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Why your brain needs everyday rituals
3 Jan 2026
bigthink.com

Rituals serve psychological functions that go far beyond mere habit or tradition.

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... and why they're worth billions to businesses.
22 Apr 2025
psychologytoday.com

Brand marketers encourage ritualistic behaviors involving their products to increase customer loyalty and to gain advantage over competitors.

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Michael Norton has spent decades studying why human relationships last. Sharing rituals – from a clink of a glass to Christmas Day traditions – have a powerful positive effect.

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I have a confession to make - I’m a huge Starbucks fan. I know in some of your eyes that might make me basic or tacky or “very American,” but it’s the truth. I grew up watching Friends and Frasier and both shows made the idea of going to a “coffee shop” seem like an

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People in every country and culture mark important milestones, such as births, marriages and deaths with intricately choreographed scripts. We even appeal to supernatural forces when to give our favorite sports teams an extra advantage. This week on the show, anthropologist Dimitris Xygalatas explains the psychological power behind the sacred and secular rituals that structure our lives.

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The Real Magic of Rituals
18 Sep 2022
nautil.us

We might call them superstitions or spells, but they genuinely drum anxiety away.

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Employees rightly expect to be able to bring their feelings — big and small — to work. One important way to provide that support is through rituals. The author defines rituals using two important benchmarks. First, rituals go beyond their practical purpose, moving participants beyond transaction and into meaning. For instance, lighting a candle when the lights go out isn’t a ritual, but turning off the lights and lighting a candle at sundown is. Second, rituals are sorely missed when they’re taken away. The author presents a case study from a company that took a risk in real time and created a successful response to a tragedy, and over time, that response became a ritual. Here’s how they did it, and how leaders can better understand their own rituals — both current ones and those that have yet to be discovered.

Why Rituals Work
18 Jul 2022
scientificamerican.com

There are real benefits to rituals, religious or otherwise

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But should they?

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India’s Untouchable Queen of the Dead
25 Jun 2022
getpocket.com

Legions of the sick and elderly go to great lengths to die in India’s holiest city. One mysterious woman guards this fiery entrance to eternal bliss.

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Why we need rituals, not routines
21 Jun 2022
vox.com

How rituals can help you approach basic tasks more mindfully.

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How Rituals of Pain Help Heal
23 Dec 2019
sapiens.org

A new study reveals how ceremonies involving physical suffering can be invaluable tools for building resilience and coping skills.

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Consumer Behavior Rituals
30 Aug 2019
medium.com

(Image sourced from Zain.Love)

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Brand marketers encourage ritualistic behaviors involving their products to increase customer loyalty and to gain advantage over competitors.