Why Being Kind Helps You, Too—Especially Now

Elizabeth Bernstein writes the “Bonds: On Relationships” column for the Wall Street Journal, which explores social psychology and the manifold aspects of human interactions. In her column, she focuses on how we can best relate—to others and to ourselves.

Bernstein has been at the Journal for 20 years and has previously covered higher education, philanthropy, psychology and religion at the paper, all areas in which personal relationships loom large. In her work, she has ranged far and wide, from exposing the backlash against excessive emailing of baby photos to a detailed narrative reconstruction of a matricide. She has received awards from organizations including the New York Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists' Deadline Club, the Education Writers Association and the American Psychoanalytic Association.

Bernstein received a bachelor’s degree in journalism and English from Indiana University and a master’s degree in journalism with honors from Columbia University. She has completed a Knight Science Journalism Fellowship at MIT, which focused on brain science, and a Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism.

Bernstein says “The key point for me is that I’ve written my column for the past 10 years. It covers all aspects of relationships and focuses on academic research in the fields of social psychology, communication, neuroscience and other fields related to relationships. It’s called ‘Bonds.’”

She lives in Miami, where she is an avid sailor and scuba diver.