Minimizing Pain, Maximizing Joy
14 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Life is filled with hardships and tragedies — a fact that 2020 has made all too clear for people a...
Screaming into a Void
07 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Turn on the news or look at Twitter, and it's likely you'll be bombarded by outrage. Many people hav...
A Conspiracy of Silence
30 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
We all self-censor at times. We keep quiet at dinner with our in-laws, or nod passively in a work me...
Where Gratitude Gets You
23 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Many of us struggle with self-control. And we assume willpower is the key to achieving our goals. B...
When You Start to Miss Tony from Accounting
16 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
If you're one of the 40 percent of Americans now working from home, you might be reveling in your da...
Between Two Worlds
09 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Determination, hard work and sacrifice are core ingredients in the story of the American dream. But ...
From Pedestals to Guillotines
02 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
As election season comes to a close, we explore our contradictory relationship with winners and lose...
Not at the Dinner Table
26 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
We typically divide the country into two distinct groups: Democrats and Republicans. But what if the...
Moral Combat
19 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Most of us have a clear sense of right and wrong. But what happens when we view politics through a m...
Beyond Doomscrolling
12 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
There’s no question that 2020 has been a tough year. We're grappling with a global pandemic. A dee...
The Logic of Rage
05 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Neuroscientist Doug Fields was on a trip to Europe when a pickpocket stole his wallet. Doug, normall...
An Update from Shankar
02 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
It’s been five years since we launched this podcast. Today, we want to take a moment to thank the ...
Laughter: The Best Medicine
28 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
If you listen closely to giggles, guffaws, and polite chuckles, you can discern a huge amount of inf...
The Halo Effect
21 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Judy, Lyn and Donna Ulrich were driving to a volleyball game when their Ford Pinto was hit from behi...
Why Nobody Feels Rich
14 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
If you've ever flown in economy class on a plane, you probably had to walk through the first class c...
The Fee-for-Service Monster
07 Sep 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The United States spends trillions of dollars on healthcare every year, but our outcomes are worse t...
You 2.0: Empathy Gym
31 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Some people are good at putting themselves in another person's shoes. Others may struggle to relate....
You 2.0: WOOP, WOOP!
24 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
American culture is all about positive affirmations. Dream big! Shoot for the stars! But do positive...
You 2.0: Loss And Renewal
17 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Maya Shankar was well on her way to a career as a violinist when an injury closed that door. This we...
You 2.0: The Mind's Eye
10 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Some challenges feel insurmountable. But psychologist Emily Balcetis says the solutions are often ri...
You 2.0: Our Pursuit of Happiness
03 Aug 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Sometimes, life can feel like being stuck on a treadmill. No matter how hard you try to get happier,...
Edge Effect
27 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
There is great comfort in the familiar. It's one reason humans often flock to other people who share...
The Untold Story Of Lyndie B. Hawkins
20 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In 2019, a novel by a new author, Gail Shepherd, arrived in bookstores. The True History of Lyndie B...
Romeo & Juliet In Rwanda
13 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
How do you change someone's behavior? Most of us would point to education or persuasion. But what if...
The Night That Lasted A Lifetime
06 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Not long after his sixteenth birthday, Fred Clay was arrested for the murder of a cab driver in Bost...
The Founding Contradiction
29 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." These words, pe...
Buy, Borrow, Steal
22 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Policymakers have a tried-and-true game plan for jump-starting the economy in times of severe recess...
A Rap on Trial
15 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In the past few weeks, the nation has been gripped by protests against police brutality toward black...
The Air We Breathe
12 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
President Trump said this week that a few "bad apples" were to blame for police killings o...
Playing Favorites
08 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
If we do a favor for someone we know, we think we've done a good deed. What we don't tend to ask is:...
Justifying The Means
01 Jun 2020
Contributed by Lukas
When we are asked to make a moral choice, many of us imagine it involves listening to our hearts. To...
The Time Machine
30 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In recent months, many of us have looked back with longing at our lives before COVID-19. For many of...
The People Like Us
25 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Far from being "the great equalizer," COVID-19 has disproportionately sickened and killed ...
Our Better Angels
18 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In the months since the spread of the coronavirus, stories of selfishness and exploitation have beco...
A Hidden Brain Commencement Address
13 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Commencement ceremonies allow us to take stock of what we've accomplished and where we're headed. Th...
The Dramatic Cure
11 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In recent months, many of us have become familiar with the sense of fear expressing itself in our bo...
The Choices Before Us
04 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
An abundance of choices is a good thing, right? In the United States, where choice is often equated ...
Starving The Watchdogs
27 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Amidst the confusion and chaos of the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us have sought out a long-trusted l...
A Social Prescription
20 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Confined to our homes, many of us are experiencing a newfound appreciation for our social relationsh...
Sex Machines
13 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
From stone statues to silicone works of art, we have long sought solace and sex from inanimate objec...
Playing Tight And Loose
06 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
We all know people who prefer to follow the rules, and others who prefer to flout them. Psychologist...
Close Enough: Living Through Others
30 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
A silver lining of social distancing: you may have more time and space to pursue the projects you've...
An Unfinished Lesson
23 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
A virus is more than a biological organism. It's a social organism. It detects fissures in societies...
Panic In The Street
16 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
It sounds like a movie plot: police discover the body of a young man who's been murdered. The body t...
The Bomb That Didn't Explode
10 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
We know that we live in an ever-changing world, but one thing we often overlook is demographic chang...
The Tale of the Cowboy Philosopher
03 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In 2009, an old man died in a California nursing home. His obituary included not just his given name...
The Influence You Have
24 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Think about the last time you asked someone for something. Maybe you were nervous or worried about w...
Liar, Liar, Liar
17 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Editor’s note: Since this episode first aired, researchers have raised concerns about a number of ...
Passion Isn't Enough
10 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Many Americans feel an obligation to keep up with political news. But maybe we should be focusing ou...
When Things Click
04 Feb 2020
Contributed by Lukas
There can be a lot of psychological noise involved in teaching. But what if we replaced all that men...
Secret Friends
27 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Where is the line between what is real and what is imaginary? It seems like an easy question to answ...
Warnings, Warnings Everywhere
20 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
After a disaster happens, we want to know whether something could have been done to avoid it. Did an...
Emotional Currency
13 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What's the point of money? The answer might seem obvious: we need it to get paid for our work, and t...
On The Knife's Edge
06 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What would drive someone to take another person's life? When researchers at the University of Chicag...
Creatures Of Habit
30 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
At the beginning of the year, many of us make resolutions for the months to come. We resolve to work...
Why We Love Surprises
23 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Why do we fall for surprise endings? It turns out that our capacity to be easily fooled in books and...
Did That Really Happen?
17 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Our memories are easily contaminated. We can be made to believe we rode in a hot air balloon or kiss...
Zipcode Destiny
09 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
There's a core belief embedded in the story of the United States — the American Dream. Today we lo...
In The Heat Of The Moment
03 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In a fit of anger or in the grip of fear, many of us make decisions that we never would have anticip...
Counting Other People's Blessings
25 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Envy is one of the most unpleasant of all human emotions. It also turns out to be one of the most di...
The Ventilator
19 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Many of us believe we know how we'd choose to die. We have a sense of how we'd respond to a diagnosi...
Hungry, Hungry Hippocampus
11 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Anyone who's tried (and failed) to follow a diet knows that food is more than fuel. This week, we re...
The Talk Market
04 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Can we affect the rise and fall of the economy? This week on Hidden Brain, we talk with Nobel Prize-...
BS Jobs
28 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever had a job where you had to stop and ask yourself: what am I doing here? If I quit tomo...
The Monkey Marketplace
21 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
What makes the mind of a human different from that of other animals? Psychologist Laurie Santos says...
The Lonely American Man
14 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Boys get the message at a young age: don't show your feelings. Don't rely on anyone. This week, we b...
Screaming Into The Void
07 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Turn on the news or look at Twitter, and it's likely you'll be bombarded by outrage. Many people hav...
Baby Talk
30 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Babies are speaking to us all the time, but most of us have no clue what they're saying. To research...
We're All Gonna Live Forever!
23 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Last week, we spoke with psychologist Sheldon Solomon about the fear of death and how it shapes our ...
We're All Gonna Die!
16 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Death may be inescapable, but we do our best to avoid thinking about it. Psychologist Sheldon Solomo...
You Can't Hit Unsend
10 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Social media sites offer quick and easy ways to share ideas, crack jokes, find old friends. They can...
You 2.0: Decide Already!
02 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
For the last episode in our You 2.0 series, we bring you a favorite conversation with Harvard resear...
You 2.0: Deep Work
27 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
When your phone buzzes or a notification pops up your screen, do you stop what you're doing to look ...
You 2.0: Rebel With A Cause
19 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Editor's note, December 6, 2024: Since we first published this episode with Francesca Gino in 2018, ...
You 2.0: Our Better Nature
12 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
If you live in a big city, you may have noticed new buildings popping up — a high-rise here, a sky...
You 2.0: Tunnel Vision
05 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
When you're hungry, it can be hard to think of anything other than food. When you're desperately poo...
You 2.0: The Empathy Gym
29 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Some people are good at putting themselves in another person's shoes. Others may struggle to relate....
Facts Aren't Enough
22 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Sometimes when we believe something, we resist data that can change our minds. This week, we look at...
Finding Your Voice
15 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
At some point in our lives, many of us realize that the way we hear our own voice isn't the way othe...
The Fox And The Hedgehog
08 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The Greek poet Archilochus wrote that "the fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one bi...
I Buy, Therefore I Am
01 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
All of us are surrounded by brands. Designer brands. Bargain-shopper brands. Brands for seemingly ev...
The Lazarus Drug
24 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
More than 70,000 people died of drug overdoses in 2017 — many of them from heroin and other opioid...
Our Animal Instincts
17 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Does living with animals really make us healthier? Why do we eat some animals and keep others as pet...
Me, Myself, and IKEA
10 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Are women named Virginia more likely to move to Virginia? Are people with the last name of Carpenter...
People Like Us
03 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Generations of Americans have struggled against segregation. Most of us believe in the ideal of a co...
More Divided Than Ever?
27 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Many of us intuitively feel that the bitter partisanship of American politics is bad for our nation....
Losing Face
20 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
It happens to all of us: someone recognizes you on the street, calls you by name, and says hello. Yo...
What's Not On The Test
13 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Smarts matter. But other factors may play an even bigger role in whether someone succeeds. This week...
Creating God
06 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
If you've taken part in a religious service, have you ever stopped to think about how it all came to...
A Dramatic Cure
29 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Placebos belong in clinical trials, not in the doctor's office. That's the conventional wisdom, anyw...
Why No One Feels Rich
22 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
If you've ever flown in economy class on a plane, you probably had to walk through the first class c...
The Sorting Hat
15 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The desire to find our tribe is universal. We like to know who we are and where we belong. This fasc...
Radically Normal
08 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
For generations, living openly as a gay person in the United States was difficult, and often dangero...
Don't Panic!
01 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Chaos is a part of all of our lives. Sometimes we try to control it. And other times, we just have t...
What Twins Tell Us
25 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Twin studies aren't just for twins. They're a paradigm for all of us, a way to explore an old questi...
Never Go To Vegas
18 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
All social classes have unspoken rules. From A-list celebrities to teachers, doctors, lawyers, and j...
Unreal Sex
11 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
From stone statues to silicone works of art, we have long sought solace and sex from inanimate objec...
For Sale, By Owner
04 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
You own your body. So should you be able to sell parts of it? This week, we explore the concept of &...
Radio Replay: Playing The Gender Card
01 Mar 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Annie Duke was about to win $2 million. It was 2004, and she was at the final hand of the World Seri...
Better Than Cash
25 Feb 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Our modern world is saturated with awards. From elementary school classrooms to Hollywood to the hal...