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A study in the Applied Cognitive Psychology journal found that listening to music while working “impairs creativity.” But other research finds that music is helpful depending on the type of task, such as those requiring divergent thinking. [More]

“Physical Health May Suffer in People With Mental Disorders” according to a recent paper published in The Lancet, which argued that physical health is often overlooked in favor of addressing mental health. [More]

Our consumption habits are not rational. We overindulge in multiple areas of life. While the brain processes information as rewarding, it can put more value on the information than warranted which is why we get into rabbit holes of information online. [More]

New Zealand has a $1 billion well-being budget with five priorities for the happiness of its citizens (mental health, family violence, clean energy, digital innovation, and supporting indigenous people). Supporters of the budget feel happiness is a better metric for wellbeing than economic measures. Critics feel it’s a marketing campaign that minimizes the importance of GDP and the government’s role is to focus on economics metrics rather than individual happiness. [More]

Burnout is a word commonly thrown around. People are burned out from work and family obligations. Burned out from media consumption. Burned out from commitments. World Health Organization (WHO) updated its definition for the ICD-11 to identify burnout as a “syndrome”, tying it to "chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed." [More]

Although connecting with others increases happiness, strangers tend to ignore each other. It is could be a preference for solitude, assuming that’s the norm, are “too busy” or feel anxious about speaking to a stranger. But these weak ties can have a more positive impact on well-being than people expect and short conversations with strangers can lift our moods. So why don’t we do it? [More]

Is it helpful to classify personality types or does it put people into a box? A review of taxometric studies of personality concluded: “Whether personality attributes are best understood as dimensions or categories (types) is the subject of some debate.” Yet another recent study stated that “information is lost when personality facets are overlooked”. Experts weighed in on the usefulness of classifying personality types. [More]

In our driven culture, Type A personalities take pride in perfectionist tendencies. Yet recent research indicates perfectionism can predict depression or at least be associated with depression when there is additional life stress. [More]

As reported by Bloomberg, Amazon is developing a device to read human emotions and designed to work with a smartphone app. Microphones paired with software discern the wearer’s emotional state from the sound of his or her voice. [More]

Many people turn to smartphones for mental health assistance since most apps are free and can be used in the privacy of one's own home. (Whether or not the data is private is debatable). However, although new apps continue to come to market, a recent report found that only two-thirds of the apps recently studied were effective in diagnosing or managing a mental health condition. Does this mean professionals should discourage clients from using them? [More]