A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
Can kids learn empathy on an iPad? This is the somewhat unfair but inevitable question surrounding this week's release of a new tablet game called IF. Designed for 6 to 12 year olds, IF aims to help children manage their emotions, cope with stress and conflict, even deal with bullies. It comes with big expectations [...]
In one of the most important ever studies by a psychologist in the 20th century, James Prescott researched dozens of cultures and found that the degree of violence was directly linked to the amount of affection shown to children. Having our skin needs met in childhood and adolescence means we don’t have the urge to [...]
Leading children's author Mem Fox finds it ''heartbreaking'' to see small children left alone with smartphones and tablets to entertain themselves, saying an increasing reliance on technology to teach children how to read could inhibit their empathy and social skills. Fox said parents must keep reading books - either paper or ebooks - with their [...]
Why is it that misfortune that befalls certain people can make us feel empathetic and wanting to help, while misfortune that befalls others can actually make us feel happy? A new study shows that Schadenfreude might actually be biological, and that who the misfortune befalls is a critical factor in how we react. via Schadenfreude: [...]
For many people, race does matter, even if they don’t know it. They feel more empathy when they see white skin pierced than black. This is known as the racial empathy gap. To study it, researchers at the University of Milano-Bicocca showed participants all of whom were white video clips of a needle or an [...]
It is that intimate, magical chemistry that allows a mother to show even the youngest of babies how she is feeling. A grimace, a frown or a smile are all useful tools for helping a little one to learn what is approved of, and what isn't. But one of the country's leading child psychologists believes [...]
I believe American teens are in the grips of a psychological epidemic that has eroded much of their capacity to connect with genuine emotion and is, therefore, crushing their empathy. Having watched tens of thousands of YouTube videos with bizarre scenarios unfolding, having Tweeted thousands of senseless missives of no real importance, having watched contrived [...]
In 2011, researchers at the University of Chicago conducted a simple experiment to ascertain whether a rat would release another rat from a cage without being given a reward. The answer was yes. After several sessions, the rats learned intentionally and quickly to open the restrainer and release the caged rats. The rats also repeated [...]
Recent studies in the field of Neuroscience have been looking to uncover the anatomical basis for charity and empathy. The scientists in question are well aware that this is a contentious area, representing a convergence between science and religion: “Eventually, you are bound to get into areas that for thousands of years we have preferred [...]
I feel that empathy is an essential skill for all students. Learning to empathise will better equip students to interpret the experiences of others, especially when others' attitudes, beliefs and ways of thinking are alien to their own. It also allows for better intercultural understanding and community cohesion between people of different economic, cultural and [...]
