Three years ago, the UC Berkeley Greater Good Science Center launched the Expanding the Science and Practice of Gratitude program, which supported 29 research projects and yielded dozens of articles and videos on the science of gratitude. As Thanksgiving 2014 approaches, we thought we’d take the time to highlight some of the best and most … Continue reading »
gratitude
The year’s most popular articles about the “science of a meaningful life”
At a recent retreat for the UC Berkeley Greater Good Science Center, one of our advisors looked at a list of our most popular articles to date. “This is all over the place,” he said, referring to the diversity of topics and approaches. I replied that this is a feature, not a bug. The mission … Continue reading »
Six habits of highly grateful people
I’m terrible at gratitude. How bad am I? I’m so bad at gratitude that most days, I don’t notice the sunlight on the leaves of the Berkeley oaks as I ride my bike down the street. I forget to be thankful for the guy who hand-brews that delicious cup of coffee I drink mid-way through … Continue reading »
The case for cultivating gratitude at work
Why should anyone thank you for just doing your job? And why should you ever thank your coworkers for doing what they’re paid to do? These are common questions in American workplaces, often posed rhetorically—and sometimes with hostility. Elsewhere in American life, we say “thank you” to acknowledge the good things we get from other … Continue reading »
Love: What’s the point?
“Valentine’s Day is a commercial sham!” said one friend. “Valentine’s Day propaganda is everywhere!” said another. “Heterosexist!” cried a commentator on our Facebook page. Lots of people hate Valentine’s Day. For some very good reasons: It is commercial; it is heterosexist; it does make involuntary singles weep into their beers. But we at the UC … Continue reading »
Four ways to boost gratitude on Valentine’s Day
Whether February 14th is your first Valentine’s Day together or your 35th, it’s a great excuse to show gratitude for the one you love. Today’s post is the second in a two-part series on Gratitude. Yesterday I discussed research I’ve done on how gratitude helps us hold onto our relationships. Today I give you a … Continue reading »
How grateful are Americans?
Americans are very grateful and they think gratitude is important—they’re just not very good at expressing it. That’s one of the conclusions from a national survey on gratitude commissioned by the John Templeton Foundation, which also funds the UC Berkeley Greater Good Science Center’s gratitude project. We’ve stressed the importance of gratitude for years, as … Continue reading »
Why we need gratitude research
“It’s a good thing to be grateful,” writes Steven E.F. Brown in the San Francisco Business Times. “But is there any ‘science of gratitude’? Well, the University of California, Berkeley, has a Greater Good Science Center — are you really that surprised? — and it’s spending $3.1 million on a project to study just that.” … Continue reading »
You can’t have it all, but you might get a “thank you”
“Having it all” has been trending for two weeks, ever since Anne-Marie Slaughter’s blockbuster essay “Why Women Still Can’t Have it All” went live on the website of The Atlantic magazine. “It’s time to stop fooling ourselves,” says the Princeton professor and former State Department official. “The women who have managed to be both mothers … Continue reading »