In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Paul Grant and Ellen Inverso about Recovery-Oriented Cognitive Therapy (CT-R) . They provide an overview of Aaron Beck’s cognitive model both theoretically and in clinical practice. They discuss the power of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) as an Evidence-Based Treatment (EBT) and why that’s important. They talk about whether one can use CBT techniques without conceptualizing. They discuss what CT-R is and how it has had an emphasis on treati...
May 17, 2021•2 hr 15 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Jeremy DeSilva about the importance of bipedalism. They discuss the evolutionary history of hominoids, hominins, and hominids. They talk about the earliest evolution of bipedalism in other species. They also discuss the importance of Lucy and Ardi and the differences and similarities between these two early Australopithecus. They talk about where Homo Erectus fits into the timeline and whether bipedalism was essential for human evolution. They ...
May 10, 2021•2 hr 13 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Grace Lindsay about the computational approach that can be used to understand the brain. They discuss what computational neuroscience is and provide a brief overview and review of neuroanatomy. They talk about action potentials and the comparisons with an electrical circuit. They discuss the Hopfield Network as a way to understand various forms of memory in the brain, specifically within the hippocampus. They explain how early computer science ...
May 03, 2021•1 hr 19 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Talia Welsh about feminism, existentialism, and the nature of work. They discuss feminist theory and ask if feminism adds a chapter to philosophy or should revolutionize the field? They talk about what to do with problematic artists and can one separate the art from the artist? They dialogue about defining womanhood, understanding masculinity and femininity, reforming masculinity, and reimagining the nuclear family in the 21st century. They als...
Apr 29, 2021•2 hr 57 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with David Buss about evolutionary psychology and his new book on sexual deception, harassment, and assault. They discuss his background and how he founded and developed the field of evolutionary psychology. They have a broad discussion of sexual selection, sexual differences, and different mating strategies. They talk about his new book, When Men Behave Badly, and why there is mating conflict. They explore why men are responsible for darker, predat...
Apr 26, 2021•1 hr 3 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Laura Wallace about source bias, trustworthiness, attitudes, and persuasion. They discuss what sources are and how bias is defined. They talk about perceived bias and its importance along with the spillover effect into other areas for a person. They mention the difference between biases and opinions. They discuss trustworthiness and some of the differences between perceived bias and perceived trustworthiness. They discuss the key component of p...
Apr 22, 2021•2 hr 5 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with John Russon about the major thinkers in phenomenology and how their ideas can be applied in everyday life. They begin the conversation with an overview of Hegel's philosophy and discuss sexual intimacy as an example of Hegel's ideas on recognition. They also discuss the impact of Hegel's philosophy on Marxism and some of the lessons from the French revolution. They question whether it is individuals or institutions that can be oppressive and ma...
Apr 19, 2021•3 hr 3 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Manon Van Scheppingen about the most current research on marriage, divorce, and parenthood. They start with an overview of life transitions in young adulthood and what those transitions look like in a shared vs. a non-shared environment. They define personality and how various life transitions could possibly change personality. They provide an overview of Manon's self-esteem/motherhood paper and some of the data within this paper. They give an ...
Apr 15, 2021•2 hr 23 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Jessica Koehler about education, school choice, and school psychology. Jessica discusses her background and how she became involved with school psychology and how it led to her current work. They discuss the 5 different sub-domains of psychology and how school psychology fits within psychology. They talk about the heavy emphasis on diagnosing within a reactionary way for much of school psychology. They discuss the elements of school psychology ...
Apr 12, 2021•1 hr 59 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Alex Schnell about cognition, intelligence, and consciousness in cephalopods. They briefly discuss comparative psychology and its use alongside other fields. They discuss the evolutionary basics of cephalopods and some of the similarities and differences between the various species. They talk about the mating strategies of cuttlefish such as male fighting and female receptivity and the implications of the behaviors of cuttlefish on intelligence...
Apr 07, 2021•1 hr 6 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Rick Perlstein about conservatism, politics in the United States, and past and present social-cultural issues. They discuss his motivations for writing his four books on modern Conservatism in the United States. They discuss the rise of Barry Goldwater and the splintering of the New Deal coalition. They also discuss the shifting cultural voting bloc from the middle class to elites and how Nixon’s rise worked with these shifting social and cultu...
Apr 04, 2021•57 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Spencer Case about extremism and morality. They discuss his background, how he got into philosophy, and leaving Mormonism. They define moral extremism and discuss it as a vice and detriment of character. They discuss the role of moral emotions with extremism and the differences between absolute and relative morals. They engage on character and intention as important to moral extremism and provide examples from the prohibition era and from past ...
Apr 01, 2021•1 hr 23 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Monica Guzman about journalism, culture, and Latinos in the United States. They discuss how she became involved in journalism and how the current state of journalism is at both the national and local levels. They discussed how she co-founded the Seattle digital newsletter, The Evergrey, and how people within cities create culture. They also discussed her work with Braver Angels and some of the dynamics of race and multiculturalism. They discuss...
Mar 29, 2021•2 hr 18 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Thomas Chatterton Williams about race and our current social challenges. They talk about Thomas' reasoning for writing his memoirs and the major theme of race. They talk about the one drop rule for Black Americans and what Thomas means by leaving race. They also discuss his perspective living outside the United States and the lens of seeing race from a biracial viewpoint. They also talk about some of the major themes in culture today and develo...
Mar 25, 2021•56 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Nicholas Christakis about the COVID-19 global pandemic. They discuss how he wrote his latest book, Apollo's Arrow: The Profound and Enduring Impact of Coronavirus on the Way We Live, while the pandemic was happening in real time. They discuss the basic facts about the COVID-19 virus along with the lethality and infectious rates. They briefly consider if there is any validity that the virus is the result of a lab leak. They also present an overv...
Mar 22, 2021•54 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Lee Jussim about stereotypes, bias, and the current state of the social sciences. They talk about the scientific data on stereotypes, good and bad stereotypes, and how one understands stereotypes. They discuss some of the history of studies in social psychology and how that has changed currently. They discuss social perception and bias and give a detail description on how there is no general or universal definition of implicit bias. They talk a...
Mar 18, 2021•2 hr 26 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Mark Solms about consciousness, emotions, and how we understand the human psyche. They begin by discussing how Mark become involved in neuropsychology and psychoanalysis and how he combines these two worlds. They also discuss how he became involved with the late great Jaak Panksepp and their work on brainstem arousal and affect. They discuss Panksepp's seven affective states and make a distinction between drives, instincts, affect, emotions, an...
Mar 15, 2021•2 hr 4 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Christopher Ferguson about violence in mass media such as video games, madness with historical and political figures, and the implications for our society. They discuss the standard view of violent mass media and the idea that they influence behaviors in society. They talk about how reward-based video games are less common and do not translate to behavior within society. They discuss the current literature on violence in mass media and social b...
Mar 11, 2021•2 hr 4 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Razib Khan about genetics, how to understand populations and racial categories through genetics, and some of the social implications. They start by discussing the basics of genetics, the differences between DNA and genes, and how genes work over time. They talk about the different groups of humans as a species and understanding humans as a type of "super species." They discuss modern-day humans and how they spread around the world. They dialogu...
Mar 08, 2021•1 hr 6 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with John Wood Jr. about race, ethnicity, and conservatism. They discuss John's background both publicly and personally and the Braver Angels Organization. They dialogue about how biracial/multiracial people view race differently from people that are not biracial. They talk about the individual as a starting line for understanding people and then moving outward towards their group identity. They also talked about conservatism and how he identifies w...
Mar 04, 2021•1 hr 26 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with David Hoinski about the personal implications of philosophy and some of the major works of Nietzsche and Heidegger. They discuss how philosophical ideas are connected with each philosopher's life and give a broad overview of both continental and analytic philosophy. They talk about how philosophy works through time and seeing philosophy as a type of hyperlinking ideas. They provide a background of Nietzsche and discuss his main concepts of will...
Mar 01, 2021•2 hr 8 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Bret Alderman concerning postmodernism, phenomenology, and lived experiences. They provide an overview of postmodernism and deconstructionism along with explaining why language is central for this perspective. They talk about Saussure's structuralism of language as juxtaposed with a postmodern view of language. They discuss the problems with postmodernism/deconstructionism and talk about the concepts of the other, power, and oppression. They pr...
Feb 25, 2021•2 hr 26 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Gregg Caruso about free will, moral responsibility, and retributive justice. They begin with discussing the motivation and process for writing his new book with Daniel Dennett. They provide a definition of free will and the term, desert. They talk about the interaction of free will with retributive justice and punishment. They also discuss the notion of luck and the three layers associated with this concept. They talk about the role of moral an...
Feb 22, 2021•1 hr 44 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Lindsay M. Chervinsky about George Washington's creation of the cabinet. They discuss how Washington created the cabinet and constructed the framework for future presidents. They talk about the initial makeup of the cabinet and some of the individuals within the cabinet. They discuss the four major principles that Washington used as general and then transferred to his creation of the cabinet. They explore the use of "homework" that Washington g...
Feb 18, 2021•1 hr 29 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Allie Choate about the statistical aspects of measuring personality. They start the conversation by giving a general definition of psychopathology and p-factor. They discuss some internalizing and externalizing factors of p-factor and how it operates laterally with the g-factor of intelligence. They talk about which disorders the p-factor correlates most and how it is implicated. They provide a larger discussion around personality disorders alo...
Feb 15, 2021•2 hr 1 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Camilo Ortiz about evidence-based treatments and elimination disorders within clinical psychology. They discuss the differences in degrees and programs between PhD's and PsyD's in clinical psychology. They talk about the three waves of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) along with the efficacy and effectiveness of CBT for many disorders. They mention the importance of theoretical case conceptualization over just techniques alone. They discuss d...
Feb 11, 2021•2 hr 6 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Talia Welsh about the phenomenology of Merleau-Ponty. Talia provides her background in philosophy and with Merleau-Ponty specifically. She also discusses her work in gender and feminine studies. They discuss the philosophy of Merleau-Ponty and how one understands the experience of their own being. They provide an overview of phenomenology and Merleau-Ponty's contribution to this branch of philosophy. They also talk about how his philosophy can ...
Feb 08, 2021•1 hr 5 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Nicole Barbaro about evolutionary psychology, attachment theory, and challenges with higher education. They give an overview of evolutionary psychology and some of the changes over the years. They also talk about how evolutionary psychology has become more integrated and multidisciplinary. They discuss sexual selection and, specifically, about mate selection and pair bonding. An overview of attachment theory and the 3 sub-categories are present...
Feb 04, 2021•3 hr 16 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Wilfred Reilly about the complex data around race in the United States. Wilfred provides some of the current statistics on racial groups and how this can be received in a mixed way in the media. They discuss some of the differences between equality and equity and the importance of both quantitative and qualitative data. They also talk about the current state of politics and many other topics. Wilfred Reilly is a political scientist and Associat...
Feb 01, 2021•1 hr 31 min
In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Iona Italia about her personal memoirs, mixed-race identity, and current social issues. Iona discusses her various experiences around the world and how they have shaped her identity. Specifically, she mentions her time in Argentina, India, and Great Britain. She also discusses her background in English literature and the impact that had on her development. They talk about race and ethnicity and some of the distinctions for individuals who are m...
Jan 28, 2021•2 hr 45 min
