You may have guessed that Im a bit of a freak when it comes to personal finance. Only a freak would get up at 5:30 a.m. on a Saturday to write about money. Right?

Given that, it shouldnt surprise you that Freakonomics (www.freakonomics.com) is one of my favorite podcasts. Freakonomics explores the hidden side of human behavior and how we make decisions behavioral economics through stories and interviews.

A recent episode, called The Stupidest Thing You Can Do With Money, grabbed my attention.

The show addresses two options for investing:

1. Hire an investment adviser, who studies the financial markets using sophisticated tools and actively manages your money to get you the best return.

2. Do-it-yourself investing passively invest with a set-it-and-forget-it attitude.

Investment advisers give their clients advice about where and how to invest, charging fees either as a percentage of assets under management, typically 1 to 2 percent, or a flat amount. There are about 300,000 investment advisers in the United States. Most of them must beat the market, right? Why else would we keep paying them?

The truth is most people are paying fees to their investment advisers for sub-par returns on their investments. Ninety-five percent of actively managed portfolios cant consistently beat the S&P 500 index after subtracting fees.

An S&P 500 index fund is a low-cost way to own a diversified portfolio. The fund owns stocks in 500 of the largest U.S. companies the S&P 500, which spans many different industries and accounts for about three-fourths of the U.S. stock markets value.

And its not just your investment adviser who cant beat the market. Harvard University has an endowment of $38 billion and access to some of the best and brightest minds and top computer-modeling tools. Yet, the universitys annualized net return on investment for the past 10 years was less than 6 percent. The S&P 500 earned 7.72 percent over the same period.

Welcome to the low-cost, index fund investing DIY revolution. Not only are low-cost mutual funds, such as S&P 500 index funds and total stock market index funds, beating actively managed portfolios, they are doing it at a lower cost.

Jack Bogle, founder of Vanguard and the worlds first index fund, says this about fees: If the market return is 7 percent and the active manager gives you 5 after that 2 percent cost, and the index fund gives you 6.96 after that four basis point cost you dont appreciate it much in a year but over 50 years, believe it or not, a dollar invested at 7 percent grows to around $32 and a dollar invested at 5 percent grows to about $10.

Its time to join the revolution.

Durango resident and personal finance coach Matt Kelly owns Momentum: Personal Finance. http://www.personalfinancecoaching.com.

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The stupidest thing you can do with money - The Durango Herald

Due to our earlier ancestors tribal rivalries, slavery, racism, segregation, oppressive issues, and racial profiling, Black people have yet to heal their Black wounds. Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome is something that has impacted the Black race for many years to come. We have yet to heal those color complex wounds, and progress beyond it. Due to the Willie Lynch Syndrome, colorism, ageism, educational status, social economic status has created division within the Black race. With so many nationalities, groups, organizations, and running circles, Black people have learned to stay divided, verses working together in unison, while still respecting one anothers differences.

Due to our Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome, Black people need help to heal their wounds. Understanding the psychology of behavior and embracing the need for therapy could be helpful, except Black people have yet to respect therapy nor psychology. Due to syphilis studies completed on Black people, injustices with the judicial system and Black people being used as guinea pigs by white America, Black people have learned to distrust psychology, believing it's some sort of hocus pocus. Psychology is something Black people also do not trust, due to Pre- conceived notions about the field. Although many people of all races have misconceptions about the field of psychology, many Black people view Psychology as a form of mind manipulation, mind trickery and a way to control or mess with someones head. They also believe it is a White man's science that can only benefit the White race. When many Black people think of psychology, they have visions of Freud, White men, and hypnotherapy. People who misunderstand psychology have little to no understanding that, it is a science which studies human behavior, social influence and animal behavior. Psychology bases its studies on empirical evidence. Psychology is the study of the brain and mind and how earlier experiences, forming core beliefs effect present situations. Psychology is a healing field, designed to treat and diagnose those with psychopathology and or help people with normal stress. There are also different fields in psychology, like, Clinical Psychology; Neuro Psychology; Social Psychology; Forensic Psychology; Human Factors; Applied Behavioral Analysis etc Due to people being experts at being a human and having a great understanding of their self, their friends and family, they believe they have psychology nipped in the bud, without considering the fact of their own biases, transference issues, projections, which cloud their objectivity. These differences are what separates the field of psychology as a scientifically based field, versus normal populations with pre-conceived notions about the field of psychology.

Many people assume the field of psychology can be summed up with two theorists, Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung. Although both are two important figures in psychology, Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung were founding members of psychoanalysis. They did not begin the field of psychology. Many theorists in psychology exist and theorists continue to evolve. Psychology is ubiquitous and it is the study of people. Psychology began the moment humans were created. The moment Lucy, aka The Real Eve was created to be the mother of civilization, psychology begin to unfold then. The field was created to help bring an understanding to human behavior.

Psychology can help heal Black people. Due to many Black people lacking proper communication styles within their family systems, etc those attachment styles carry into their friendships and relationships. Many Black people would rather curse one another out and use defense mechanisms to cover their wounds. The proper psychology has not been learned to communicate pain in a healthy way. The average Black person will go from hurt, to combat in a matter of seconds, without understanding the neurotic vicious cycles which are created when one assumes something of another and projects that expectation, which triggers reactions in others. Black people have learned how to talk to one another harshly and use defense mechanisms to repair broken egos and narcissistic injury. Black people have even learned how to use retorts that appear cool so that humor makes up for hurtful situations (Laughing to keep from crying). The average Black person would rather trade wise cracks with one another, verses using healthy psychology and proper communication to hurt feelings. Respect is a huge thing one demands but never gives. Black people have yet to be apologized to by racist people, society nor the members in their family, significant others and friends that have hurt them. Therefore, they are unapologetic. Lacking empathy is a familiar trait in the Black race, because it is considered weak to show feelings. Anger is accepted but showing emotion is rejected. Whenever Black people show empathy, it must appear cool and be accepted by the race. For example, "RIP to all my n*****" or "Where i come from, it goes from respect, disrespect, total disrespect to eff everybody". Both examples communicate emotional pain, but it is communicated in a "I'm so cool and will not show weakness" kind of way. Many Black people have experienced harsh treatment and compassionless from outsiders, members in their own families, relationships and friendships, therefore, they have not learned to control their impulses nor empathize with those they harm. Hurt people are conditioned to hurt others. Instead of hiding behind narcissism, defense mechanisms, unconscious conflict, mommy and daddy issues and developing unhealthy relationship patterns, learn to embrace psychology healing you from dysfunctional behavior.

Black people are the mother and father of all races and they are strong and resilient, therefore, they have learned how to push forward in life and continue moving and living with hurt. Since slavery Black people have been mistreated and have not learned how to deal with their wounds and unconscious conflict. Transference is a form of earlier childhood experiences being projected onto new objects, for example, people, places and things. A good example is, someone who might be attracted to certain people, rather good or bad because they are familiar spirits, with characteristics of their earlier experiences. Transference shows up in many of the things we choose in life, from friendships, relationships, jobs, places etc. A woman who was abandoned by her mother or father may choose men or women in her life who are emotionally unavailable or unsupportive during the most important moments. A woman who wasn't raised with her father may have unresolved daddy issues, while men who were also not raised with their father have a need to be a woman's daddy, to make up for their loss manhood. The decisions we make are mostly unconscious, so this information may be rejected consciously because the intellectual mind does not understand why they would choose people who remind them of the disappointments of their earlier experiences, but the unconscious mind chooses people and situations to work through the conflict. The Black woman choosing men who will not father her children, consequently playing both the mother and father in her household has been common since the early 70s. The Black man missing from the household has also been common since the early 70s. Although some Black people were raised with both parents, many broken homes in the Black race exists. Due to this family dysfunction, many members within the Black race are choosing the wrong people and making many wrong decisions, because they have not worked through their transference issues. You will find many men who are misogynistic or disrespectful towards women because they have issues with their mother and they never saw a man love their mother properly, therefore, they grow up to be just as unloving and hateful until they become healed. We usually learn from and repeat what we see and experience. According to Melanie Klein, children learn about love from watching their parents. They repeat what they see and do not see in their relationships and friendships.

Psychology can help heal Black wounds. Dr. Joy DeGruy and Dr. Umar Johnson are both Black scholars who discuss the Black condition today.

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Healing Black People - HuffPost

Although many people who studied psychology may work in jobs that perhaps do not, on the surface, seem "scientific," the practice and education of psychology is guided by research findings that are firmly grounded in the scientific method. There are some disciplines within psychology that are even more aligned with the natural sciences, such as neuropsychology, which is the study of the brain's influence on behavior. Psychology is commonly recognized as a social science, and is included on the National Science Foundation's roster of recognized STEM disciplines.

Many psychology undergraduate programs are shaped by the goals laid out in the American Psychology Association's "Guidelines for the Undergraduate Psychology Major", said Dr. Michelle Hill, senior associate dean of psychology programs at Southern New Hampshire University. Goal 2 of the American Psychology Association guidelines version 2.0 is "Scientific Inquiry and Critical Thinking," which includes the following subgoals: Use scientific reasoning to interpret psychological phenomena, demonstrate psychology information literacy, and interpret, design, and conduct basic psychological research.

More widespread recognition of psychology as a science is one of the points of emphasis in the APA guidelines, Hill said.

"Professionals in the field who 'do psychology' (e.g. research, teaching, psychotherapy) understand that psychology is a scientific discipline," said Nickolas H. Dominello, Ph.D., lead faculty for SNHU's undergraduate psychology program.

Psychology's status as a science is grounded in the use of the scientific method, said Dominello. Psychologists base their professional practice in knowledge that is obtained through verifiable evidence of human behavior and mental processes. Psychological studies are designed very much like studies in other scientific fields. It is through these studies that psychologists contribute to the body of research in their field.

Learning to design these studies and interpret the findings is a significant part of psychology education. Undergraduate students learn to develop a research question and select a data collection method, and have the opportunity to design and refine a hypothetical research investigation, said Dominello.

Psychology is always growing and always building on itself, he said. "The subject of psychological science, behavior and mental processes, is vast and complex," said Dominello. "Therefore, establishing conclusive evidence is challenging. Psychological research is cyclical, and published research findings often spawn additional inquiries. Each 'brick' of knowledge contributes to the overall structure of knowledge for a particular phenomenon."

So, if psychologists agree that psychology is a science, where does the confusion come from? What prompts some people to think of psychology as a soft science?

"I feel that in part, this misrepresentation of psychology stems from the diversity within the field (i.e. the various subfields) and the fact that psychological science findings often lead to more questions and avenues of future research. This contrasts with some of the more traditional sciences that only search for concrete, definitive answers," said Dominello.

Psychology also utilizes a wider array of qualitative methods than some traditional sciences.

"Although qualitative research provides a different route to understanding than traditional quantitative methods, I feel that is also 'scientific,' just grounded in different philosophical underpinnings," said Dominello.

Research methods can be categorized as either quantitative or qualitative. Quantitative research results in numerical data that can be analyzed. Qualitative research employs methods like questionnaires, interviews and observations. Qualitative research can be analyzed by grouping responses into broad themes. This melding of quantitative and qualitative methods is essential to understand the human factor inherent in psychology.

"Psychology as a science embraces this broader exploratory perspective in order to better understand human phenomena. When merged, qualitative data can breathe life into quantitative data," Dominello said.

"Psychology is unique in that it adds breadth and depth of knowledge in conjunction with so many other disciplines, because we are all curious about understanding human behavior to some extent, whether it's one's own behavior or the behavior of others," said Hill.

This rich combination of qualitative and quantitative skills makes psychology a good undergraduate degree that can prepare students for a wide array of careers. Individuals with a bachelor's degree in psychology can pursue careers in social services, education, human resources and medical fields, using their education and skills as a foundation for understanding and working with others, Dominello said.

Hill said that that a psychology undergraduate program's focus on effective communication, information literacy and understanding human behavior can lend itself to many areas outside psychology, including sales, marketing and many others.

Those who wish to practice as psychologists or work in academic research must pursue additional education beyond a bachelor's degree, often a Ph.D. This advanced education in psychology often involves a strengthening of research skills, and an increased focus on the scientific method and the design of research studies, according to Dominello.

Is psychology a science? The short answer is yes, but the long answer is much more expansive and flexible. Psychology begins with the scientific method, and researchers employ many of the same methods as their colleagues in the natural and physical sciences, but psychology also calls for a deep understanding of human behavior that goes beyond science alone.

Pete Davies is a marketing and communications director in higher education. Follow him on Twitter @daviespete or connect on LinkedIn.

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Is Psychology a Science? - Southern New Hampshire University

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How do you get a person to buy a product or service? Psychology holds answers to questions that have preoccupied marketing departments for decades, particularly surrounding how to influence people and how people respond to attempts to influence their behaviors.

"Persuasion is no longer just an art, it's an out-and-out science," said Robert Cialdini, professor emeritus of psychology and marketing at Arizona State University, at the 125th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association. "Indeed, a vast body of scientific evidence now exists on how, when and why people say yes to influence attempts."

Cialdini has synthesized years of research on social influence into six universal principles for understanding attempts to influence human behavior. These can be used by businesses and consumers alike to better understand the inner workings of purchasing behaviors, as well as which appeals are more or less likely to succeed.

Armed with these six principles of influence, companies can more adeptly navigate their potential consumers and convert more to sales. However, Cialdini warned against crossing the line between influence and manipulation. To do so, he said, could spell disaster in the long run.

"People, companies and marketers need to ask themselves whether the principle of influence is inherent in the situation that is, do they have to manufacture it or can they simply uncover it?" he said. "No one wants to be a smuggler of influence. Claiming to be an expert when they're not, exploiting power those eventually will have negative consequences.

"We can focus too heavily on economic factors when seeking to motivate others toward our offerings and ideas," he added. "We would do well to consider employing psychological motivators such as those we have covered here."

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The Science of Persuasion: How to Influence Consumer Choice - Business News Daily

Saturday, Aug. 12, is World Elephant Day 2017, the sixth such global observance to spread awareness of the soul-crushing plight of elephants in the wild. These sentient gentle giants lead rich emotional lives with values similar to humans but have been driven to the brink of extinction by habitat destruction for cash crops and, more jarring, hunters who mercilessly rip out their ivory tusks while theyre still alive then leave them to die excruciating, slow deaths from hemorrhage.

Ivory hunting is a brutal illustration of increasing violence toward elephants that conservationists warn could wipe out the species in both Asia and Africa within 12 years. Asian elephants number only about 40,000 and are classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. There are about 400,000 remaining in Africa, and IUCN classifies them as vulnerable.

Here are five things you can do right now to affect elephant survival rates:

1. Dont buy ivory, and if you have ivory heirlooms sitting around the house, crush them and have a burial ceremony with your kids in the backyard. Crushing events take place on massive scales just last week, state and federal environmental and conservation officials in Albany, New York, crushed a ton of illegal ivory trinkets worth a staggering $6 million. Family-centered ivory disposals can help kids connect with a species that Vanity Fair Editor Graydon Carter said demonstrate what we consider the finest human traits: empathy, self-awareness and social intelligence.

But the way we treat them puts on display the very worst of human behavior, Carter said, according to the post on the World Elephant Day website.

2. Get involved in campaigns for more restrictions on ivory bans. Last year, new rules announced by the Obama administration were a near-complete ban on the multi-billion-dollar ivory trade. The rules outlawed ivory imports but had some exceptions for example, ivory legally imported before 1990, heirloom ivory that is more than 100 years old and ivory used in gun handles and musical instruments. Those rules prevent the trade of ivory between states but dont regulate the ivory trade in individual states. Seven states have now added an extra layer of protection, and elephant advocates in a handful of others are asking for similar statewide ivory bans.

3. Support one of 10 elephant conservation projects in critical landscapes through The Bodhi Tree Foundations "Power of 10" initiative. Each of the projects focuses on countering the forces that threaten elephants poaching, habitat loss, human-elephant conflict and a lack of vital rehabilitation and veterinary care. Some of the projects are funded, but others are in dire need of support. The Bodhi Tree Foundation says 100 percent of donations go directly to the project of the donors choosing.

4. Be an informed consumer. Coffee and palm oil plantations have decimated elephant habitat, so dont buy coffee that isnt fair-trade or shade-grown, and avoid products containing palm oil. (Warning, thats going to be tough because its the most widely used vegetable oil in the world, but possible.) Also, make sure wood products are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

5. If you want to experience elephants, be aware that many used for entertainment purposes are mistreated, sometime terribly so. The decision by Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus to retire its last working elephants reflected the publics growing understanding of elephant intelligence and distaste for activities that exploit them, and the travel website Trip Advisor is no longer booking excursions to attractions with captive animals, including elephant rides. But exploitation still happens. If youre planning on experiencing elephants in the wild, make sure you choose eco-friendly tourism options.

If you want to know more about how human behavior is altering elephant behavior, check out the fascinating read published in 2006 by The New York Times titled An Elephant Crackup?

Among the conclusions: Young male elephants are running amok across Africa, India and Asia, goring children in villages where they once peacefully co-existed with humans, because decades of ivory poaching, habitat loss and other threats have disrupted the fabric of elephant life and the societal and familial structures under which young elephants are raised and, essentially, kept in line.

The slaughter is traumatic for young elephants and profoundly changes them, psychologist Gay Bradshaw told The Times.

The loss of elephant elders and the traumatic experience of witnessing the massacres of their family, impairs normal brain and behavior development in young elephants, said Bradshaw, who at the time was doing research for what became the Pulitzer Prize-nominated Elephants on the Edge: What Animals Teach Us about Humanity."

Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images News/Getty Images

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Originally published August 10, 2017.

Original post:
World Elephant Day 2017: 5 Ways To Stem Their Extinction - Patch.com

Bloomberg View columnist Barry Ritholtz interviews Matt Wallaert, a behavioral scientist who works at the intersection of technology and human behavior. After several years in academia and two successful startups, he joined Microsoft, where he led a team of experts using technology to help people live happier, healthier lives. During his time with Microsoft, he was a director at Microsoft Ventures, the firms venture capital arm. He sits on the boards of a variety of startups and nonprofits. Wallaert and Ritholtz discuss the role of behavioral psychology in startups. This interview aired on Bloomberg Radio.

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Matt Wallaert Is on a 'Chief Behavioral Officer' Mission - Bloomberg