Social Brain

Can spirituality inform public policy? Yes, no, and maybe.

Blog

29 Sep 2014

Jonathan Rowson

If spirit is a name for the resistant and transcending faculties of the agent, we can spiritualize society. We can diminish the distance between who we are and what we find outside of ourselves. - Roberto Unger, The Self Awakened p38.

Carl Rogers, Creativity and the RSA

Blog

09 Sep 2014

Jonathan Rowson

When it comes to words, I'm never quite sure whether I'm the hunter or the hunted.

Climate change: a call for more beginners

Blog

30 Jul 2014

Like a child neglected for misbehaving, global warming is curled up in a corner of our collective social consciousness, crying and aching for our attention. Not all passers-by have ignored its plaintive cries (for recent RSA perspectives, see here, here, and here) but personally I know I am guilty for playing deaf most of the time. This week, via a book recommendation by my colleague Dr Jonathan Rowson, I was able to finally take stock, and give the problem the attention it deserves through a 25-hour immersion over the course of 4 days. The following thoughts are a review of an outstanding book, and partly a chronicle of my own personal attempts to face up to climate change.

How gratitude can help your bank balance (and more)

Blog

27 Jun 2014

Nathalie Spencer

Saying “thank you” feels good. And not just for the person on the receiving end (when there is one), but also for the person doing the thanking: it seems that practicing gratitude can help people to focus on the positive and improve wellbeing. While researching aspects of financial capability for one of our upcoming papers, I came across a new study showing that the benefits of gratitude may extend even further.

Let’s Talk About Death

Video

23 Jun 2014

With Will Self, Joanna Cook and Stephen Cave

Classroom observations: what's the best fix for a good but not perfect measure?

Blog

19 May 2014

Nathalie Spencer

Imagine having someone follow you around, observing you for just a fraction of a day, to assess your capability on the job.  Sounds nerve wracking.  This is how many teachers are evaluated, and new research suggests that these observations are not altogether reliable.

Six days in Delhi and the power to create – a very personal perspective

Blog

12 May 2014

I am in South Delhi in an air-conditioned hotel room. It is 40C+ outside. I have bottled water and a flat screen TV supplying endless Bollywood and Hollywood options, hour upon hour of Criminal Minds, The Voice USA and Indian talent shows and sitcoms. My tablet is on my lap and I am tapping out this blog. I have the power to create thanks to the world in which I live, the society, the country, the culture, the job. And yet right now I feel very, very sad and absolutely powerless. My home is in the UK, my job is with the RSA – these day-to-day norms empower me, enable and encourage me to write this. My other home, my husband’s home, is Delhi. This home is what leaves me feeling powerless today.

Mindfulness: What is most personal is most universal

Blog

07 May 2014

Jonathan Rowson

"What is most personal is most universal." - Carl Rogers

Mindfulness: more than a fad, less than a revolution.

Blog

30 Apr 2014

Jonathan Rowson

Meditation is simply about being yourself, and knowing something about who that is. - Jon Kabat-Zinn.