How the Brain Gets Addicted to Gambling. When Shirley was in her mid-20s she and some friends road-tripped to Las Vegas on a lark. That was the first time she gambled. Around a decade later, while working as an attorney on the East Coast, she would occasionally sojourn in Atlantic City. By her late 40s, however, she was skipping work four times a week to visit newly opened casinos in Connecticut. She played blackjack almost exclusively, often risking thousands of dollars each round—then scrounging under her car seat for 35 cents to pay the toll on the way home. In 2001 the law intervened. Ten years ago the idea that someone could become addicted to a habit like gambling the way a person gets hooked on a drug was controversial. In the past, the psychiatric community generally regarded pathological gambling as more of a compulsion than an addiction—a behavior primarily motivated by the need to relieve anxiety rather than a craving for intense pleasure.
Two of a Kind Gaming the System. Here's A Horrifying Picture Of What Sleep Loss Will Do To You. If you don’t snooze, you lose. Skimping on sleep can wreak havoc from head to toe. In fact, one study published last year showed that just one week of sleeping fewer than six hours a night resulted in changes to more than 700 genes. That’s alarming news, considering nearly half of Americans don’t bank the recommended seven or more hours of shut-eye a night, according to a recent survey. Read on for the nightmare-inducing truth about what could be happening to your body when you don’t get enough sleep, starting the very first night.
Infographic by Alissa Scheller for The Huffington Post After one night you’re... hungrier and apt to eat more. More likely to have an accident. Not looking your best — or your most approachable. More likely to catch a cold. During sleep, your immune system releases proteins called cytokines, some of which help promote sleep. Losing brain tissue. More likely to get emotional. Less focused and having memory problems. Stroke risk quadruples. Obesity risk jumps. The Science of Willpower. It's still the first week in January, and many of us have already broken our New Year's resolutions. In this hour, we'll look at the latest research on how to successfully change behavior over the long term. Whether you're trying to drop a few pounds, find a new job, or manage stress, our experts share scientific insights on increasing self-control and changing entrenched habits. Show Highlights: 12 Ways to Improve Your Willpower and Achieve Your Goals 1.
"I can't tell you how many people I talk to, who make a resolution that they don't even want to do, they [simply] think they should do it. 2. "Willpower is limited. 3. "There's ample research that if you make time in the day to think about your larger goals, your bigger values and vision, that it actually sets up a kind of goal automaticity, that you're more likely to recognize opportunities throughout the day, to make choices that actually prioritize what matters rather than what feels urgent. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. Rethinking Mistakes & Learning From Your Missteps. Many of us — though more likely most of us — fear making mistakes. And it makes sense. We live in a mistake-phobic society, according to clinical psychologist Wendy Mogel, Ph.D.
Take social media. We’re tempted to become our own publicists, she said. We also learn as kids that mistakes are bad. But mistakes are also valuable teachers, if we can only learn to listen. One father told Mogel he fought with a pediatrician over his son’s Apgar score (and won). Mogel’s teen client was afraid to tell his mom he was writing a play. Mogel has worked with scores of parents who are afraid to let their kids make mistakes. And yet mistakes are essential steppingstones. Think of trial and error learning. And the reality is we’re going to make mistakes, said Alina Tugend, a journalist and author of Better By Mistake: The Unexpected Benefits of Being Wrong. The key lies in how we view mistakes – and what we do with them. Acknowledge your mistakes. Mine your mistakes. So explore your mistakes. Branch out. Get Excited! Excitement, Not Calm, Can Ease Performance Anxiety. By Rick Nauert PhD Senior News Editor Reviewed by John M.
Grohol, Psy.D. on December 24, 2013 While it sounds paradoxical, a new study suggests getting excited, rather than relaxing and calming down, is a better approach for managing performance anxiety-inducing activities. Actions often associated with performance anxiety include public speaking and taking exams such as math tests. “Anxiety is incredibly pervasive. People have a very strong intuition that trying to calm down is the best way to cope with their anxiety, but that can be very difficult and ineffective,” said study author Alison Wood Brooks, Ph.D., of Harvard Business School. “When people feel anxious and try to calm down, they are thinking about all the things that could go badly.
When they are excited, they are thinking about how things could go well.” The provocative study has been published online in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General. Several experiments were designed for the study. Meditation: A Practical Way to Retrain Attention. Daniel Goleman on how meditation can help us flex the different muscles of attention. model photo: Colourbox.com. One of the important things I learned from writing Focus was the new science of retraining an attentional habit, thereby resculpting the brain. The work of people in contemplative neuroscience where they're brain imaging people while they do a basic meditation, or a range of meditations, is really impressive. One of the pieces of research that stuck with me was by Wendy Hasenkamp who is now Research Director at Mind and Life Institute.
She looked at the basic move in meditation. It doesn't matter if you're doing a visualization or compassion or mindfulness, the basic movement is this: when your mind wanders off, notice that it's wandered, remove it from where it's gotten attached, and put it back on your point of focus. Focusing on an attentional stance, or an object of attention. Every time you go through that motion, you're flexing the muscle of attention. What You've Learned About Yourself. On Monday I included the following prompt for checking in with ourselves: Write what you’ve learned about yourself today. Asking yourself this question not only helps you get to know yourself better (the foundation for a healthy and meaningful life); it also helps you see how you’d like to grow and build a more honest relationship with yourself and your world. When we know ourselves we can make decisions that nourish us. We can practice exquisite self-care. We can say no to commitments that won’t work for us.
We can live in a way that honors our needs and preferences. In other words, we can build a life we truly want. That’s why I’m expanding on Monday’s suggestion: Consider what you’ve learned about yourself thus far. In your journal start with the words: “I’ve learned that I…” It could be anything from “I’ve learned that I am” to “I’ve learned that I have…” to “I’ve learned that I prefer” to “I’ve learned that I need…” Be specific and concrete.
What makes you happy? What matters to you? Sample Size Calculator - Confidence Level, Confidence Interval, Sample Size, Population Size, Relevant Population - Creative Research Systems. This Sample Size Calculator is presented as a public service of Creative Research Systems survey software. You can use it to determine how many people you need to interview in order to get results that reflect the target population as precisely as needed. You can also find the level of precision you have in an existing sample. Before using the sample size calculator, there are two terms that you need to know. These are: confidence interval and confidence level. Enter your choices in a calculator below to find the sample size you need or the confidence interval you have.
Sample Size Calculator Terms: Confidence Interval & Confidence Level The confidence interval (also called margin of error) is the plus-or-minus figure usually reported in newspaper or television opinion poll results. The confidence level tells you how sure you can be. Factors that Affect Confidence Intervals There are three factors that determine the size of the confidence interval for a given confidence level: Sample Size. Why do we cry? | neuroecology. I was recently reading an article on the psychology of why we cry (via): In a study published in 2000, Vingerhoets and a team of researchers found that adults, unlike children, rarely cry in public. They wait until they’re in the privacy of their homes—when they are alone or, at most, in the company of one other adult. On the face of it, the “crying-as-communication” hypothesis does not fully hold up, and it certainly doesn’t explain why we cry when we’re alone, or in an airplane surrounded by strangers we have no connection to…In the same 2000 study, Vingerhoet’s team also discovered that, in adults, crying is most likely to follow a few specific antecedents.
When asked to choose from a wide range of reasons for recent spells of crying, participants in the study chose “separation” or “rejection” far more often than other options, which included things like “pain and injury” and “criticism.” Although biological reasons have been proposed, they often seem a bit silly to me. Reference. The Social Life of Genes: Shaping Your Molecular Composition. A few years ago, Gene Robinson, of Urbana, Illinois, asked some associates in southern Mexico to help him kidnap some 1,000 newborns.
For their victims they chose bees. Half were European honeybees, Apis mellifera ligustica, the sweet-tempered kind most beekeepers raise. The other half were ligustica’s genetically close cousins, Apis mellifera scutellata, the African strain better known as killer bees. Though the two subspecies are nearly indistinguishable, the latter defend territory far more aggressively. Kick a European honeybee hive and perhaps a hundred bees will attack you. Working carefully, Robinson’s conspirators—researchers at Mexico’s National Center for Research in Animal Physiology, in the high resort town of Ixtapan de la Sal—jiggled loose the lids from two African hives and two European hives, pulled free a few honeycomb racks, plucked off about 250 of the youngest bees from each hive, and painted marks on the bees’ tiny backs.
Every biologist accepts this. 7 Ways to Manage Clinical Depression. Someone recently said to me: “Your tips are fine for those who struggle with mild to moderate depression. But what about if you can’t get out of bed you’re so depressed? What would you say to those who are really ill?” She’s absolutely right. Suggestions to improve one’s mood and to pursue healthy living should vary from tips on how to stop crying. I understand that merely getting through the day is an act of triumph when you are buried in the deep hole of depression. Since I have been there, more than once — where staying alive consumes all of your energy — I thought I’d share with you what has helped me. 1. My mom once told me, “You can’t wait for the storm to be over; you have to learn how to dance in the rain.” 2. You can do this from bed. 3. Anyone who has ever been locked up in a psych ward knows the sting of the stigma attached to mental disorders. I know. 4. When I was right out of the hospital, I devoured self-help books because I was in a hurry to get better. 5. 6. 7.
7 Tips to Create the Essential Habit of Rest. When someone is training for a marathon or any regular exertion of physical exercise, any credible trainer would emphasize the importance of resting the body. If you don’t rest the body, the probability goes up for injury. Our brains run in exactly the same way. All day long most of us are doing some sort of mental gymnastics – problem solving, planning for the future, and putting out fires. Just like our bodies, if our mind doesn’t get proper rest (besides good sleep), we are likely to burnout with symptoms of stress, anxiety or depression. Here are 7 tips to get in the habit of putting your brain to rest: (Note: If you catch the judgment, I’ve heard of these before, check in to see when the last time you did them was. Go Out in Nature – Go out and visit nature regularly, whether it’s a forest, the ocean, a park, or by a lake.
These are just a few to get you started. You may have your own ways of bringing more rest into your life. Elisha Goldstein, Ph.D. is author of The Now Effect. The Spark: Finding The Hidden Genius In A Profoundly Autistic Boy | Therapy Soup. C.R. writes: Research seems to show that autism is reaching epidemic proportions. Whatever the causes (and we’ve written about some strong correlations) the fact remains: Autism’s here to stay—at least for a while. It’s something that those with autism and their families, especially parents, have to learn to live with. Temple Grandin, John Robison (who we interview here) and others have written excellent books on their experiences living life on the autism spectrum, and have helped neurotypicals appreciate the gifts that autism (and Asperger’s) can bring. Temple Grandin’s mother was supportive of her, John Robison’s, not so much.
Yet both have made stunning achievements. But what does it take to parent a child with autism? For some, it’s a detective game of cause and effect (such as dietary causes and solutions), a battle-plan of coping strategies and interventions (physical, emotional, intellectual) , and plenty of love. But Kristine felt that this wasn’t the way to reach him. More Ways To Find Ease In Stressful Times. This week I shared the different ways I’m finding ease in the midst of stressful times. Today, I’d like to share several more strategies I’m using: Planning playful or enjoyable events. For instance, last Saturday, Brian, my mom and I spent the entire day at our favorite outdoor mall. (And by that, I clearly mean my mom and me. Brian’s favorite mall is the golf course.)
When life gets extra stressful, finding ease may feel impossible. But there are always small ways that we can make our lives a little easier. What are those small ways for you? The ones that make you feel less tired and worn out, the ones that calm you, the ones that help you find ease amid tougher times. This post was inspired by Rachel Cole’s upcoming course (which I’ve taken and really enjoyed!). Making lifestyle changes that last. You’re once again feeling motivated to eat better, exercise more, drink less caffeine or make any number of the positive lifestyle changes you’ve been telling yourself you want to make.
You’ve tried before — probably declaring another attempt as a New Year’s resolution — but without feeling much success. Making a lifestyle change is challenging, especially when you want to transform many things at once. This time, think of it not as a resolution but as an evolution. Lifestyle changes are a process that take time and require support. Once you’re ready to make a change, the difficult part is committing and following through. Here are five tips from the American Psychological Association to help you make lasting, positive lifestyle and behavior changes: Make a plan that will stick. Start small. Change one behavior at a time. Involve a buddy. Ask for support. Making the changes that you want takes time and commitment, but you can do it. Antidote to finding fault | Anger Management. The Power Of Rituals | Mind Matters. Where do the hours go?
Interior Design, Color, and Mental Health | Channel N. Free Webinar Recording for Cultivate Empowering Beliefs | NLP Discoveries. Building Resiliency | The Emotionally Sensitive Person. 7 Tips for Dealing With Sudden Death | Celebrity Psychings. Five Key Steps to Habit Change. Adolescents’ high-fat diet impairs memory and learning. Psychiatric disorders linked to a protein involved in the formation of long-term memories. How 3 “Attachment Styles” in Childhood Impact Your Couple Relationship? 1 of 2 | Neuroscience and Relationships. Avoiding Emotional Exhaustion: Filling Our Emotional Tank. Loving Yourself is the Secret to Extraordinary Service | Challenge Online. Body Image Booster: Setting Solid Boundaries. The 4 Fundamental Pillars of Emotional Intelligence.
Why Mistakes Aren’t As Bad As You Think. Practice Empathy for Better Relationships at Home & Work | The Psychology of Success in Business.