When I first started researching the issue of bullying, I wasn't surprised to find the growing evidence about the interaction between DNA and behaviour to determine the likelihood of being either a bully or a victim, or both. That is, after all, my thesis,that behaviour interacts with DNA to modify the expression of a gene.

Bullying in the international sphere is the story of conflict down through the ages. It is literally what we call history. Diplomacy was developed to relegate physical conflict or war to a 'tool of last resort.' However, that is not to say that diplomacy itself does not involve other forms of bullying, like harassment, discrimination or other standover tactics.

When we think about really good salespeople, different qualities might come to mind. For some people it's important that the salesperson is friendly, not too pushy and develops rapport and trust. For others it's all about the salesperson's knowledge of the product. While, for yet others, the salesperson should be as invisible as possible and just add value by providing a really 'good' deal.

So what does bullying have to do with business? Well you only have to watch the news infrequently to realise the impact sexual harassment and stress both employees and employers. The workplace is no longer a place where a bully can thrive unchecked. People have become more aware of their right to be safe and be treated with respect while at work.

Our ever changing brain

When Dr Norman Doidge wrote "The Brain That Changes Itself," no-one in the publishing world had any inkling how it would change the public debate around the treatment of brain injury patients. After 9 months on the New York Times Best Seller List, Doidge's book has become a phenomenon...

Mindfulness Meditation Training Changes Brain Structure in Eight Weeks

Science Daily (Jan. 21, 2011) — Participating in an 8-week mindfulness meditation program appears to make measurable changes in brain regions associated with memory, sense of self, empathy and stress. In a study that will appear in the January 30 issue of Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, a team led by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers report the results of their study, the first to document meditation-produced changes over time in the brain's grey matter...