MindCraft Challenges

In many everyday settings, the default choice is to simply experience negative emotions as they arise, rather than attempting to reappraise them. Gaurav Suri and his colleagues noted that when the default is ‘do nothing’, people only try to reappraise in a lab task only 16% of the time.

Challenge: Try a day of reappraisal. You will try to change your default by leaving yourself “reappraise!” messages (notes in your room and car, a sticky note or home screen on your phone, etc.). Any time you experience a negative event throughout the day, you will try to follow the reappraisal instruction. Because Suri and his colleagues found that there was the possibility that reappraisal instructions might also have a small effect on the likelihood of reappraisal, you should read this handout with descriptions of how to do two kinds of reappraisal.

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Defaults predict whether reappraisal will happen
https://doi.org/10.1037/emo0000011
Instructions for two kinds of reappraisal
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-021-01173-x

Paul Paulus and his colleagues have studied individuals and groups as they try to come up with new, creative ideas (often known as brainstorming or ideation). They have found that going back and forth between individual idea generation and group idea generation is more effective than individuals working alone—particularly when the individual thinking session is first.

If you have a group project, think about how you might implement this with your group. If you need to work with an AI to generate ideas (a kind of group project!), think about how to interleave individual thinking with group thinking and how to make sure that individual contributions always precede group thinking. Does alternating thinking practices make a difference in the quality and quantity of your ideas?

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Best practices for brainstorming:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2016.11.002
More about the science of teamwork:
http://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000334

Kristin Laurin and her colleagues conducted one of many studies demonstrating that thinking about God can change people's behavior. In their study, they activated people's thoughts about God. People were more likely to be resistant to temptation—however, they were also less likely to actively pursue goals when they thought about a controlling God. Laurin and her colleagues interpreted this as people feeling less like agents while thinking about an omnipotent God (the participant’s religious beliefs didn’t change the pattern). When people thought about God as a guide, they were both resistant to temptation and willing to pursue their goals.

Challenge: Spend a day regularly reading, memorizing, and reciting Psalm 121. Did your motivation or susceptibility to temptation change from what it usually is as you thought about God’s constant guidance?

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The Laurin “thinking about God” study:
https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025971
More about religion and self-control:
https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014213

McGregor and Holmes (1999) found that the stories we tell about conflict events in our relationships can bias our later memory of the event—taking on the story-telling role of a lawyer explaining why the other person was at fault led to more hurt and anger 8 weeks later than did taking on the role of an unbiased reporter. Many people also refused to take the perspective that the other person was innocent and they might be to blame—that is, they refused to do the task when assigned to take on the role of the other person’s lawyer.

On the other hand, satisfied romantic couples tell stories about each other that turn flaws into virtues—over time, those stories become true as people take on the qualities and roles of the stories they hear.

Reshaping our memories isn’t always a bad thing. For example, our memories of embarrassing situations or painful events shift over time so that we no longer feel the negative emotions in the same way.

Telling stories that shape our romantic partners and friends into better versions of themselves is a way to shape the imagined future function of memory systems. Try purposely telling stories about your friends (in their presence) for a week that emphasize their virtues and admirable qualities. Ask them to do the same for you (you can tell them that it is a psychology experiment, which is the truth). Does this type of positive storytelling change your perception of your relationship?

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Emotional memory is malleable
https://doi.org/10.1038/s44159-024-00312-1
The study of storytelling bias from the participation sheet:
https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.76.3.403
How satisfied couples tell stories:
https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167294206004
Idealization becomes reality for romantic partners:
https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.71.6.1155

Listening is a multi-modal activity involving multiple senses and experiences with your own motor systems, allowing you to accurately simulate speech production. Imitating an unfamiliar accent improves those unconscious, real-time simulations and thus improves comprehension when listening to the practiced accent.

Challenge::
Practice imitating an unfamiliar accent. You might choose a teacher you are having trouble understanding, a friend, or even a podcast or video channel speaker. Practice the accent (not in front of them—be polite). Does your ability to understand improve?

Read More::
Imitation and comprehension::
https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797610389192:
Skilled mimics have better comprehension:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10936-018-9562-y

Ethan Kross and his colleagues have recommended using distanced talk to shift thinking from negative emotions and a cycle of rumination to positive actions to achieve goals (hope).

Challenge:
Use distanced self-talk five times daily for several days to coach yourself at points of stress, during negative thoughts, or when you feel you made a mistake. Note whether your control over your emotions, thoughts, and ability to take positive actions improves.

Read More:
How to change your self-talk:
https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721419861411