In this episode of "No Stupid Questions," Angela Duckworth and Stephen Dubner delve into the complexities of praise and critique, exploring how each affects motivation and performance across different stages of learning and in various contexts, such as sports, education, and family dynamics. They discuss the importance of specific, process-directed feedback over general person-directed praise, referencing Carol Dweck's work on the impact of praising intelligence versus effort. The conversation transitions to the economics of psychological trauma, prompted by a listener's question about the recognition and accounting of mental health impacts following traumatic events. They consider the challenges of measuring psychological trauma, the potential for reifying suffering, and the societal implications of trauma, including the concept of allostatic load and the impact of chronic stressors. They conclude with a discussion on building resilience in the face of collective trauma, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the importance of noticing, sitting with, and putting experiences into perspective.
