USA, Feb 08: If a little thinking is good, a lot is better. That's wrong, insists psychologist Susan Nolen-Hoeksema, whose groundbreaking research shows the downside of stewing over life's issues. It amplifies sadness and makes problems harder to solve.
The dangers of overthinking don't strike the sexes equally: Women ruminate more, she says in her new book, Women Who Think Too Much which tells why overthinking occurs and hurts people.
Her studies show wo-men often fall into what she calls "endless analysis of the past, present and future." If they're upset, they tend to call friends who hold a magnifying glass to every little angle. At the first sign of a problem, men go out and play a sport or find another distractions. "Later," they say.