Why do we tell kids that a fairy will give them cash in exchange for their teeth? How should we talk to them about scary things in the world? And is Mike one of the greatest operatic tenors of all time?

• SOURCES:
  • Laura Wheatman Hill, journalist.
  • George Lin, Ph.D. student in psychology at the University of Pennsylvania.
  • Melinda Wenner Moyer, journalist and author.
  • Luciano Pavarotti, Italian operatic tenor.
  • Amy Stoeber, clinical psychologist.
  • Jacqueline Woolley, professor of psychology at the University of Texas at Austin.

• RESOURCES:
  • "Parenting by Lying," by Peipei Setoh, Petrina Hui Xian Low, Gail D. Heyman, and Kang Lee (Current Directions in Psychological Science, 2024).
  • "Should You Always Tell Your Kids the Truth? It Depends," by Laura Wheatman Hill (CNN, 2021).
  • "Parenting by Lying in Childhood Is Associated With Negative Developmental Outcomes in Adulthood," by Peipei Setoh, Siqi Zhao, Rachel Santos, Gail D. Heyman, and Kang Lee (Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 2020).
  • "The Santa Lie," by Melinda Wenner Moyer (2012).

• EXTRAS:
  • "When Is It OK to Tell a Lie?" by No Stupid Questions (2021).
  • How to Raise Kids Who Aren't A*******: Science-Based Strategies for Better Parenting — from Tots to Teens, by Melinda Wenner Moyer (2021).
  • Life Is Beautiful, film (1997).
  • "Love at the Five and Dime," song by Nanci Griffith (1986).
  • The Hiding Place, by Corrie ten Boom (1971).

WaitWhat C.E.O. Jeff Berman interviews Angela about “grit-scaling” and her unlikely path to academic celebrity.

Is there any upside to negative emotions? What can comedians teach us about dealing with pain? And why did Angela eat off of a stranger’s plate at a sushi bar?

• SOURCES:
  • Ludwig van Beethoven, 18th-19th century composer and pianist.
  • Jen Christensen, reporter and producer at CNN.
  • Lauren Eskreis-Winkler, professor of management & organizations at Northwestern University.
  • Sigmund Freud, neurologist and founder of psychoanalysis.
  • Shirley MacLaine, actor.
  • George Vaillant, professor of psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital.
  • Ali Wong, comedian.

• RESOURCES:
  • "The Sad Clown: The Deep Emotions Behind Stand-Up Comedy," by Jen Christensen (CNN, 2018).
  • "Neuroticism," by Jennifer L. Tackett and Benjamin B. Lahey (The Oxford handbook of the Five Factor Model, 2017).
  • "Thinking Too Much: Self-Generated Thought as the Engine of Neuroticism," by Adam M. Perkins, Danilo Arnone, Jonathan Smallwood, and Dean Mobbs (Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 2015).
  • "Survivor Mission: Do Those Who Survive Have a Drive to Thrive at Work?" by Lauren Eskreis-Winkler, Elizabeth Shulman, and Angela Duckworth (The Journal of Positive Psychology, 2014).
  • "Age Differences in Personality Traits From 10 to 65: Big Five Domains and Facets in a Large Cross-Sectional Sample," by Christopher J. Soto, Oliver P. John, Samuel D. Gosling, and Jeff Potter (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 2011).
  • "Adaptive Mental Mechanisms: Their Role in a Positive Psychology," by George Vaillant (American Psychologist, 2000).
  • The Harvard Study of Adult Development.

• EXTRAS:
  • Big Five Personality Inventory, by No Stupid Questions (2024).
  • “Personality: The Big Five,” series by No Stupid Questions (2024).
  • Terms of Endearment, film by James L. Brooks (1983).
  • "Invictus," poem by William Ernest Henley (1888).