human behavior

Mike Marsella, center, runs during the ACC Outdoor Championships in Tallahassee this year.

Can You Psych Yourself Into Running A 4-Minute Mile?

4:31pm June 23, 2016

by Lulu Miller

NPR's Lulu Miller tells the story of one runner who always believed he could break the four-minute mile. Then a terrible accident made him question if he would ever be the same runner.

Is It OK For Boys To Cry?

11:11am June 18, 2016

by Hanna Rosin

We may be more accepting of boys who cry, but only if they cry in the right way, Hanna Rosin suggests. The norm for male behavior may be stuck in a place that isn't doing boys much good.

Tommy Chreene with his horse, Lady, at home in Meaux, La. Chreene spent 26 years working on offshore oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. While working on the Ursa project, he was part of a program designed to get the workers to open up emotionally with one an

Invisibilia: How Learning To Be Vulnerable Can Make Life Safer

12:42pm June 17, 2016

by Angus Chen

Tommy Chreene saw a man die while working on a Gulf oil rig — and went right back to work. Then the oil company decided that for the workplace to be safer, roughnecks needed to share their feelings.

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Could You Hack Your Brain To Get More Motivated?

6:27pm March 03, 2016

by Angus Chen

Volunteers learned to activate a part of the brain linked to motivation when they got feedback from an MRI. It's much more specific than older forms of biofeedback. But could it help change habits?

They Brought Cookies: For A New Widow, Empathy Eases Death's Pain

7:00am February 20, 2016

by Ann Finkbeiner

Her husband died. Then the neighbors started showing up. They brought soup. Cookies. Tea. But what they really brought was empathy. And that made the pain bearable.

Learning Soft Skills In Childhood Can Prevent Harder Problems Later

4:53pm December 17, 2015

by Lynne Shallcross

There's more to learn at school than reading and math. Teaching kids to control their emotions, solve problems and work well with others can help them succeed as teens and adults.

Be Kind, Unwind: How Helping Others Can Help Keep Stress In Check

2:12pm December 17, 2015

by Vanessa Rancaño

If the holidays have you stressed out, an act of kindness could help. Researchers tracked people and found that stress levels dropped when they went out of their way to help others.

The Problem With Teens Is That They're Just Too Rational

4:06pm September 10, 2015

by Nancy Shute

Teenagers aren't always risk-taking gamblers; they put a lot of effort into weighing financial choices, a study finds. Adults are more apt to adopt rules and quickly make choices that are good enough.

In Court, Your Face Could Determine Your Fate

10:16am July 20, 2015

by Nadia Whitehead

How much can someone's face affect the sentence he receives in court? A lot, according to a study that asked people to rate the trustworthiness of convicted murderers based on their mugshots.

To Weather Criticism, It Helps To Think Of The Big Picture

10:36am April 24, 2015

by Maanvi Singh

Negative feedback is supposed to be good for us, but it sure doesn't feel so good. Shifting the context by thinking more broadly helps blunt the sting, a study found. So does embracing change.