Robin Marantz Henig's Blog, page 4
May 15, 2014
It's Hard to Be a Narcissist in a Recession
The press and some psychologists love ragging on Millennials for their narcissistic tendencies. But the young people I come in contact with aren't especially self-centered, at least not more so than most twentysomethings of previous generations. New research suggests young people might not be so narcissistic after all—especially those who grew up in hard economic times.
May 9, 2014
Mother's Day Thoughts
One of my worst mothering moments took place in about 1990, when my daughters were 10 and 6. They were very busy all day working on my Mother's Day present in my older daughter's bedroom, and when they finally came downstairs in the late afternoon they were giggly with excitement, eager to give it to me.
Mother's Day Thoughts
One of my worst mothering moments took place in about 1990, when my daughters were 10 and 6. They were very busy all day working on my Mother's Day present in my older daughter's bedroom, and when they finally came downstairs in the late afternoon they were giggly with excitement, eager to give it to me.
April 21, 2014
Who Wants to Travel Back in Time?
A new study from the Pew Research Center finds that 10 percent of Millennials think a time machine would be cool���compared to just 3 percent of people over 65. It brings to mind my own mother, who at 89 has managed a cell phone but has no interest in learning any other modern machinery. She's too busy hanging on for dear life to the here and now.
Who Wants to Travel Back in Time?
A new study from the Pew Research Center finds that 10 percent of Millennials think a time machine would be cool—compared to just 3 percent of people over 65. It brings to mind my own mother, who at 89 has managed a cell phone but has no interest in learning any other modern machinery. She's too busy hanging on for dear life to the here and now.
Time Travel Holds Little Appeal for the Old
A new study from the Pew Research Center finds that 10 percent of Millennials think a time machine would be cool—compared to just 3 percent of people over 65. It brings to mind my own mother, who at 89 has managed a cell phone but has no interest in learning any other modern machinery. She's too busy hanging on for dear life to the here and now.
April 7, 2014
Is Suicide Ever "Rational"?
Last week, an 89-year-old woman went from her home in Sussex, England, to the clinic in Switzerland run by the group Dignitas, where she could receive a lethal dose of barbiturates. She was not terminally ill, just old and tired of living. Her death raises questions about end-of-life decision-making and the British group known as the Society for Old Age Rational Suicide.
April 3, 2014
Assisted Suicide Comes to "Girls"
On the season finale of HBO’s “Girls” last month, an ailing photographer named Beadie, played by the inimitable Louise Lasser in a wheelchair, asks Jessa to help her die. It was daring of Lena Dunham, the show’s writer and creator, to introduce this particular plot twist, since assisted suicide is one of the subjects that American television shows steadily avoid.
March 29, 2014
Mourning Online
Trend stories in The New York Times Sunday Styles section have plenty of problems, but the one last weekend about how this generation of young people is changing how they view death and how they mourn, had one great benefit: it linked to the web site Modern Loss. What a web site.
March 3, 2014
How Happiness Changes Over the Lifespan
A new study finds that young people are more likely to focus on the exciting and the new in their recollections or plans for happiness. Older people are more likely to take their happiness in the more mundane.
