Research on happiness consistently shows that once basic needs are met, which of the following has the biggest impact on long-term wellbeing?
A: Higher income and material wealth
B: The quality of close relationships
C: Physical attractiveness
D: Achieving major life goals
Correct: The quality of close relationships
The Harvard Study of Adult Development — one of the longest-running studies of human wellbeing ever conducted — found that the strongest predictor of happiness and health in later life was the quality of relationships, not wealth, fame, or achievement. Similar findings come from positive psychology research: connection, meaning, and engagement matter far more than material circumstances once basic needs are secure. We consistently overestimate how much things will make us happy.
What is the "habit loop" identified by habit researchers?
A: A cycle of trying and failing that makes bad habits hard to break
B: A three-part cycle of cue, routine, and reward that drives habitual behaviour
C: The tendency to repeat mistakes in a loop
D: The observation that habits form faster in the morning
Correct: A three-part cycle of cue, routine, and reward that drives habitual behaviour
Charles Duhigg popularised the habit loop, based on neuroscience research: a cue triggers a routine behaviour, which delivers a reward, reinforcing the loop. To change a habit, research suggests keeping the cue and reward the same but substituting a new routine. For example: if the cue is stress (cue) → eating junk food (routine) → brief comfort (reward), you might substitute a short walk for the same cue and similar reward. Understanding the loop makes habits much more manageable.
People are more motivated to avoid losing something than to gain something of equivalent value.
Answer: True
This is loss aversion, one of the most robust findings in behavioural economics and psychology. Losing £100 feels roughly twice as bad as gaining £100 feels good. This asymmetry drives many irrational decisions — holding on to failing investments, avoiding necessary risks, staying in bad situations because leaving feels like a "loss." Understanding loss aversion helps explain everything from insurance purchases to why people hate to sell their houses at a loss.
Why does procrastination tend to make tasks feel harder than actually doing them?
A: Procrastination is a form of laziness that reduces motivation over time
B: Avoiding a task keeps it present in working memory and generates ongoing anxiety, while starting it usually reveals it's more manageable than feared
C: Procrastination creates a habit loop that becomes harder to break over time
D: The task actually grows harder with time due to forgotten details
Correct: Avoiding a task keeps it present in working memory and generates ongoing anxiety, while starting it usually reveals it's more manageable than feared
Procrastination is often driven by negative emotion — anxiety, dread, or boredom — rather than laziness. The problem is that avoidance provides short-term relief but keeps the task mentally "open," consuming working memory and creating background stress. Research shows that simply starting a task — even for just two minutes — typically dissipates the dread and makes continuation much easier. The anticipation is almost always worse than the task itself.
What does psychological research suggest about the best way to give critical feedback to someone?
A: Deliver it as harshly as possible to make the impact clear
B: Always sandwich criticism between compliments
C: Focus feedback on specific behaviours and actions rather than the person's character
D: Avoid giving critical feedback directly — let people figure things out themselves
Correct: Focus feedback on specific behaviours and actions rather than the person's character
Research on feedback and motivation shows that behaviour-focused feedback ("this report is missing key data") is more effective than character-focused feedback ("you're disorganised"). Telling people something about their character triggers defensiveness and a fixed mindset; telling them about specific behaviours leaves room for change. Carol Dweck's research on growth mindset shows that framing challenges as learnable — rather than as evidence of fixed traits — dramatically affects motivation and performance.
Multitasking — doing two cognitive tasks simultaneously — is possible and can make you more productive.
Answer: False
What we call "multitasking" is actually rapid task-switching — the brain cannot fully attend to two cognitively demanding tasks at the same time. Each switch has a cost: reaction times slow, errors increase, and each task takes longer than if done sequentially. Research shows that heavy multitaskers are often worse at filtering irrelevant information and switching tasks efficiently than light multitaskers. For focused work, doing one thing at a time is consistently more efficient.