From: De Volkskrant (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Volkskrant Science Editor Maarten Keulemans explains [translated from the original in Dutch] why so many girls are screaming for boy bands like One Direction: “Evolutionary biologists like Geoffrey Miller (famous for his book The Mating Mind) and David Buss (The Evolution of Human Mating) believe that boy bands are young men showcasing their fitness by dancing and singing, much as male birds attract mates… [Others believe that] for girls at the beginning of puberty, a boy band [allows them] to experiment with romantic love, without sex…
“Researchers Tim Kasser and Yuna Engle from Knox College in Illinois wrote in the Journal of Adolescent Research that… the worship of boy bands is a ‘rite of passage for adolescents [that] involves important matters, as young women develop their value systems and interpersonal relationships’…” Read more…
From: PsychCentral (Newburyport, MA)
For many young adults, there is a ‘Fantasy Gap’ between expectations grounded in materialism and a commitment to work ethic, according to “new research by San Diego State University psychologist Dr. Jean M. Twenge [and] Dr. Tim Kasser, a professor of psychology at Knox College in Illinois.
“Recent high school graduates are more likely to want lots of money and nice things, but less likely to say they’re willing to work hard to earn them,” said Twenge. “That type of ‘fantasy gap’ is consistent with other studies showing a generational increase in narcissism and entitlement.”…
It is important to understand the generational relationship between money (materialism) and work ethic because mental health issues such as depression and anxiety often surface as adolescents begin placing a strong priority on money and possessions, Kasser said… Read more…
From: PEN International (New York City)
PEN, the worldwide association of writers that works for freedom of expression, honors two Knox College theatre faculty. Neil Blackadder, professor of theatre, served on a panel, “Translation for the Theater,” at the hotINK Festival of International Plays, April 21 in New York City. One of the festival plays is “The Admission,” by Motti Lerner, the 2013 Glossberg Visiting Israeli Scholar at Knox College. The festival is a collaboration between the PEN American Center and the Lark Play Development Center, a theater in New York that focuses on new works. Read more…
From: The Atlantic (Washington, D.C.)
A feature by Emily Esfahani Smith cites work by Knox College faculty member Tim Kasser, in an examination of “the conflict between career ambition and relationships [that] lies at the heart of many of our current cultural debates.” The article states: “In psychology, there is surprisingly little research on ambition, let alone the effect it has on human happiness… But a new study… found that the children who were the most conscientious (organized, disciplined, and goal-seeking), extroverted, and from a strong socioeconomic background were also the most ambitious… made more money in the long run and secured more high-status jobs…”
[The study also found that] “ambition is only weakly connected with well-being and negatively associated with longevity. Existing research by psychologist Tim Kasser can help address this issue. Kasser, the author of The High Price of Materialism, has shown that the pursuit of materialistic values like money, possessions, and social status — the fruits of career successes — leads to lower well-being and more distress in individuals… Read more…
From: Connecticut Post (Bridgeport, CT)
Ask friends how many emails they have sitting in their inbox or how many photos are saved to their laptop, and don’t be surprised if the numbers tally in the thousands… All of this digital detritus is not a problem unless it interferes with your life, work or happiness, according to Tim Kasser, a psychology professor at Knox College, in Galesburg, Ill.
“If this acquisition of ‘e’ stuff ends up leading to a lifestyle that forces you to have less time for your family, or less time to draw or play music or run around in a park, or less time to be involved in your community, then I would say that to me is a problem,” says Kasser… Read more… Also reported in the Tampa Bay Times and other media via the Associated Press.
[Playwright Tony] Kushner [told New Republic magazine] that he has “a short list of 20 or 30 books that were significant to me” in writing the script of the film Lincoln. Included on that list are Herndon’s Informants and Herndon’s Lincoln, both edited by Douglas L. Wilson and Rodney O. Davis, emeritus faculty and co-directors of the Lincoln Studies Center at Knox College. “One of the great joys of working on this,” Kushner said, “is I’ve gotten to read a number of really, really brilliant books… I heartily recommend everything on this list.” 