Mindfulness is Associated with Greater Prosocial Behavior and Lower Rumination By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “With mindfulness, people deeply experience the present feelings with clarity and emotionally calm, and thus prevents them from suppression or rumination.” – Ying Yang Humans are social animals. This is a great asset for the species […]
Spirituality is associated with Character Strength, Well-Being, and Prosociality in Adolescents By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “Given that adolescents are at the crossroads of life and face many issues and challenges that are unique, uncertain and value-conflict, they need to critically reflect on practical interests and examine broad issues on religiously tethered […]
Improve Empathy, Compassion, and Prosocial Behaviors with Meditation By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “From the philosophical and religious traditions from which mindfulness comes, it’s been long understood that practicing meditation, and cultivating mindfulness, in particular, can conduce to virtuous action.” – Daniel Berry Humans are social animals. This is a great […]
Can Prosocial Behavior be Improved with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “meditation made people feel moderately more compassionate or empathic, compared to if they had done no other new emotionally-engaging activity. But further analysis revealed that it played no significant role in reducing aggression or prejudice or improving how socially-connected someone was.” […]
Brief Mindfulness Training Improves the Willingness to Help Others. By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “Never worry about numbers. Help one person at a time and always start with the person nearest you.” – Mother Teresa Homo Sapiens is a very successful species. In part its success has been due to it […]
Mindfulness Reduces the Impact of Cyber-Ostracism on Adolescents By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “The current studies support the relevance of mindfulness in addressing the substantial problem of ostracism. Among other benefits, fostering mindfulness in a variety of contexts may help reduce personal and social costs associated with this type of incivility.” – […]
Improve Adolescent Social Behavior with Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “mindfulness might help reduce adolescents’ psychological distress through reducing expressive suppression of emotion experiences.” – Ying Ma Adolescence is a time of mental, physical, social, and emotional growth. It is during this time that higher levels of thinking, sometimes called […]
Spirituality is Associated with Awe/Gratitude and Well-Being during the Covid-19 Pandemic By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “During the COVID-19 pandemic . . . spirituality and religious practices are a protective factor connected not only with psychological and mental but also physical health.” – Ilaria Coppola The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged the […]
Psychedelic Drug Experiences Strengthen the Interpersonal Components of Personality. By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “experience with psychedelic drugs was linked to increased positive affect and to personality traits that favor resilience and stability in the light of the ongoing crisis.” – Federico Cavanna Psychedelic substances such as peyote, mescaline, LSD, Bufotoxin, ayahuasca and psilocybin have […]
Improve Empathy with Attention-Related Facets of Mindfulness By John M. de Castro, Ph.D. “mindfulness increases empathy and compassion for others and for oneself.” – Shauna Shapiro Humans are social animals. This is a great asset for the species as the effort of the individual is amplified by cooperation. In primitive times, this cooperation was […]