-of-mind’
On cutting “empty brain calories” by reading a book instead of social media
Stop doomscrolling on social media and read a book (Fortune): 2020 is the year I decided to cut back on empty brain calories. That’s right, I swore off the mindless junk from social media. Because we are all likely to conduct more and more doomscrolling as the election nears and 2020 continues its infamy, I…
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 MoreStudy identifies brain circuits enabling four-year-olds to “put themselves in other people’s shoes”
—– A remarkable milestone occurs in children around their fourth birthdays: They learn that other people can have different thoughts than they do. A recent study is the first to examine the specific brain changes associated with this developmental breakthrough.
Read MoreBrain Training and Schizophrenia: How to Boost Social Cognitive Skills
Individuals suffering from schizophrenia show social cognitive deficits, that is difficulties in perceiving and understanding the social world. Research shows that schizophrenia is accompanied by social cognition problems such as problems identifying facial expressions, understanding and responding to social cues (e.g., body language), understanding that others have different mental states and thoughts than oneself (also…
Read MoreChanging our Minds…by Reading Fiction
(Editor’s Note: we are pleased to bring you this article thanks to our collaboration with Greater Good Magazine.) Changing our Minds By imagining many possible worlds, argues novelist and psychologist Keith Oatley, fiction helps us understand ourselves and others. ‑By Keith Oatley For more than two thousand years people have insisted that reading fiction is good…
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