Dr. George Bonanno (Columbia University) is a preeminent researcher of loss, trauma, and the emotions associated with these experiences. He’s made it his life’s work to explore why some individuals experience trauma while others do not, revealing a surprising resilience in human nature. His research shows that many people can maintain high functioning even after significant loss or trauma. This raises an intriguing question: why is this so, especially in a world where the term "trauma" is often used loosely? While it's true that some suffer from psychological impairments linked to posttraumatic stress disorder, Dr. Bonanno's research queries also prompt us to reconsider our understanding of what constitutes a "traumatic" experience, broadening our perspective on human coping mechanisms. For those who experience such resiliency, what cognitive or coping techniques are they employing? Fascinatingly, Dr. Bonanno reveals that those who exhibit more resiliency than others employ a technique of cognitive and emotional flexibility in coping with said adversity. He takes us through expressive flexibility and emotion regulation flexibility’s role in all of this, including many other compelling strategies. He also provides glimpse into his lab’s work, where he spends a great amount of work investigating veteran’s transition to civilian life in order to study these different flexibility techniques. Curious about how groundhogs contribute to our understanding of cognitive flexibility? You'll find these answers and more during my conversation with Dr. Bonanno in this episode.