Few people confess easily to taking pleasure in the misfortunes of others. Maybe this is why there is no word for the feeling in English. And so schadenfreude, that beguiling German word, is borrowed to label the experience. But most of us can secretly think of many times when a misfortune suffered by someone gave us pleasure. What sports fan can suppress delight when a hated rival loses? Political junkies know the thrill of a scandal befalling an opposing candidate. How about when an envied friend suffers a little setback? Who fails to laugh when an arrogant but untalented contestant is humiliated on American Idol, or when the embarrassing vice of an ideological politician is exposed? This book, written by one of the world's foremost scholars of envy and shame, explores the emotion we dare not admit to: schadenfreude. From garden-variety envy and competition to malignant intent and concepts of deservingness and comeuppance, psychologist Richard Smith explains why we feel schadenfreude with examples ranging from literary works and reality television to neuroscience. Although schadenfreude is hardly a feeling to nourish in oneself or to encourage as a cultural habit, Smith argues that there is no getting rid of it, when the misfortunes of others can lead to our benefit. Indeed, schadenfreude can be sweet revenge when it is personal, but as Smith argues in a fascinating exploration of anti-semitism in the 20th century that concludes the book, this passive thrill can lead to devastating consequences.

Competition for resources, recognition, and favorable outcomes are all facts of life in professional settings. When one falls short in comparison to colleagues or subordinates, feelings of envy may arise. Fueled by inferiority, hostility and resentment, envy is both ubiquitous and painful. Will employees "level up" with their envied counterpart through self-improvement behaviors? Or will they "level down" through sabotage and undermine their peers and subordinates in the process? Envy at Work and in Organizations aims to determine the direction workplace envy takes. Contributors are drawn from many countries and from an extraordinary range of disciplines to share their insight: experimental social psychologists offer insights from lab studies, psychoanalytical scholars emphasize unconscious processes, organizational psychologists describe groundbreaking research from disparate work settings, and cross-cultural psychologists reveal the variety of ways that envy can emerge as a function of cultures as wide-ranging as the Japanese school system to the fascinating structure of the Israeli kibbutzim. Work and insight from behavioral economists and organizational consultants is also included. Envy at Work and in Organizations is a valuable, distinctive resource for both scholars and practitioners looking to grasp the nature of envy. Edited by Richard H. Smith, Ugo Merlone, and Michelle K. Duffy, this volume will help readers understand the factors that help individuals and organizations overcome envy and transform it into something positive to promote workplace well-being.

America's homemakers of the twentieth century were its heart and soul. Their quiet dedication, compassion and patience served as a strong foundation not only for their families but their associates and country as well.

Mary Louise Smith personified the type of woman that worked behind the scenes. Born in Chicago in 1917, she spent her childhood in California, and learned the value of hard work as her family struggled during the Great Depression.

An excellent student, she graduated with a teaching credential from UC Berkeley. While teaching at Chaffey High School in Ontario, California, in 1943, she agreed to be a hostess at an Officers Club dance. There, she granted a dance to Second Lt. Richard H. Smith.

Over the next twenty-six months, she would write more than four hundred letters to Richard as he served overseas. Their romance was a cautious one, but they grew closer over time and eventually married in 1946.

In the years that followed, Mary Louise was a homemaker with a quiet, joyful spirit. However, she was just one of many, and in this touching tribute, her husband explains how her tasks and challenges were typical of "A 20th Century Homemaker."