This week we're excited to have Robert Wright on The Psychology Podcast . Robert is the New York Times best-selling author of Nonzero , The Moral Animal , The Evolution of God , and most recently Why Buddhism is True . He has also written for The New Yorker , The Atlantic , The New York Times , Time , Slate, and The New Republic, and has taught at The University of Pennsylvania and Princeton University, where he also created the online course Buddhism and Modern Psychology. Robert draws on his w...
Aug 16, 2017•49 min
Dr. Caren Baruch-Feldman is a clinical psychologist, certified school psychologist, and author of The Grit Guide for Teens . She’s also authored numerous articles and workshops on topics such as cognitive behavioral therapy techniques, helping children and adults cope with stress and worry, helping people change, and developing grit and self-control. In this episode of The Psychology Podcast , Caren and I talk about how her work on grit was a natural outgrowth of her clinical practice, and how t...
Aug 09, 2017•34 min
Sharon Salzberg is a NYT best-selling author and teacher of Buddhist meditation practices in the West. She also cofounded the Insight Meditation Society and is the author of 9 books, the most recent being Real Love: The Art of Mindful Connection . In this episode of The Psychology Podcast, we get to learn about why Sharon has devoted her life to these ideas, how meditation has impacted her consciousness, what characterizes "real love", what differences exist between the modern-scientific notions...
Aug 02, 2017•45 min
I’m really excited to have Christina Pierpaoli on the podcast. Christina is a graduate student in the Geropsychological doctoral program at the University of Alabama. Her research explores associations between chronic illness and psychological health in older adults, and she is by all accounts a rising star in the field of psychology. For our listeners who may not be familiar with the literature, Geropsychology is the psychology of aging. As Christina puts it, this particular field of psychology...
Jul 22, 2017•37 min
Today I'm really excited to have Monica Worline and Jane Dutton on the podcast, co-authors of the new book Awakening Compassion at Work: the Quiet Power That Elevates People and Organizations . Monica Worline, Ph.D., is founder and CEO of EnlivenWork. She is also a research scientist at Stanford University Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education and executive director of Compassion Lab. Jane Dutton, Ph.D., is the Robert L Kahn distinguished University professor of business admi...
Jul 19, 2017•52 min
Professor Lea Waters, PhD is an Australian academic, researcher, psychologist, author and speaker contributing to the field of Positive Psychology. Most people see improvements as eliminating what's wrong with us, but Lea's work in Positive Psychology expands what we mean by improvement and growth. Her latest book, The Strength Switch , offers parents resources to better build the strengths of young people. In our conversation, we talk about how Lea has used her strengths in research and storyte...
Jul 12, 2017•48 min
Today we have one of the world's most preeminent attachment scientists, Dr. R. Chris Fraley , on the podcast! Fraley is a Professor at the University of Illinois's Department of Psychology and received the American Psychological Association's Distinguished Scientific Award in 2007 for Early Career Contribution to Psychology in the area of Individual Differences. In this episode of The Psychology Podcast , we take a deep dive into a few of Chris' many interesting research areas: attachment proces...
Jul 05, 2017•1 hr 16 min
On today's episode of The Psychology Podcast , we speak with Caroline Adams Miller about how to to get more grit. Caroline is a certified professional coach, author, media personality, and keynote speaker & educator. In this episode, we discuss what it means to be a positive psychology coach, why she became interested in grit, why millennials may not be as gritty as previous generations, Caroline's definition of "authentic grit", the difference between "selfie" grit and authentic grit, when grit...
Jun 29, 2017•39 min
“If you just laugh at yourself, there is nothing to be scared of anymore.” Today we have executive, activist, and entrepreneur Sarah Robb O’Hagan on the podcast. O'Hagan is CEO of the fast growing indoor cycling company Flywheel Sports , where she is currently leading the transformation of the business through digital content and services. Prior to this role, Sarah was global president of Gatorade and Equinox, where she reinvented the offering through a significant technology transformation. In ...
Jun 27, 2017•32 min
Today we have ABC News Anchor Dan Harris on the podcast. Harris is perhaps the most unlikely meditation evangelist, ever. After a panic attack on Good Morning America, he wrote the New York Times bestselling memoir “10% Happier” about what led him to embrace a practice he’d long considered ridiculous. He then started the 10% Happier: Meditation for Fidgety Skeptics app with a handful of bona fide meditation teachers, including Joseph Goldstein and Sharon Salzberg, as well as the 10% Happier podc...
Jun 21, 2017•39 min
It is an honor to have Dr. Steven Hayes, the father of "Acceptance and Commitment Therapy" (ACT), on the podcast this week. In this wide ranging episode, we learn about the "third wave" of cognitive behavioral therapies, and how to have greater psychological flexibility -- the ability to contact the present moment more fully as a conscious human being, and to change or persist in behavior when doing so serves valued ends. We will learn the 6 core ACT processes, and how they can help you stop fig...
Jun 14, 2017•1 hr 11 min
Today we have Alan Alda on the podcast. Alan has earned international recognition as an actor, writer, and director. He has won seven Emmy Awards, has received three Tony nominations, and is an inductee of the Television Hall of Fame. Many people know of his groundbreaking role as Hawkeye Pierce on the classic television series M*A*S*H, but what many people may not realize is that Alda is also ravenously curious about science, and is a wonderful science communicator! In this episode of The Psych...
Jun 07, 2017•34 min
In this episode of The Psychology Podcast , Dr. Eric Turkheimer and I take a deep dive into some of the most complex and controversial topics in all of psychology. What is intelligence? How is intelligence measured? Is intelligence meaningful? Is IQ modifiable? Is IQ heritable? What does heritability really mean? Is heritability of IQ the same across social classes? Are there race differences in IQ? If so, what are the potential causes of race differences in IQ? Why does any of this matter? Note...
Jun 01, 2017•52 min
Today’s guest on The Psychology Podcast is the polymath Daniel Schmachtenberger, a social engineer, evolutionary philosopher, and strategist. This episode discusses a wide range of consciousness-raising issues, including the biology of dysfunction, the philosophy and scientific implications of creating systemic cultural and personal changes, the difference between nootropics and smart drugs, the future of cognitive assessments and the quantified self, the future of customized medical and wellnes...
May 30, 2017•51 min
On today’s episode of The Psychology Podcast, friend of the show Dr. Heather Moday shares her unique medical expertise to help us live healthier, happier and more productive lives. Dr. Moday is a board-certified physician who is passionate about changing the way medicine is practiced in this country. In this episode, Dr. Moday suggests some tips for optimizing gut health to improve mood and cognition, discusses the importance of sleep and how to achieve a better nights rest, and offers a practic...
May 24, 2017•39 min
Eric Barker is the author of the widely popular blog, "Barking Up The Wrong Tree", and he has a new book out with the same title. Barker is known for his science-informed articles on how to be awesome at life. For today’s episode, we focus on a range of topics relating to being awesome in life, including when to grit and when to quit, whether nice guys really finish last, the perils of self-esteem, how it's who you know instead of what you know that really matters, and how people can achieve suc...
May 17, 2017•43 min
Susan David is one of the world’s leading experts on emotional agility, an important psychological skill that can help us live a fuller life. In this episode, I speak with Dr. David about how to cultivate emotional agility, the paradox of happiness, job crafting, authenticity, and living a life aligned with one’s personal values. I’m especially pleased to present this episode to listeners; it contains pragmatic information to help people get unstuck, embrace change, and thrive! For more informat...
May 10, 2017•58 min
Friend of the show Dan Lerner stops by to share the latest research on how to thrive in college (and in life). Our conversation covers a wide array of topics related to well-being in the college population, including some of the pitfalls of perfectionism, how to determine your passion and keep it healthy, using character strengths to excel, and how to avoid unproductive social pressures. We also hear about Dan’s experiences working with renown musicians and how achieving great success needn’t co...
May 03, 2017•42 min
On today’s episode of The Psychology Podcast, we speak with a neuroscientist who specializes in optimizing workplaces for greater productivity and well-being. Our conversation covers a vast array of useful topics, such as habit formation, public speaking, emotional regulation and proper decision making. We talk about how some of these activities show up in brain scans and discuss how individual’s neurochemistry affects their roles at work. There’s a ton of strategies here and we had a lot of fun...
Apr 27, 2017•46 min
Vanessa Van Edwards is a self-described “recovering boring and awkward person,” whose latest book, Captivate: The Science of Succeeding with People , provides simple ways to decode people and level-up your relationships and networking abilities. It’s an especially practical episode, which features a handful of actionable strategies to be more effective in the social realm. We discuss research surrounding charisma, eye contact, hand gestures, relaxing one’s voice, and conquering social anxiety! T...
Apr 25, 2017•46 min
For this episode of The Psychology Podcast, I chat with my brother from another mother, Dr. James C. Kaufman, as we take deep dive into one of humanity’s most coveted virtues - creativity. We profile creative genius, discuss different forms of creativity, and talk about the links between creativity, IQ and mental illness. This episode features some wonderful new ways to think about your creativity, including the possibility for creativity assessment to reduce racial and ethnic bias. To learn mor...
Apr 20, 2017•43 min
Over 50% of people will meet the criteria for a mental illness in their lifetime. On this episode of The Psychology Podcast, we want to do our part to encourage people to seek assistance, while celebrating some of the unique strengths of people with brain differences. I speak with expert Gail Saltz about some fascinating gifts that can come with with diagnoses such as ADHD, dyslexia, autism, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and more. We discuss achieving a balance between receiving proper treatment an...
Apr 18, 2017•54 min
Dr. Brecher is a clinical psychologist who uses cognitive behavioral strategies to buffer students against the pervasive depression and anxiety present in higher education. We talk about her science-informed recommendations, which include positive psychological activities designed to increase mindfulness, character strengths, self-efficacy, optimism, gratitude, and more. We discuss the mechanisms through which these interventions work, some of the many benefits they promote, how they can be impl...
Apr 13, 2017•32 min
On today’s episode of The Psychology Podcast, our executive producer Taylor Kreiss conducts a guest interview about lawyer well-being. His guest, Dan Bowling III , is a Duke law professor and a positive psychology expert using science to help lawyers become healthier and happier human beings. We address some of the disconcerting mental health statistics, discuss why lawyers suffer from such mental maladies, and share practical strategies that lawyers (and everyone) can use to become more satisfi...
Apr 06, 2017•54 min
Roy Baumeister brings the methods of social psychology to bear on some of life’s deepest philosophical problems. In the second part of this two part series (see Part I ), we cover the psychology of self-control, evil, sex differences, and free will. In addition to Roy responding to the critics of his “ego-depletion” model of self-control, he also offers some practical strategies to improve willpower for goal attainment, looking at how successful people set up habits that deplete less energy. We ...
Apr 04, 2017•22 min
Dr. Roy Baumeister is widely considered to be one of the most influential and cited psychologists of our time. He's also a wonderful conversationalist, full of interesting research to share with our listeners! In this first half of our two part series with Roy, we learn about how he came to study the diverse array of fascinating topics that have characterized his career. We discuss how people determine their identity, the effects of self-esteem on behavior, and how people find a sense of meaning...
Mar 29, 2017•38 min
We are huge fans of Tim Urban’s Wait But Why blog, so it was a great joy to speak with him for today's show. In this episode of The Psychology Podcast, we experience Tim’s patented wry wit and deep philosophical insight as we chat across a wide range of topics, including Tim’s journey to becoming one of the internet’s most popular bloggers, his creative process and self-regulation strategies, his views on our immediate governmental future, the relative importance of personality traits, the conne...
Mar 22, 2017•52 min
Modern day philosopher Alain de Botton has become world renown for his ability to provide compelling real world answers to some of life’s biggest questions. For this episode of The Psychology Podcast, we cover the philosophy and science of a range of topics, including what it means to have a “normal” relationship, the origins of the desire for religion, the pervasive lack of systematic thinking about happiness, how the illusion of perfection creates problems, existential crises and much more. We...
Mar 08, 2017•40 min
Mindfulness has become a hot topic recently, gracing the covers of magazines like Time and Scientific American. Yet despite its rising popularity, many people remain confused about what exactly mindfulness is or how to start their own practice! On this episode of The Psychology Podcast, mindfulness expert Cory Mascara speaks with our executive producer Taylor Kreiss, sharing science-backed advice and best practices for how to become more mindful. It's a fun and practical episode for anyone looki...
Mar 02, 2017•59 min
Dr. Andrew Newberg is widely regarded as a leading authority in the neuroscientific study of religious, spiritual and mystical experiences. For this episode of The Psychology Podcast, we engage in philosophically scientific meditations on the sublime and the sacred. Topics include: The 5 major components of an enlightenment experience, what occurs in the brain during a transcendent mental state, the role of psychedelics in connecting with reality, some perplexing findings about “higher conscious...
Feb 28, 2017•44 min
