Progress-focused

To achieve many important goals in life, mental effort is important. But aren't we as humans rather lazy than tired? Researcher Georgia Clay and a few colleagues investigated the extent to which rewarding mental effort leads people to learn to appreciate it. 

We can all witness positive human behaviors like helpfulness, kindness, honesty, and so on on a daily basis. Virtually every human being has been given the inclination for this kind of behavior, both biologically and through education and culture in a broader sense. But, as we know, sometimes people are also capable of negative and downright bad behavior. Some researchers have mapped out what kinds of negative and bad behavior there are. 

In recent years there has been much talk about increasing pressure, in many countries, on democracy. In the United States, a cradle of democracy, the erosion of democracy has been going on for many years, a process that has only gotten worse under Donald Trump's presidency. In many other countries there is also a rise of populist politicians with autocratic leanings.  Is it true that democracies are under pressure? Is it really the case that the world is becoming less democratic? An article by Bastian Herre (2022) provides answers. 

A new study from Theodore Powers and colleagues looks at the relationship between self-criticism and depression and the extent to which autonomy support can help reduce depressive symptoms.

A paper by Angelica Moè and Idit Katz (2022) examines the relationships between teachers' motivation, their enthusiasm, and their motivating style towards students.

A new study reveals an interesting link between mindset theory and self- determination theory. Dajung Diana Oh and her colleagues investigated how parents' math anxiety is related to a controlling or autonomy-supporting involvement in their child's education. 

What is the effect of how parents provide feedback on their children's performance? Is it wise to praise your child's intelligence if he has a high grade? And how do you react if your child comes home with an unsatisfactory grade? Do you say something about your child's abilities? Or is it wiser to say or ask about how your child has learned? A new study by Barger et al. (2022) provides some helpful answers.

How is wisdom related to well-being? This is a question that has puzzled scholars for some time. Until now, however, there were no clear answers to this question. A new study reveals how the relationship between wisdom and well-being works.