The Evidence-based Wisdom Screencast Series is a collection of short conversations discussing 10 of the major ideas and themes emerging from the field of Wisdom Research. You can either hear them by clicking on the individual links below, or click here to listen to the playlist on youtube.
EBW Screencast Series: Introduction
A quick overview of the series, covering the birth of wisdom research and the broad range of topics involved in the field
EBW Screencast Series: Older and Wiser?
This discussion covers the myth of the aged sage, the relationship between age and wisdom, the role of experience and reflection and the potential threat ageing can pose to the growth of wisdom. Click here to read the related blog post ‘The Myth of the Aged Sage’.
EBW Screencast Series: The 6 Components of Wisdom
This conversation covers the 6 essential components to emerge from a literature review of the most popular wisdom frameworks, including self-knowledge, multiple-perspective taking and even a sense of humour. Click here to read related papers detailing the studies.
EBW Screencast Series: Three Models of Wisdom
This discussion covers the three models of wisdom that have come to dominate the field over the last 30 years: The Berlin Wisdom Paradigm, Sternberg’s Balance Theory of Wisdom and Ardelt’s Three-dimensional Wisdom Scale. Click here to read related papers about these models of wisdom
EBW Screencast Series: Measuring Wisdom
This talk covers the challenges of measuring wisdom and how researchers have worked round these obstacles to develop a number of reliable and consistent wisdom scales. Click here to read research into how the scales compare under the microscope.
EBW Screencast Series: Three Short-term Interventions
This discussion looks at three activities which have been shown to increase the wisdom of people’s responses under laboratory conditions and also discusses the distinction between short and long-term interventions. Click here to read more about the assessment of short-term wisdom-enhancing interventions.
EBW Screencast Series: The Wise Personality
This conversation considers the personality traits which have been shown to consistently be present in individuals who score highly on measures of wisdom and in particular the importance of the characteristic of openness to new experiences and a progressive, judicial cognitive style.
EBW Screencast Series: Wisdom and Culture
This discussion looks at research on what is shared and what is different when it comes to Western and Eastern models of wisdom. Click here to read an article on the differences in the development of wisdom in American and Japanese populations.
EBW Screencast Series: Wisdom and The Brain
This conversation considers the neuroscience of wise behaviour, in particular the theory that the newest and most ancient regions of the brain work in harmony to find the optimal solution for the individual and society. Click here to read more about the neurobiology of wisdom.
EBW Screencast Series: Wisdom and Humour
This discussion considers the surprising role of humour in wisdom, the importance of perspective-shifting in both humour and wisdom and the use of humour as a coping strategy in the field of terror management. Click here to watch a talk by Jeffrey Webster outlining the central role of humour in wisdom.
EBW Screencast Series: Wisdom and Happiness
The final conversation in the series considers whether wisdom makes people more or less happy, the importance of facing and learning from negative experiences and the critical role that curiosity may play in both our wisdom and happiness. Click here to read related papers detailing the studies.
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