No one is immune to feeling at a loss on how to connect to others. In this practical Guide from our archive, the researcher Michael Yeomans shares how to remedy this situation: learning to talk to strangers #LonelinessAwarenessWeek
It can be awkward at first, but people are more open to conversation than you think – and it could lead to deeper connection
In this helpful Psyche Guide, the dementia expert Nathaniel Chin and the communications specialist Caoilfhinn Rauwerdink have combined their areas of expertise to create strategies for talking to someone with dementia – from straightforward practical tips to more surprising and whimsical ideas
In this beautifully crafted video, the celebrated Romanian writer Mircea Cărtărescu reflects on the meaning of poetry – which for him extends far beyond the boundaries of a literary form and signifies something much more expansive
Self-reliance is a strange ideal because feeling lonely and sociability are both inescapable parts of being human. An Idea by Susan J Matt
Watching their parents glow with happiness after a day spent playing mahjong, two lifespan psychologists set out to find the secret to the happiness of older adults in this intriguing Idea – with lessons worth considering at any age
Why would someone who is deathly allergic to bees choose to keep working among them? This short documentary a warm and thoughtful portrait of Stacey Vazquez, who loves her work deeply enough to live with its risks
Today’s Americans face a challenge: they are expected to be both sociable and self-reliant. As the stigma on loneliness has only grown in the digital age, what is needed is not better AI companions but a revolution in human emotional culture
Today’s Note to Self reminds us to pay attention to our own marks on the day. It asks: how might we act differently if we could see exactly how our small actions alter the course of other people’s lives?
Daydreams can seem like idle distractions, private stories that carry us away from the demands of ordinary life. In this thoughtful Idea, clinical psychologist Vardah Bharuchi suggests they may also contain important clues about what we long for
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Against a series of dreamlike images, Mircea Cărtărescu explains why poetry isn’t the art of verse but the power of seeing beauty
