How many of you were raised by parents who supported the social convention that you should not use profanities? My East Coast, Emily Post-abiding parents certainly laid down the law that ladies and gentlemen …

Have you ever forged a friendship with somebody through shared antipathy? Researchers Weaver and Bosson, at the University of South Florida, recently discovered that when two strangers each possess a shared, strongly held negative attitude about a third party, this predicted an increase in liking and feelings of closeness with each other.

How many of you admit to having at least one bad habit? If you’re honest with yourself, then you nodded your head. Pick your head up, because habits are learned. Therefore, you can unlearn bad habits and learn new, positive habits to replace them. How? Let’s explore the brain’s mechanisms that underlie habit formation and what it takes to form new habits.

Happy New Year! How are those New Year’s Resolutions coming along? I know it has only been a handful of days, but today is ~ a good day ~ to check-in and assess how your goals are progressing or regressing and to think about ways that goal-setting theory can keep you on track.

Celebrating the new year in the past week, I have found myself engaged in (or eavesdropping on, admittedly) conversations about New Year’s Resolutions and the goals people were considering. This got me thinking about my own experiences with goal achievement and goal-setting theory.

Emily vanSonnenberg, MAPP 2010 uses the science and interventions of Positive Psychology in her private practice to increase happiness, communication, well-being, and health for individuals, couples, families, and non-traditional, complex, close relationships such as …