Yearly Archives: 2015

Young People and the Medical Marijuana Debate

The debate about the use of marijuana for medical treatment has developed considerably over the past 12 months and has been highly publicised in the media. I recently presented one of our Party Safe Education seminars in a school where students had just completed a debate about the legalisation of marijuana. When presenting the information [...]

Teaching Kids How to be Sad

Helping the next generation live with feelings, not pathologise them. Young people in our society are increasingly worried and upset – not about any aspect of their life in particular - but about being worried and upset. This is a relatively new phenomenon. In the 1980s, surveys of teens showed they were worried about school, [...]

How to Relieve Pain Using Psychology: 10 Tips from Research

Some insights on how to relieve pain using psychology, with links to the studies: Clutch some money. Don’t curl up in a ball. Sit up straight. Swear. Laugh. Listen to good music. -  Barking Up The Wrong Tree Source: How to Relieve Pain Using Psychology: 10 Tips From Research | TIME

Is There Anything Actually ‘Medical’ about Medical Marijuana?

Some evidence shows it helps with pain and other problems, but obstacles to research are slowing further insights. - Aaron E. Carroll Source: Is There Anything Actually ‘Medical’ About Medical Marijuana? - The New York Times

Altruism Is Simpler than We Thought, Brain Study Shows

A new computational model of how the brain makes altruistic choices is able to predict when a person will act generously in a scenario involving the sacrifice of money. The work, led by California Institute of Technology scientists and, appearing July 15 in the journal Neuron, also helps explain why being generous sometimes feels so difficult. [...]

By |2015-07-27T14:35:02+10:00July 26th, 2015|Categories: Science & Research|Tags: , , , , , , |0 Comments

Birth Order Has No Meaningful Effect on Personality or IQ, Massive Study Reports

For those who believe that birth order influences traits like personality and intelligence, a study of 377,000 high school students offers some good news: Yes, the study found, first-borns do have higher IQs and consistently different personality traits than those born later in the family chronology. However, researchers say, the differences between first-borns and "later-borns" [...]

By |2015-07-27T14:36:07+10:00July 26th, 2015|Categories: Science & Research|Tags: , , , , , |0 Comments

Let’s Talk about Mental Health

A few years ago, I felt as though my life had collapsed, and I fell into a severe depression. I lost the ability to stand up for myself, I backed away from conflict, I didn't believe in myself and I was afraid of what people thought of me. It was not long before I lost [...]

Helping Students Tackle Bullying: 6 Tips for The Classroom

Bullying remains a troubling issue in our schools. In 2013, one in three Australian children aged 10-11 reported being bullied (Lodge & Baxter, 2013). Children who are bullied at school are at a greater risk of experiencing serious psychological problems later in life (Ronning et al 2009, Rigby 2015). Children who engage in bullying behaviour are more likely to become involved in criminal activities as adults (Ttofi et al. 2012, Rigby, 2015). This far reaching impact is too great for [...]

Young People and Apps – What Are They Using Now?!

It is impossible to give you a definitive list of every app you need to be aware of as the list is seemingly endless. What is popular today, becomes oh so yesterday within the space of a month. Some apps are quite OK if used correctly but if used incorrectly cause harm. The best way [...]

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