This week we went through six different stories: children’s first acts of help, the courage to say “I might be wrong”, two brothers at the finish line, an idea that was born “vague” at CERN, a skater who got back up, and a lunar mission struck by lightning. The thread running through them is simple: none of these stories has a solitary hero, and each starts from a small, concrete step.
9 November · Is Helping Natural? What 18-Month-Olds Do
In 2006, in the journal Science, Felix Warneken and Michael Tomasello observed 18-month-olds in situations where an unfamiliar adult was trying to reach a goal: the little ones helped with great ease. These are laboratory experiments, which do not tell us how to raise a child. Our suggestion: when a little one offers help, accept it and say thank you in words.
10 November · Science Day: The Courage to Say “I Might Be Wrong”
On World Science Day for Peace and Development we talked about intellectual humility. In 2018 Porter and Schumann, in Self and Identity, found that people with more of it were more open to opposing views in political disagreements. These are associations, not proof of cause, and they concern political disagreements.
11 November · The Brownlee Brothers and Shared Effort
In Cozumel in 2016, Alistair Brownlee accompanies his struggling brother Jonny to the finish line. In 2014 Bastian, Jetten and Ferris, in Psychological Science, showed in the laboratory that shared pain was associated with more bonding with strangers and more cooperation. The link with the Brownlees is ours.
12 November · Berners-Lee and the Web: A Big Idea Starts With a Small Win
On 12 November 1990 Berners-Lee and Cailliau put the WorldWideWeb project to CERN. In 1984 Karl Weick had argued that problems conceived on a massive scale block action and that what is needed is a series of “small wins”: concrete, complete, of moderate importance. It is a theoretical argument: the comparison with the Web is ours.
13 November · Dan Jansen and Friday the 13th: Making Sense of What Hurts Us
Dan Jansen fell in Calgary in 1988 on the day his sister Jane died, and won the 1000 metres gold in Lillehammer in 1994. In 2010 Crystal Park reviewed the research on “meaning making” after stressful events: theory, she notes, is ahead of empirical research. If the pain is strong, talk to someone you trust or to a professional.
14 November · Apollo 12 and the Lightning: After a Surprise, Let’s Review What Happened Together
On 14 November 1969 Apollo 12 was struck twice by lightning shortly after launch and the team regained control. In 2013 Tannenbaum and Cerasoli pooled 46 samples in a meta-analysis: “debriefs” improved effectiveness by about 25% on average compared with a control group. It is an average, not a guarantee.
The thread of the week: helping, doubting, sharing effort, starting small, making sense of what hurts and reviewing together what happened are gestures within everyone’s reach, and they are almost never done alone. And you, which of these six stories spoke to you most? Tell us in the comments: your choice may inspire someone else.
Sources
The week’s articles, listed above. The full scientific sources (with DOIs) are given in each article.
The contents of this blog are for information only and do not replace the advice of a doctor or psychologist.
Family and children
Family and childrenIs Helping Natural? What 18-Month-Olds DoIs Helping Natural? What 18-Month-Olds Do
Family and childrenMarie Curie and the Power of CuriosityMarie Curie and the Power of Curiosity
Family and childrenTalking With Children, Not Just To Them: The Power of Back-and-Forth