gratitude

4Apr

By THEIRL1ADMIN01No Comments

EDUCATION, Journalism

Behind Donations Of $50 Million Or More To Colleges And Universities, Alumni Gratitude And Support For Causes

The top motive people cite for their donations of US$50 million or more to colleges or universities was a desire to repay a university for what they or a loved one had gotten out of attending, according to a study we published last year. The second two most common reasons were an effort to simply do what they believe is the right thing and a wish to support a particular cause or political agenda. We found this out when we researched the motives of 30 of these higher education megadonors, through random sampling, from 2010 to 2018 and reviewing about 1,700 publicly available documents and news items that discussed their gifts, including some that quoted the donors themselves. Many donors mentioned more than one motive when they explained why they gave so much money to a school. Why it ma...

How Cultural Differences Shape Your Gratitude

Americans say thanks a lot, but other cultures may have a deeper understanding of gratitude. If you’re trying to become happier, you’ve probably heard the advice to practice gratitude. “Gratitude is literally one of the few things that can measurably change people’s lives,” writes pioneering researcher Robert Emmons in his book Thanks! His studies suggest that gratitude can improve our health and relationships—making it one of the most well-studied and effective ways to increase our well-being in life. But prescribing gratitude to everyone is a problem: Most of what we know about it comes from studying Americans—and, specifically, the mainly white American college students from the campuses where researchers work. That creates a cultural bias in the science, and that...

A Thanksgiving Gratitude Exercise

When you are missing a loved one during this season of Thanksgiving, it is often difficult to feel thankful. Yes, you are grateful for eyes to see, ears to hear, limbs to move... and so on. But, what about the pain of loss and loneliness, feelings of abandonment, despair, and hopelessness? What about the fear of the future? We know that the holiday season heightens the emotions of loss and clients have even asked me if they can make this season simply disappear. Since you can't avoid the sights, sounds, and smells that imply happiness, family togetherness and traditions, gift sharing, and the like, I challenge you to find gratitude in what's in your heart. "How do I do that Dora?" A small act of gratitude produces enormous benefits for the mind, body, and spirit. Of course, the greate...