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Psychology

Six tips to stay calm, positive, and resilient in trying times
A close up of a plant growing from the cracks of a cement sidewalk.

Six tips to stay calm, positive, and resilient in trying times

The situation around COVID-19 can be overwhelming, but experts from Penn’s Positive Psychology Center offer advice to get through—or at the very least, get by.

Michele W. Berger

Is the coronavirus pandemic making us mean?

Is the coronavirus pandemic making us mean?

Jeremy Tyler of the Perelman School of Medicine spoke about how tempers are flaring amidst the pandemic. “I don't know that [the pandemic] is making people mean per se, but I think it's absolutely pushing our limit,” he said.

Why do people react differently when confronting the same threat?
pyramid of multiple rolls of toilet paper, implying hoarding in crisis

Why do people react differently when confronting the same threat?

In the face of the coronavirus, some people collected household goods. Others ignored the warnings altogether. Two Penn researchers explain why both responses are normal and how to find a middle ground if you disagree with those around you.

Michele W. Berger

How to socially distance and stay sane

How to socially distance and stay sane

Carolyn Cannuscio of the Perelman School of Medicine recommended that small groups of people form pacts to reduce outside contact during the pandemic in order to make socializing safer. “I can see social and mental-health advantages to that kind of approach,” she said.