Read articles on how the latest insights from the world of neuroscience and behavioural science can make a difference to your organisation.
I don't even think about the prospect of not winning – it never occurs to me. I really am that confident. – Daley Thompson, Olympic gold medallist Now, get motivated! If only it were that easy. Daley Thompson is perhaps one of my most admired sportspeople, but even he...
A man once mistook his wife for a hat. Really. This story, outlined in neurologist Oliver Sacks’ book of similar title, sparked my fascination with the mind. Sacks’ description of ‘P’ trying to lift his wife’s head off her shoulders is absurdly comical. Yet he also...
Last week saw the arrival of the much anticipated taster training day developed by the partnership of the Wales Centre for Behaviour Change and Synaptic Potential. Delegates from a variety of Welsh SMEs were introduced to some of the latest trends and research in...
Work-based safety is one of the main strands of focus in the team of which I am part at the Wales Centre for Behaviour Change (WCBC). This area perhaps lends itself most obviously to collaboration between research psychology and industry. Although studied...
In this series of articles I have been exploring how the neuropsychological theory of dual processing may belie some our most fundamental ways of being in the world. The way in which we process information has implications for all sorts of psychological functions, including memory, learning, attention, problem solving and social cognition…..
The hell to be endured hereafter, of which theology tells, is no worse than the hell we make for ourselves in this world by habitually fashioning our characters in the wrong way. – William James, Psychology: Briefer Course Think...
Today I enjoyed another fantastic day at Bangor University. This visit however was a little different to normal. Rather than discussing studies and work that is done in MRI scanners…I was actually in one! The Neuroimaging...
• Ever feel like your willpower lets you down? • Wonder if your mind is playing tricks on you when act in the heat of the moment? • Perhaps you have goals but your actions are not always in alignment with these • Your brain...
Last time I described differences between ACTIONS and HABITS. Actions are intentional which means we consciously identify a goal and then decide how we’re going to get it. These goals may change as our motivation changes (we shift from chips to cake part way through a three-course meal; we put a jumper on and then take it off as the temperature changes; we stop phoning a colleague when we’re told they are in a….
We’re making a neuroscientific foray into hard-core science of the brain – delving into the world of rat brains and minds. Specifically, I am going to focus on a series of studies that have great relevance to understanding human behaviour. And you might even give little ratty a bit more respect afterwards too.
We often talk about habits. We say we’ve developed a bad habit. Or a good one. But what is a habit? And before we have got into the habit, how would we….
I’ve described in the past that our conscious minds – the thing you are using right now to read and consider this – is limited in its capacity. It can fill up. Thinking can become hard work and it can hurt. When this happens we tend to stop thinking and jump to conclusions instead. We all do it, and in some ways it is very adaptive – don’t overload the system, just go with what you think is right.
Along these lines, Clint Eastwood has a nice quote relating to political views….
There’s a treatment for phobias called ‘systematic desensitization’. If you had arachnophobia and I placed a spider on your arm, you would react ‘badly’. Perhaps your heart rate would go up a little… you might have a tendency to move out of the way – away from the spider. The immediate and close proximity of a real spider is way too much to cope with. It is too real and too in your face. So, with systematic desentization you would start by thinking about a spider on….
“One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating." —Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright, 1981” Quoted in Van der Wal & van Dillen (2013) This article is about food, and...
What was it that Mel Gibson says in Braveheart? “They can take our lives, but they’ll never take our freedom!” I quite like my freedom and I am sure you appreciate yours. We dislike it when we don’t have some level of control over our lives. In fact, depression can...
The purpose of today’s column is to demonstrate how informal conversations that go on during a coffee break can be a critical determinant of whether your business succeeds or fails. Essentially, if you want to ride the financial storm and respond to a changing economic and commercial environment, then don’t cancel the coffee breaks!
Last time, I reported research into resilience – what it is and what resilient people do in order to bounce back from adversity. On the one hand, it is about being able to accept failures, learn from them and try again. On the other it is about having a particular attitude that will allow perseverance even in the face of daunting challenges. Two specific examples from last time were that resilient individuals dealt with feedback in a certain way, and also that they interpret situations differently. Put together, resilience is a mind-set that shapes the way you see the world – it is full of achievable challenges that may take several attempts to overcome. (But they *will* be overcome…)
Corporate Social Responsibility, or CSR is a hot topic for many companies these days. Here in Birmingham certainly the city centre companies are mostly aware of doing things that benefit their community. Some of activities include doing a tree planting, mentoring...
Resilience is a term that is used more and more these days. In these times of recession, stress and adversity we are told that we must develop resilience and that we must ‘future-proof’ our businesses to weather the storm.
Today and next time, I talk about future-proofing ourselves. But am I just peddling more snake-oil or is there truth (or *evidence*) that we can indeed develop resilience and be better able to deal with the slings and arrows that the world throws at us?
“Do not worry about your difficulties in Mathematics. I can assure you mine are still greater. “ Albert Einstein. A recurrent theme here is Behaviour Change. Not just a focus on what determines our behaviour, but the processes...
What do you do when you want to change someone’s behaviour? You can simply ask them to change. You could put up a poster. Perhaps you can try and explain why they should change. These are the traditional approaches - an attempt to change attitudes or beliefs with the...
Nudge, Nudge, Wink, Wink... Next week I travel to Denmark for a conference on Behaviour Change. In fact it is run by the Danish Nudge Network! What on earth is that, I hear you ask. Well, it’s a long story and it involves competing brain systems trying to control our...
In the last article, I described “self-control” and ended by noting that it can be learnt. I also made a case for ‘control’ being a valuable ability to have. Sometimes of course we want to let go and our creativity would benefit...
I was proof reading a document recently and part way through I had a “stuff this!” moment and gave up. I then sent the document back saying it was proofed. I was tired and every time I read a sentence I lost track and had to go...
Different people are good at different things. Part of being productive and fulfilled is about finding the kinds of work and jobs that you are good at or enjoy doing. Finding a best fit between an individuals abilities and a particular job process or skill is...
Which would help you improve the most – working on your weaknesses, or working on your strengths? A worldwide Gallop poll found that the majority of people (59% USA, 62% UK, 76% China) felt that focusing on weaknesses was the best way to improve (Hodges and Clifton,...
Many years ago Epictetus said “We are disturbed not by events, but by the views which we take of them.” What he didn’t say, but is implied in the statement, is that we all differ in how we view events. It seems that our early experiences play a major role in shaping...
This month we are looking at attributional style, sometimes called explanatory style, and started life as something called locus of control. Essentially, they are all the same thing and relate to our outlook on life – whether we...
So, apparently habits can be a good thing. They help us to achieve goals, help us to stay on track when distracted, they free up our minds to focus on important issues and they sit quietly in the darkest recesses of our minds...
If asked about our working life, most of us would probably say that we are doing okay but perhaps not flourishing. We perform well but not always at our best. We could be better but things are okay. Neuroscience research offers a...
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