Sains-Psikologi
In an increasingly fast-paced and hyperconnected world that rewards immediacy, urgency culture blurs the line between what is truly important and what is not. At work, this could involve handling frequent last-minute requests, unrealistic deadlines or workload, and the expectation to be reachable even after hours. In personal life, manifestations of urgency culture include overextending in relationships, frequently checking social media updates out of fear of missing out, and responding immediately to calls and texts, even when it’s inconvenient. This hypervigilance significantly increases stress and anxiety, says Joel Frank, a Los Angeles-based clinical psychologist. Being part of the “always on” culture often necessitates multitasking. However, research shows the human brain lacks the neurocognitive architecture to perform two or more tasks simultaneously. So, every time we multitask, it actually slows the brain down and may reduce productivity by up to 40 percent. Besides, “the attraction to distraction that drives most multitasking can be hard to shut off,” says Friederike Fabritius, neuroscientist and author of The Brain-Friendly Workplace. “As a result, you may find it difficult to focus even when you aren’t multitasking.” To avoid the urgency trap, Frank recommends pausing for a few moments before leaping into action every time something comes up. “It allows you to step back and assess whether this demand for your attention aligns with your priorities,” he says. Setting clear expectations in personal and professional relationships can also help plan, prioritize, and problem-solve without inducing false urgency, says Peter Economou, director of the Behavioral Health and Sport Psychology program at Rutgers University.
National Geographic
Charan Ranganath, a professor of neuroscience and psychology and director of the memory and plasticity program at the University of California, Davis, shares five key insights from his new book, Why We Remember: Unlocking Memory’s Power to Hold on to What Matters. Memory is not about the past; it’s about the present and future. Contrary to popular belief, the neural mechanisms of memory were not cobbled together to remember the name of the guy we met at that thing. Memory is the process by which our brains extract what’s important—that is, information that helps us make sense of an uncertain and ever-changing world. We use memory to reason, plan, and imagine, to communicate and connect, to forge our identities, and to ground ourselves in time and space. When we look at memory as a resource to pull from, as opposed to a comprehensive archive of the past, we can make mindful choices in the present to curate a rich set of memories to take with us into the future. Memories are dynamic. When we recall a memory, we don’t replay the past; we imagine how the past could have been. This means that our recollections are shaped by our beliefs, goals, and perspectives, much like a painting reflects an artist’s unique perspective on their subject. Our brains are susceptible to distorted memories by design. Having a brain that has evolved to revise these memories means we can reframe how we feel about them by incorporating a new perspective. In doing so, we can update painful memories so that they can be experienced more tolerably, providing us with valuable lessons for the future. Embrace the struggle. Our computational models suggest that the brain is wired to learn from mistakes and challenges, a phenomenon called error-driven learning. We should normalize mistakes and failures in education and incentivize constant improvement instead. Rather than emphasizing mastery, we should celebrate the struggle of working to learn, rather than proving that you have learned something.
Fast Company