Hidden Brain

Have you ever been in a position where you had to choose between someone you care about and a value that you hold dear? Maybe you had to decide whether to report a friend who was cheating on an exam, or a co-worker who was stealing from the tip jar. This week, we tell the story of a Detroit police officer who found himself in this sort of dilemma, forced to choose between people he loved and the o...

We all self-censor at times. We keep quiet at dinner with our in-laws, or nod passively in a work meeting. But what happens when we take this deception a step further, and pretend we believe the opposite of what we really feel? In this favorite episode from 2020, economist and political scientist Timur Kuran explains how our personal, professional and political lives are shaped by the fear of what...

It’s not your imagination: rudeness appears to be on the rise. Witnessing rude behavior — whether it's coming from angry customers berating a store clerk or airline passengers getting into a fistfight — can have long-lasting effects on our minds. But behavioral scientist Christine Porath says there are ways to shield ourselves from the toxic effects of incivility.  If you like this show, please ch...

We’ve all heard about the five stages of grief. But what happens when your experience doesn’t follow that model at all? Resilience researcher Lucy Hone began to question how we think about grief after a devastating loss in her own life. She shares the techniques she learned to help her cope with tragedy. If you like this show, please check out our new podcast, My Unsung Hero ! And if you'd like to...

When disaster strikes — from the explosion of a space shuttle to the spread of a deadly virus — we want to know whether we could have avoided catastrophe. Did anyone speak up with concerns about the situation? And if so, why didn’t someone listen? This week, we revisit a favorite episode about the psychology of warnings, and how we can all become better at predicting the future. If you like this s...

Does power truly flow from the barrel of a gun? Pop culture and conventional history often teach us that violence is the most effective way to produce change. But is that common assumption actually true? Political scientist Erica Chenoweth , who has studied more than 100 years of revolutions and insurrections, says the answer is counterintuitive.  If you like this show, please check out our new po...

Social media sites offer quick and easy ways to share ideas, crack jokes, find old friends. They can make us feel part of something big and wonderful and fast-moving. But the things we post don’t go away. And they can come back to haunt us. Today, we revisit a 2019 episode about one teenager’s social media posts, and how they destroyed an opportunity he’d worked for all his life. If you like this...

We've all been in situations where we experience mixed emotions. Maybe you've felt both joy and sadness during a big life decision, such as whether to purchase a home or accept a job offer. Or maybe you've experienced mixed feelings about the ways the COVID-19 pandemic has shaped your life. Psychologist Naomi Rothman says that while these feelings of ambivalence are uncomfortable, they can also se...

Do you ever stop to wonder if the way you see the world is how the world really is?  Economist Abhijit Banerjee has spent a lifetime asking himself this question. His answer: Our world views often don't reflect reality. The only way to get more accurate is to think like a scientist — even when you're not looking through a microscope.  If you like this show, please check out our new podcast, My Uns...

Do you ever struggle to communicate with your mom? Or feel like you and your spouse sometimes speak different languages? In the final episode of our "Mind Reading 2.0" series, we bring back one of our favorite conversations, with linguist Deborah Tannen. She shows how our conversational styles can cause unintended conflicts, and what we can do to communicate more effectively with the people in our...

Turn on the news, and you'll be bombarded with stories of people who lie, cheat, and kill. Most of our public and economic policies take aim at these sorts of people — the wrongdoers and the profiteers. But is there a hidden cost to the rest of us when we put bad actors at the center of our thinking? Do the measures we put in place to curtail the selfish inadvertently hurt our capacity to do right...

It’s easy to spot bias in other people, especially those with whom we disagree.  But it’s not so easy to recognize our own biases.  In the latest in our "Mind Reading 2.0" series, we revisit a favorite conversation with psychologist Emily Pronin . We'll look at one of the most bewildering aspects of how we read minds — in this case, our own.  If you like this show, please check out our new podcast...

It's not easy to know how we come across to others, especially when we're meeting people for the first time. Psychologist Erica Boothby says many of us underestimate how much other people actually like us. In the second installment of our Mind Reading 2.0 series, we look at how certain social illusions give us a distorted picture of ourselves.  If you like this show, please check out our new podca...

As we go through life, we’re constantly trying to figure out what other people are thinking and feeling. Psychologist Liane Young says this ability to assess other people's thoughts ​is an extraordinary feat of cognition. But this mental superpower can sometimes lead us astray. This week, we kick off a new series exploring how we understand — or fail to understand — the minds of other people. If y...

Sanaa is on her train ride home when an angry man begins threatening her. Before he gets too close, a stranger intervenes.  Please share the story of your unsung hero with us! To do so, record a voice memo on your phone and email us at myunsunghero@hiddenbrain.org. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advert...

Life is often filled with hardships and tragedies. For thousands of years, philosophers have come up with strategies to help us cope with such hardship. This week, we revisit a 2020 conversation with philosopher William Irvine about ancient ideas — backed by modern psychology — that can help us manage disappointment and misfortune. If you like this show, please check out our new podcast, My Unsung...

Everyone wants to be loved and appreciated. But psychologist Harry Reis says there’s another ingredient to successful relationships that’s every bit as important as love. If you like this show, please check out our new podcast, My Unsung Hero ! And if you'd like to support our work, you can do so at support.hiddenbrain.org. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for informat...

It's 1979, and Wendy is eight years old, crying alone in an airport. Then she sees a woman in white walking towards her. In a few weeks we'll be running these episodes exclusively on the My Unsung Hero feed . Please don’t miss any of these wonderful stories —  subscribe now on Apple , Spotify , or wherever you get your podcasts.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for in...

The rift between police and Black Americans can feel impossible to bridge. But in his work with police departments across the U.S., Yale psychologist Phillip Atiba Goff has found novel ways to address the problem. If you like this show, please check out our new podcast, My Unsung Hero ! And if you'd like to support our work, you can do so at support.hiddenbrain.org.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWi...

All of us make choices all the time, and we may think we're making those choices freely. But psychologist Eric Johnson says there's an architecture behind the way choices are presented to us, and this invisible architecture can influence decisions both large and small.  If you like this show, please check out our new podcast, My Unsung Hero ! And if you'd like to support our work, you can do so at...

At the beginning of the year, many of us make resolutions for the months to come. We resolve to work out more, to procrastinate less, or to save more money. Though some people stick with these aspirations, many of us fall short. This week, we revisit our 2019 conversation with psychologist Wendy Wood , who shares what researchers have found about how to build good habits — and break bad ones. If y...

Justin is  sitting on the side of the freeway, hoping someone will help him fix his busted wheel. Right around the time he’s about to give up, a van pulls over. Would you like to share the story of an unsung hero who helped you in a moment of need? If so, please record a voice memo and send it to myunsunghero@hiddenbrain.org.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for infor...

Bababa, dadada, ahgaga. Got that? Babies are speaking to us all the time, but most of us have no clue what they're saying. To us non-babies, it all sounds like charming, mysterious gobbledegook. To researchers, though, babbling conveys important information about a baby's readiness to learn. This week, we'll revisit a favorite episode exploring the language and behavior of the newest members of th...

We all have times when we feel like a fraud. Psychologist Kevin Cokley studies the corrosive effects of self-doubt, and how we can turn that negative voice in our heads into an ally.   If you like this show, please check out our new podcast, My Unsung Hero ! And if you'd like to support our work, you can do so at support.hiddenbrain.org.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.c...

It's 1994, and two men corner Leah on a dark street as she's walking home. Then she sees a car, and a glimmer of hope. To hear more stories like this, subscribe to our new podcast, My Unsung Hero . And we'd love to hear your own story: send a voice memo to myunsunghero@hiddenbrain.org. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of per...