Psychology Archives

How Opportunity Costs Affect Decision-Making

What is an opportunity cost? How do opportunity costs affect decision-making? An opportunity cost is when you need to consider all options to put a decision into context. This affects your ability to make a decision, because it means you need to make a trade-off in order to make a decision. People don’t like making trade-offs, because they lead to three psychological blocks: indecision, emotional stress, and excessive justification. Continue reading to learn about opportunity costs, decision-making, and how to work through indecision.

Effective Learning Habits: The 4 Strategies You Need

How are your learning habits? Is procrastination one of them? You can make the most of your study time when you take control of your habits. A Mind for Numbers includes four strategies for changing your learning habits—and three ways to overcome the habit of procrastination. Keep reading to discover how to establish effective learning habits.

How to Craft Defining Moments in Everyday Life

Can you think of a defining moment from your past? What made it so? More generally, what makes a defining moment? There’s a common misconception that defining moments in life are large milestone events—such as the birth of your child—or simply happen as a matter of pure serendipity—such as going to a café and bumping into the woman you’ll marry. However, according to Chip and Dan Heath, the authors of The Power of Moments, most defining moments happen in small, everyday events, and what makes them stand out is how you shape them by investing your time, effort, and strategic

The Psychology of Peak Experiences

What is a peak experience? Can you think of a particularly memorable experience from your past? What made it a “peak experience”? Peak experiences transcend everyday patterns and impart positive feelings like delight, motivation, and engagement. Some of these positive peaks naturally occur in everyday life but they don’t have to be spontaneous. According to Chip and Dan Heath, the authors of The Power of Moments, you can engineer these experiences through what they call “elevation.” Here, Chip and Dan Heath explain the psychology behind peak experiences.

Arousal Non-Concordance: What It Is & Why It Happens

What is arousal non-concordance? Is arousal always accompanied by a genital response? Arousal non-concordance is the mismatch between what our brains identify as sex-related and what we actually find appealing. To demonstrate with an example, imagine you’re watching a sex scene in a movie. The scene doesn’t appeal to you because you don’t think the actors are attractive. Despite this, you find yourself becoming physically aroused at the sight of sex on the screen. Here is why non-concordance happens and what to do about it.

Come as You Are by Emily Nagoski: Review & Impact

Is Emily Nagoski’s book Come as You Are worth reading? How does modern culture repress female sexuality? Come As You Are by Emily Nagoski explores women’s sexuality using scientific research and the author’s years of experience as a sex educator. Nagoski decided to write the book to change the negative way that many women talk, think, and feel about themselves due to harmful cultural messaging that encourages self-criticism and perpetuates misinformation about what constitutes “normal” sexuality. Here is our review of Come as You Are by Emily Nagoski.

Sexual Personality: Understanding SES and SIS

What determines your sexual personality? Why do different people seem to have different levels of sexual desire? Are some people biologically wired to want more sex? Although everyone is born with the same brain mechanism that controls sexual response, certain aspects are distinct to each person. According to sex researcher Emily Nagoski, these differences produce unique sexual personalities that determine our individual sexual needs, such as what it takes to turn us on. In this article, we’ll explore the two-system mechanism in our brain that determines our sexual personality, including what it is, how it works, and how it varies

What Is Social Comparison and Why Is It So Bad?

What is social comparison? Why is comparing yourself to others so harmful? Is social comparison more common today than ever before? Social comparison is the act of comparing yourself to others—whether you know them or not. This act can come in two forms: upward comparison and downward comparison. The motivating factor for any social comparison, however, is the motivation to achieve status. Keep reading to learn all about social comparison and how it affects decision-making and mental health.

5 Strategies for Managing Test-Taking Anxiety

Do you struggle with test-taking anxiety? How might your test performance improve if you successfully managed that anxiety? According to Barbara Oakley, test-taking anxiety can be relieved by managing your time, changing how you view your anxiety, exercising mindfulness, using breathing exercises, and recording your feelings. She describes these strategies in her book A Mind for Numbers. Read more to learn these tips for managing test-taking anxiety.

How to Generate Self-Insight: Risk Failure

What is self-insight? How can you prompt self-insight on demand? Self-insight is your metacognitive understanding of your psyche and behavior (your thoughts, feelings, motivations, etc.). According to Chip and Dan Heath, the authors of The Power of Moments, the best way to gain self-insight is to put yourself in situations that expose you to the possibility of failure. Keep reading to learn how risking failure translates into valuable self-insight.