Your Brain on Altruism

The Power of Connection and Community During Times of Crisis
1. Auflage 2025
ISBN: 978-0-520-39760-6
Verlag: University of California Press

Buch, Englisch, 238 Seiten, Trade Paperback, Format (B × H): 143 mm x 211 mm, Gewicht: 282 g

In an era when "self-care" often revolves around consumption and profit, a health and science journalist emphasizes the genuine health advantages of a culture of caring.

Helping others can enhance our physical and mental well-being, boost resilience, and nurture a sense of fulfillment and connection beyond crises. In Your Brain on Altruism, health and science journalist Nicole Karlis delves into the science behind generosity and the benefits of fostering a culture of care for our health. She explores cutting-edge research on the sociology and psychology of altruism, revealing how acts of kindness during crises—such as COVID-19, natural disasters, and wars—inspire people to set aside differences and help one another.

Through interviews with innovators creating infrastructures for social connection—from a former entrepreneur leading a social prescribing movement, to doctors prescribing volunteer work and acts of kindness—Karlis shows how we all can contribute to cultivating kindness. A powerful call for a culture of caring, this book urges us to see taking care of one another as a social strength. By embracing this mindset and viewing ourselves as stewards of kindness, we can combat the epidemic of loneliness and build a more compassionate and resilient society.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Karlis, Nicole

Karlis

Fachgebiete

• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaften Interdisziplinär Naturwissenschaften, Technik, Medizin
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Soziale Gruppen/Soziale Themen
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Soziologie Allgemein
• Sozialwissenschaften Psychologie Allgemeine Psychologie Sozialpsychologie

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Contents

Acknowledgments

Prologue

I · Caring in Crisis
1 The Disaster Effect

2 Bounded Solidarity

3 The Loneliness Crisis

4 The Coregulation Fix

II · The Alchemy of Altruism
5 The Kindness Intervention

6 Better Together

7 The Malama Mindset

8 Volunteering for All

9 Why Mattering Matters

III · Sustaining Systemic Caring
10 The Power of Empathy

11 Nature’s Fire Extinguisher

12 When You Can’t Give, Witness

Epilogue

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Über Autor(innen)

Nicole Karlis is a health and science journalist. Her work has been published in Salon, The New York Times, Marie Claire, and The Bold Italic.