Positive Psychology | Penn Today

Social media may be affecting your mental health. Here’s how to tell

A quoted study by Melissa Hunt of the School of Arts & Sciences and colleagues suggests that limiting social media use to 30 minutes a day can improve well-being.

How to make your workout as fun as a video game, according to behavioral scientists

Mitesh Patel of the Perelman School of Medicine discusses how to apply gamification techniques to everyday fitness routines for motivation and enjoyment.

Two people standing in front of a wall of art. One of them is holding up a second piece of art in gloved hands. The other gestures toward the art, holding a computer or clipboard in the other hand.

Do art museums prioritize visitor well-being enough?

Research from the Humanities and Human Flourishing Project in Penn’s Positive Psychology Center reveals that the people working in these institutions want to see greater emphasis on human flourishing, but they feel ill-equipped to make it happen.

Illustration resembling a cosmic square with stars.

‘In These Times’ explores the intricate riddles of life through art

Episodes 6 and 7 of the latest season of the OMNIA podcast explore how art like music and dance have been the pulse of social movements, and how individual artistic experiences impact mental health and well-being.

Breaking bad habits: Routines trump willpower

A study co-authored by Asaf Mazar of the Wharton School finds that routines matter far more than willpower or conscious choices when it comes to breaking bad habits.

College admission: Thanks in advance

The Character Lab, co-founded by Angela Duckworth of the School of Arts & Sciences, is cited for its resources on the positive power of gratitude.

Chris Baccash racing on a bike in a cycling race.

How a brain tumor helped a cyclist change his life

In 2019, Chris Baccash was diagnosed with a a slow-growing malignant brain tumor. In 2021, after completing a grueling 100-mile cycling race up the Rockies, he started graduate school at Penn for a master’s degree in positive psychology.

Here’s how Black boys can cope with racial and gender violence

Howard Stevenson of the Graduate School of Education speaks about the PLAAY Project, which prepares Black male youth to cope with crisis and high-stress situations through sports.

A view of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, a long building of orange brick and blue angled roofs. The Schuylkill River flows in the foreground.

Art museums plant seeds of human flourishing

Researchers from the Humanities and Human Flourishing Project in the Positive Psychology Center at Penn have found that art museums are associated with wide-ranging benefits to human health.

There’s a name for the feeling that nothing you do matters

Martin Seligman of the School of Arts & Sciences says that learned helplessness is a mental state that occurs when people find out that nothing they do matters.

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