My notes on “How We Decide” by Jonah Lehrer:
Which of the following 2 sentences of praise encourages kids to challenge themselves?
- “You must be smart at this” (intelligence)
- “You must have worked really hard” (effort)
The research revealed that the kids praised for their intelligence chose a puzzle of equal difficulty. Of the kids praised for their effort 90% chose a more difficult puzzle. When praising intelligence, the kids hear “look smart, don’t risk making mistakes”. The fear of failure actually inhibits learning. Continue reading “How We Decide by Jonah Lehrer”