Posts

Up Against the Wall.

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Giving language a physical presence, these painted wood blocks are part non-digital text message and part existential fortune cookie. After years of crafting digital messages that are here today, gone later today (what the Japanese aptly call the “water business”), it’s my reaction to an ephemeral way of life.

I enjoy how everyday phrases become slightly absurd when you set them in stone — er, wood — like when you repeat a word so many times it loses meaning, except in reverse. When words literally become objects, does that change their impact? The tension mirrors how language itself can be both immediate and layered with nuance when removed from conventional contexts.

I hope viewers find their own meanings within this linguistic concrete poetry.

Embracing the Batman Effect

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Need a boost to get you through your next deadline? The Batman Effect is a psychological phenomenon identified through research conducted by Rachel White and her colleagues at the University of Washington. The term comes from a study published in 2016 in the journal Child Development. The Batman Effect suggests that children can improve their perseverance and focus on a task by pretending to be a strong, competent character like Batman.

Researchers asked 4 and 6-year-old children to perform a repetitive task for 10 minutes. Some children were told to think about their thoughts and feelings while working (self-immersed), others were told to think about themselves from an outside perspective (self-distanced), and a third group was told to pretend they were Batman (exemplar condition).

Children who pretended to be Batman worked longer and more diligently than those in the other conditions. They exhibited better perseverance and self-control. By taking on the persona of Batman, children created psychological distance from their own limitations and frustrations. This allowed them to view their task from a more capable perspective. This effect suggests that role-play and imagination can be powerful tools for improving focus, self-control, and perseverance, not just in children but potentially in adults as well. The study highlights the potential benefits of self-distancing strategies in emotional and behavioral regulation.