Positive affirmations are positive statements individuals repeat to themselves to bring about positive change. Are they effective? Do they boost self-esteem? To answer these questions, Dr. Joanne Wood conducted two studies. In one test, participants were divided into low self-esteem and high self-esteem groups.

Jonah Lehrer shares five tips from his new book, Imagine: How Creativity Works, to help us reach our full creative potential. 1) Get Stumped. When the “problem solving” left-brain is stumped, the activity shifts to the “creative” right-brain, and problems are often solved quickly.

In our technological universe, we are so plugged-in to the devices we carry around that we have sacrificed conversation for connection. We text, e-mail, shop, go on Facebook and tweet while we are at home, at school and at work. We have found a new way to be “alone together”.

Productivity can be defined as, “The amount of output delivered per hour of work in the economy”. Our ability to generate more output with fewer people has provided us with many benefits, including less drudgery. To succeed, though, this system depends on economic growth.

“I’m sorry” are two words that can be flippant, insincere, or incomplete. They can also dissolve hostility, encourage forgiveness, and mend damaged relationships. If you’re male, you may not say them often enough. If you’re female, you may say them too often.

According to positive psychology, to be happy and healthy we should be kind, caring, forgiving, gracious, compassionate, upbeat, and optimistic. Researchers Jim McNulty and Frank Fincham contend that, “psychological traits and processes are not inherently positive or negative; instead, whether psychological characteristics promote or undermine well-being depends on the context in which they operate.”

Miguel Alquicira is a dental assistant, and he’s in the minority. More than 90% of dental assistants and hygienists are women. Mr. Alquicira is part of a growing shift in workplace gender patterns. After graduating from high school and finding a desolate job market, he took an eight-month training course and now has no trouble finding jobs that pay $12 or $13 an hour.

For his forthcoming book, Not Working, D.W. Gibson interviewed more than 70 people who had lost their jobs. On July 12, 2011, he interviewed Dominick Brocato of Kansas City. Mr. Brocato had been fired two years previously from the job he had held for 20 years.

The theory posited in this article is that self-esteem is very sensitive to influence and that if we grew up alone on a deserted island, we would have a very healthy self-esteem. If something bad happened, rather than blame ourselves, we would accept the situation.

The Mayo Clinic defines optimism as “the belief that good things will happen to you and that negative events are temporary setbacks to be overcome.” Optimists tend to be motivated and persistent, and will attack problems head-on, rather than walk away from difficult situations.

n his book, “Monkey Mind: A Memoir of Anxiety”, Daniel Smith discusses anxiety and the myriads of ways it has affected his life. Just as his father’s anxiety was completely different from his mother’s, David’s anxiety is completely different from his brother’s.

Do you take things a little too personally? Do you become very defensive? At times, we all do, but a new discovery shows that many people are born “highly sensitive”. Using brain activation studies, researchers at Stony Brook University have proven that hyper-sensitive people are genetically different from people with a normal degree of sensitivity.

Samantha Brick, a 41-year old writer, is happy, has bright cheerful eyes, an air of confidence and loves to smile. She carries herself with pride and views herself positively. Her self-proclaimed beauty, however, is drawing bitter criticism from the media.

What began as an information gathering project has become a four year experiment. Once a month, six women meet at the home of Wendy Wilson, clinical social worker and psychoanalyst, to discuss their aging experiences.

Despite our advances in other areas of medicine and our acceptance of those who suffer from physical challenges or disease, misunderstanding and the stigma attached to those who suffer from mental illness abound.

How much therapy is enough? One study found that patients improved most dramatically between their seventh and tenth sessions. Another study looked at 2,000 people who had from 1 to 12 sessions, and found that 88% improved after one session, with the rate dropping to 62% after 12.

Living alone is one of the least discussed and most poorly understood issues of our time. Although some regard living alone as anathema, living alone is “the most prominent residential type.” In his book, Going Solo, Eric Klinenberg explores the history of and the social attitudes toward living alone.

Self-punishment learned in childhood can continue into adulthood and is common even in people who are psychologically healthy. There are three major reasons why people punish themselves. Some feel they deserve to suffer and others feel that suffering will make them a better person.

According to research, autonomy, which is the desire to make choices according to our own free will, is hardwired in all of us. External pressures from other people, internal pressures, like guilt or shame, or anything that causes us to feel coerced can quickly cause our feelings of autonomy to vanish.

There’s an old story about a man who buys a beautiful suit that will only fit if he “wears it properly”. According to the suit maker he should bend his knee, pull his arm up, bend his elbow and raise his shoulders almost to his ears. In this position the suit fits perfectly.