On the Record

"Sometimes people say they want to be home more, but the reality is, they don't. Work may be an avoidance strategy."--Ellen McGrath, psychologist and executive coach, on the motivations of her clients who work long hours, Wall Street Journal, March 1.

"For the nation to be shocked and appalled and mystified and stunned is either a kind of denial or hypocrisy."--James Garbarino, the author of "Lost Boys: Why Our Sons Turn Violent and How We Can Save Them," on the shooting of six-year-old Kayla Rolland by a first-grade classmate, New York Times, March 2.

"[Roughly until 6 or 7,] most children make moral judgments on the basis of the damage done [rather than on intent]." --David Elkind, professor of child development at Tufts University, on how a sense of right and wrong develops in children, Newsweek, March 13.

"[The findings provide] compelling evidence that optimists and pessimists differ markedly in how long they will live." --Martin E.P. Seligman, professor at the University of Pennsylvania, on a Mayo Clinic study that found that optimists live longer than pessimists, Washington Post, March 14.

"Very young infants possess information about events and are able to have sophisticated explanations." --Renee Baillargeon, psychology professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, on her research findings suggesting that infants have a more advanced understanding of object permanence than previously thought, Chronicle of Higher Education, March 24.