Women are better than men at distinguishing between emotions, especially fear and disgust, according to a new study published in the online version of the journal Neuropsychologia. As part of the investigation, Olivier Collignon and a team from the Université de Montréal Centre de recherche en neuropsychologie et cognition (CERNEC) demonstrated that women are better than men at processing auditory, visual and audiovisual emotions. [continue reading…]
Emotions
Love has inspired countless works of art, from immortal plays such as Romeo and Juliet, to architectural masterpieces such as the Taj Mahal, to classic pop songs, like Queen’s “Love of My Life”. This raises the obvious question: why is love such a stimulating emotion? Why does the act of falling in love – or at least thinking about love – lead to such a spur of creative productivity? Link to continue reading
Source: Scientific American
 Benedict Carey has written a great article in The New York Times that explores the commonly held psycholocical wisdom of crying as a healthy catharsis.
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Link to read The Muddled Tracks of All Those Tears
Having a “good cry” can and usually does allow people to recover some mental balance after a loss. But not always and not for everyone, argues a review article in the current issue of the journal Current Directions in Psychological Science. Placing such high expectation on a tearful breakdown most likely sets some people up for emotional confusion afterward.
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Source: The New York Times
Why be miserable? OK, so it’s January and you’re feeling fat and broke after the excesses of the holiday season, but there’s really no need. Misery is inconvenient, unpleasant, and in a society where personal happiness is prized above all else, there is little tolerance for wallowing in despair. Especially now we’ve got drugs for it. Jessica Marshall questions whether sadness is a crucial part of being human and whether we should embrace our miserable side.
Link to read this article
Source: New Scientist
