Podcasts by Behavioral Grooves Podcast

The Eight Superpowers of Confidence | Lisa Sun from 2023-12-10T23:51

Step into a captivating conversation as Tim and Kurt engage with Lisa Sun, the author of Gravitas. Lisa introduces the intriguing concept...

Rethinking Behavioral Science | Adam Mastroianni from 2023-12-03T23:48

While Tim finds himself confined to a plane, Kurt engages in a captivating one-on-one session with researcher Adam Mastroianni. Together, they delv...

Navigating Societal Rifts | Michèle Lamont from 2023-11-26T23:53

Tensions around the dinner table? Trouble finding common ground with friends and family? Renowned sociologist Michèle Lamont joins Tim and Kurt to un...

Evolving Minds: A Conversation on Attention Spans | Gloria Mark PhD from 2023-11-19T23:15

Ever feel your attention… drifting? Want to get better at being present? Join Kurt and Tim as they delve into the world of shrinking attention spans alongside researcher Writing for Busy Readers” joins Kurt and Tim to discuss just that. In this insightful episode, To...

Unlocking the Power of Effective Communication | Matt Abrahams from 2023-11-05T22:55

Communication is a vital skill we all use, but do we truly understand its profound impact on our lives? Join Kurt and Tim as they engage in a captivating conversation with communication expert <...

Why Sleep Is Vital for Academic Success | David Creswell PhD from 2023-10-29T23:03

We all know we need a good night’s sleep but sleep researcher, David Creswell PhD has st...

Bridging Behavioral Science Concepts and Applications | Connor Joyce from 2023-10-22T23:03

Connect behavioral science theory and research to practical applications. Connor Joyce founded the Applied Behavioral Science Association and he shar...

The 5 Healthy Brain Habits Of A Neuroscientist | Dr Daniel Almeida [Republish] from 2023-10-15T23:03

What life habits keep our brain healthy? How does our mind respond to trauma? And why does the way we talk about suicide and mental health make such a difference to those who are struggling? We ...

Reading the Air: Using Self-Awareness to Make the Workplace Work for You | Michelle King from 2023-10-09T03:30

Why is work so difficult for so many of us? Why are we not connected to the organization in ways to help us advance our careers and garner the best assignments?

Team Rubicon has researched this positive effect, not just on the communities it serves, but also on the...

Our Quest to Feel Significant And How It Affects Our Behavior | Arie Kruglanski PhD from 2023-09-03T23:03

We all want to feel significant. This drive for significance ultimately fuels our cognition, emotions, and actions. Distinguished psychologist Arie Kruglanski discusses motivation, cognition, go...

How Best to Create a Culture of Learning | Sarah Nicholl from 2023-08-27T11:03

This podcast will give you the tools and techniques to foster a learning culture in your organization. Whether you work at a junior level or are an executive, Sarah’s guidelines can equip you to...

Imperfectly Perfect: The Science of Human Decision Making | Lionel Page from 2023-08-20T23:03

Humans have limited information processing abilities and cannot possibly evaluate all possible options when making a decision. However, describing people merely as irrational paints an inaccurat...

Want To Make Tomorrow Better? Get To Know Your Future Self Today | Hal Hershfield from 2023-08-13T23:03

How can we make better choices today to benefit our future selves? Hal Hershfield outlines strategies like visualizing your future self, writing lett...

Money, Success and the Cult of Never Enough | Manisha Thakor from 2023-08-06T23:03

The "cult of never enough" encourages the belief that more money, possessions and achievements will make us happy. But Manisha Thakor has learnt through personal experience that emotional wealth...

All The Ways Into Behavioral Science (And No, You Don’t Need a PhD) | Merle Van Den Akker from 2023-07-30T23:03

The world of applied behavioral science has never been better. So how do you get your foot in the door to have a career in the field? You may be surprised to learn that it doesn’t have to involv...

Confidence, Certainty and Control: The Map to Success | Peter Atwater from 2023-07-23T23:03

What exactly is confidence? Peter Atwater describes it as the feelings of certainty and control that we have about our future self. He explains The Confidence Map framework and how our horizon p...

The Psychology of Scams: Why We Fall for Fraud and How to Protect Yourself | Daniel Simons&Christopher Chabris from 2023-07-16T23:03

Splashy headlines, sensational findings and world-first results grab our attention but they also leave us vulnerable to deception. Constantly being skeptical of research is an impractical stance...

People Want Answers: How to Communicate in a Crisis with Christopher Reddy from 2023-07-09T23:03

Between disinformation and misinformation, it’s difficult to know what and who to trust, especially during a crisis. When disaster does strike, it is critical that scientific information is comm...

The Value of an Open Mind and How To Overcome Knowingness | Jonathan Malesic from 2023-07-02T03:03

When we pretend to know something that we don’t or start a comment with “everyone knows that...”, we create an atmosphere where answers become irrelevant. It closes off our openness to new ideas...

Feeling Stuck? Steps To Get Out Of Your Rut And How Music Helps | Adam Alter from 2023-06-25T23:03

We all get stuck. In relationships, in jobs or in creative endeavors. It’s a universal experience, yet most people feel incredibly lonely when they’re stuck. By shedding light on the latest rese...

Are You A People Pleaser? Learn To Say No More with Vanessa Patrick PhD from 2023-06-18T23:03

Saying yes to tasks that we want to say no to is a common problem. But how do we decide which requests to turn down? Dr Vanessa Patrick PhD strategically breaks down asks into 4 useful categorie...

What Do You Think? How To Improve Your Perspective And Your Life | Woo-Kyoung Ahn PhD from 2023-06-11T23:03

Understanding how we think can change our thinking. From confirmation biases, to uncertainty, to overconfidence, we are all blessed with the same thinking patterns that affect our decision makin...

How We’re Missing The Point With The Gender Pay Gap | Alex Imas PhD from 2023-06-04T23:03

If you compare executive pay of men and women in C suite jobs, you will often not find a discrepancy in their wages. You will also be completely missing the point. The gender pay gap exists beca...

Want People To Comply With Rules? Start With Trust | Christian Hunt from 2023-05-29T23:03

Want people to comply with rules at work? Stop assuming that they are going to break the rules. The vast majority of people want to do the right thing. So if you’re finding that people aren’t co...

Grooving on Goals: The Magic of Goals [Republish: Episode 27] from 2023-05-24T23:03

Goals are as common and as misunderstood as mobile phones. We think we know how to use them, but we don’t get it right every time. And if we were asked to explain how they work, we’d be clueless...

Groove Track | Why It Takes More Than Willpower To Reach Your Goals from 2023-05-14T23:03

Between setting your goals and reaching your goals, there is a void that we assume willpower can fill. But to achieve success, it takes more than willpower alone. Thankfully there are some well ...

Why Random Rewards Feel So Much Better Than Earned Ones with Richard Shotton from 2023-05-07T23:03

Earning your 10th cup of coffee for free isn’t nearly as satisfying as being randomly awarded a free coffee from your barista. These uncertain rewards are a genius way of enforcing new habits, w...

Want Marketing That’s Effective? Use a Behavioral Science Perspective | Nancy Harhut from 2023-04-30T23:03

Interested in a secret, underused marketing trick?  Use rhyme in your design! You may easily recall examples like “Bounty: the quicker picker upper” or “Duracell: no battery is stronger, longer”...

Can Psychology Tell Us What Makes A Good Life? With Paul Bloom, Part 2 from 2023-04-23T23:03

Is a happy life one that is abundant with pleasure? Or one without pain? Or one that overcomes struggle? The quest for a good life may go beyond the scope of a psychological study. But bestselli...

Psychology: Should Freud Still Be On The Syllabus? Paul Bloom, Part 1 from 2023-04-17T00:03

Ask someone to name a famous psychologist and there’s a good chance they’ll say Sigmund Freud. Describing a person as “anal” or rebuking someone with “I'm not your mother”, are both references t...

What Do You Really Want? Understand The Desires We All Share | Charlotte Fox Weber from 2023-04-10T00:03

With curiosity we can figure out what we actually want. Sometimes what we desire makes us feel uncomfortable, and as a therapist, our guest Charlotte Fox...

How One Small Word Can Transform Our Motivation, Success And Relationships | Jonah Berger from 2023-04-03T01:03

Words matter. Unbelievably, tiny changes to language can have a big effect on behavior. Hear bestselling author, Jonah Berger reveal the magic words that c...

A Guide To The Ambitious Future of Behavioral Science with Michael Hallsworth PhD from 2023-03-27T03:03

What lies ahead for applied behavioral science? How can we learn from the massive growth in the field over the last 15 years? Our guest, Michael Hallsworth, has very recently published a manifes...

Surprising Ways To End Poverty and Solve Climate Change with Erik Angner PhD from 2023-03-19T19:55:13

What if there was a way to end poverty and solve climate change, that might actually work. Shouldn’t we try it? Our guest Erik Angner thinks economics holds the solutions to some of the world’s ...

Why You Don‘t Need to be Powerful to be Influential | Vanessa Bohns [Republish] from 2023-03-13T03:03

To be influential you do not require power, but wielding your influence is powerful. Vanessa Bohns, social psychologist and professor of organizational behavior at Cornell University, joins us t...

You Work. You Parent. But Can You Also Thrive? | Yael Schonbrun PhD from 2023-03-06T03:03

Working and parenting often feel like being pulled in two different directions. But what if we could reframe our thinking and actually appreciate that our experiences in one role can enhance the...

The Tools You Need To Embrace Uncertainty | Nathan Furr and Susannah Harmon Furr from 2023-02-27T03:03

We all face uncertainty at some point in our lives. But do we embrace it or resist it? Our thoughts about uncertainty and ambiguity shape the actions we take when we are faced with change. If we...

How To Frame Incentives To Drive The Desired Behavior | James Castello from 2023-02-20T03:03

If you want to incentivize an outcome, don’t just focus on the final reward, hone in on the behavior that will drive the result. Whether we’re motivating our employees, our kids or ourselves, we...

The Myth of the “Relationship Spark” with Logan Ury, featuring guest appearance by Christina Gravert, PhD [Republish] from 2023-02-13T03:03

First impressions matter but when it comes to dating, don't get blown away by the myth of the "relationship spark". Some people can instead be characterized as a "slow burn"; a person who you li...

Why Resilience Is More Than Just Bouncing Back | Gabriella Rosen Kellerman MD from 2023-02-06T03:03

There are actually 5 drivers of resilience; optimism, self compassion, cognitive agility, self efficacy and emotional regulation. We dive deep into each of these components and how they play a p...

Why Human Connection Is The Key To Effective Branding | Matt Johnson from 2023-01-30T03:03

“Brands really matter, when and only when they matter to consumers. And this is fundamentally a question of human connection.” ~ Matt Johnson

To get under the skin of how branding works,...

Why The Best Choice Can Sometimes Be An Imperfect Choice | Michelle Segar PhD from 2023-01-23T03:03

Context heavily influences our behavior (regular listeners of the show know our “context matters” mantra well!). Sometimes, because of what life throws at us, we have to re-evaluate our options....

Top 2 Tips on How to Read a Book Quickly from 2023-01-16T03:03

Ever need to read a book in a hurry? How can you absorb the most relevant content in a short period of time? Join Kurt and Tim as they talk to their friend Christian Hunt of the John A. List...

The Best Behavioral Science Books Of 2022 (According to Kurt and Tim!) from 2022-12-19T03:03

One of the ways we find our groove is through knowledge – sometimes new ideas, sometimes repeated ideas that are presented in new ways. Sometimes, it’s just reminders of old ideas that deserve a...

How the Right Journal Can Help You Reach Your Goals in 2023 from 2022-12-15T03:03

Want to start a journaling habit but worried you won't stay motivated? Having the right journal, that is designed using behavioral insights to keep you engaged, is the key.

In this unique...

How Game Theory Can Be Used To Explain Human Behavior | Erez Yoeli from 2022-12-12T03:03

We know human behavior isn’t rational. But this episode illustrates behavior using a surprising concept - game theory. This eye opening conversation with Erez Yoeli delves into what game theory ...

Do One Small Thing Every Day That Scares You | Scott Simon from 2022-12-05T03:03

Exercising your courage muscle every day and pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone, can have remarkable effect on your mindset and really influence those around you. Pushing through the ...

Want To Join A Secret Club? With Michael F. Schein from 2022-11-28T03:03

If you were sent an exclusive invite to a secret society, would you accept? If you knew only a few people in the world had been approached to join, would it spark a scarcity curiosity? What is m...

How To Redesign Social Media Better So That It’s Actually Sociable from 2022-11-21T03:03

The web was intended to be a way of creating genuine connections with others, but we’re all sadly familiar with the detrimental ways it can be used to spread misinformation. A team of experts at...

Groove Track | Tale of Two Markets: Do We Help People Only For Money Or Candy? from 2022-11-17T03:03

Would you help change a stranger’s tire? How about if they offered you $20? Or, what if instead of money, they offered you some candy? 

We often think these types of exchanges are financi...

Why Do Good People Let Bad Things Happen? With Max Bazerman from 2022-11-14T03:03

We find it easy to condemn wrongdoers, after they’ve been called out. But why do we often let unethical behavior occur around us, and not speak out? If we take a step back from the idea of there...

A Proven Way Expectations Can Unlock A More Positive Life | David Robson from 2022-11-07T03:03

How we think about the world can drastically influence how we navigate through it. Cutting edge research proves that reframing our mindset to be more positive, even in the light of negative even...

Grooving on Cheating: Kurt, Tim, Christian Hunt, and Koen Smets from 2022-11-04T07:13:37

Cheating is all around us. Is it on the rise? It appears to be so, but why? Christian Hunt, the founder and host of Human Risk Podcast, and Koen Smets, a London-based behavioral scientist, discu...

Can You Unlearn History And Still Love Your Country? With Dolly Chugh from 2022-10-31T03:03

Learning ALL the parts of our country’s history can be very uncomfortable. Not just in the US, but around the world, there are usually very dark parts of our past that many of us would rather br...

How To Get Comfortable With Uncertainty: The Ambiguity Mindset with Debbie Sutherland from 2022-10-24T03:03

People don’t hate change, they hate the ambiguity that comes with change. Organizational psychologist, Dr Debbie Sutherland PhD, shares the tools we can use, both in business settings and in our...

Quit: Why We Do It Too Late and How To Get Better At It with Annie Duke from 2022-10-17T03:03

Walking away is never easy. Whether it’s quitting a job, a relationship or an expedition to the peak of Mount Everest, we have a real problem with knowing when to stop. And ironically, when we d...

Four Steps To More Effective Conversations | Chuck Wisner from 2022-10-10T03:03

Conversations are vital to our existence - after all, we talk with people every day. But have you ever dissected what makes a conversation effective? When we are more conscious of how we are tal...

How To Have A Conversation About Racism | Robert Livingston from 2022-10-03T03:03

Racism is solvable, but that doesn’t mean we will solve it. To close the gap between the probable and possible, we need to have meaningful conversations.

“Conversation is one of the mos...

Visualize A Horse...But What If You Actually Can’t? Aphantasia Explained With Dr Adam Zeman from 2022-09-26T03:03

Close your eyes and visualize a horse. Most people can picture the outline of the body, the color of the horse and the unique features of the animal. But some people simply don’t see any image a...

Want to Know How Priming Works? It Starts With Your Conscious, Not Your Unconscious | John Bargh PhD from 2022-09-19T03:03

“The primary source of unconscious priming…is your conscious experience.” Our consciousness is where we bring everything together, where we integrate and form a rich integration of our experienc...

Rory Sutherland: The Opposite of a Good Idea is a Good Idea [Republish] from 2022-09-12T03:03

Rory Sutherland is a British advertising executive who became fascinated with behavioral science. Between his TED talks, books and articles, he ha...

How Good People Fight Bias | Dolly Chugh [Republish] from 2022-09-05T03:03

Psychology and neuroscience have proven that our minds do things on autopilot. These shortcuts (or heuristics) are laden with unconscious biases, which are juxtaposed to our self identity as a “...

Groove Track | No, Short-Term Rewards Don’t Drain Long-Term Motivation from 2022-09-02T07:44:50

For many years, the general consensus by many researchers and practitioners was that providing people with short-term extrinsic rewards sapped their long-term motivation. Thi...

The Power of Unity: Robert Cialdini Expands His Best Selling Book Influence [Republish] from 2022-08-29T03:03

The GodFather of Influence, Robert Cialdini joins us on Behavioral Grooves to share his motivation for expanding his bestselling book Influence: The Psychology ...

Groove Track | 12 Words That Improve Company Performance from 2022-08-25T06:45:22

Priming studies have had some negative press over the past ten years - some of it justified, some of it not. In this groove track, Kurt and Tim examine a 2018 study done by Alexander Stajkovic, ...

Delusions Can Actually Be Useful: Hidden Brain’s Shankar Vedantam Reveals How [Republish] from 2022-08-22T03:03

Shankar Vedantam is the host of the wildly popular podcast, Hidden Brain and esteemed author of the book Useful Delusions: The Power and Paradox of the Self-Dec...

How To Find Meaning IN Life | Dr Brian Lowery PhD from 2022-08-15T03:03

Three things generate a sense of meaning IN life;

1. Coherence - can you make sense of the world?
2. Purpose - do you feel a sense of purpose with what you do? And
3. Sign...
   Listen

How Do Incentives Actually Impact Motivation? | Dr Indranil Goswami PhD from 2022-08-08T03:03

Incentives can improve motivation. But what actually happens when the incentive is removed? An influential body of research previously suggested that extrinsic rewards have a negative impact on ...

Groove Track: Cab Driver Study from 2022-08-04T12:15:36

Groove Track | Why can’t you find a cab in the rain? 

We take a deep dive exploring the 1997 study “LABOR SUPPLY OF NEW YORK CITY CAB DRIVERS: ONE DAY AT A TIME,” by  Colin Camerer, Linda Babcoc...

Can You Really Love Things As Much As People? With Aaron Ahuvia from 2022-08-01T03:03

Love connects us to things in a deep way. But when we say we love our car, or we love our favorite beach, or we love our children, the love we express for each of those things is very different....

The Loss of Common Sense: How To Gain A Little Perspective | Martin Lindstrom from 2022-07-25T03:03

Disembarking people from a plane, row by row during the height of COVID, but then cramming all the passengers into a bus to the terminal…where is the common sense in that? Best selling author Ma...

Groove Track | Mind Over Milkshakes: Why Expectations Matter A Lot from 2022-07-21T03:03

A deep dive exploring the 2011 paper by Alia Crum, William Corbin, Kelly Brownwell, and Peter Salovey called “Mind Over Milkshakes: Mindsets, ...

Trust Your Gut? Only If The Data Supports It | Seth Stephens-Davidowitz from 2022-07-18T03:22:27

When making big decisions, people often go with what feels right - who we marry, where we live, what career we pursue. We base these decisions on our gut instinct. But what if our gut is biased,...

Changing Our Mind: Exploring How Mental Illness Is Managed with Daniel Bergner from 2022-07-11T03:03

Over the last 50 years, little has changed for the pharmaceutical management of mental illness. This is troublesome, but not unsolvable, according to The New York Times writer and author, Daniel...

Finding Out What Your Customers Want and Why It Matters | Andrea Belk Olson from 2022-07-05T03:03

Customer feedback lacks two fundamental pieces of information: context and behavior. Traditional methods of insight, like the Net Promoter Score (NPS) and customer feedback surveys have their li...

From Distracted To Focused: Nir Eyal’s Secrets On How To Be Indistractable from 2022-06-27T03:03

Utilizing the power of identity by proudly declaring yourself as indistractable can be a persuasive step in becoming the kind of person we want to be. By changing the language we use to describe...

You Have Dignity Because You’re Human, Not Because You Work | Jonathan Malesic from 2022-06-20T03:02:25

Mitt Romney once mistakenly quipped that people were either "makers or takers" echoing a common sentiment among US politicians that by working we provide society with value and are rewarded with...

How To Fix Burnout (Hint: It Isn’t Another Yoga Session) | Jennifer Moss from 2022-06-13T04:05:07

We’ve been programmed to treat burnout as a self-care issue, as if we’re just one yoga session or a relaxation app away from fixing the problem. Jennifer...

You Can Change Someone’s Mind But Are You Sure You Want To? | David McRaney from 2022-06-09T02:39:43

We all know someone who believes in conspiracy theories and we wish we could change their mind. It is possible. There are techniques that can work to transform how people think. But what we love...

Changing The World with Persistent Optimism | Dr. Paul Zeitz from 2022-06-06T02:01:22

What if we were so optimistic, nothing ever felt like an obstacle, only an opportunity? As an unapologetic optimist, Patreon page. If dona...

Want To Improve Your Kid’s Behavior? Start With Your Own | Sue Donnellan from 2022-05-30T03:09:48

Many of us struggle with the demands of parenting. Our response to feeling overwhelmed can be to try and control our kids’ behavior. But guest Sue Donnellan challenges us to lessen our parenting...

Three Easy Ways to Nurture A Child’s Brain Development | Dana Suskind MD from 2022-05-25T03:03

World-class pediatric surgeon, social scientist, and best-selling author Dr Dana Suskind MD talks about the Three T's (tune in, talk more and take turns) that parents can do to nurture their chi...

Fail to Scale: Why Good Research Doesn’t Always Make Great Policy | John A. List from 2022-05-23T03:03

Lots of us have good ideas, some even back their ideas up with successful research. So why do these good ideas fail to scale into great, big ideas? J...

For Revolutionary Solutions, Look To Evolutionary Ideas | Sam Tatam from 2022-05-16T03:03

Innovation doesn’t always require inventing new solutions to problems; chances are that evolution has already solved the issue with a unique design. This simple notion of looking to the natural ...

Why Mindset Matters Most: The Secrets of Achievement | Paul Szyarto from 2022-05-11T03:03

A goal is a stepping stone on the way to a higher achievement, not an end point. By reframing our expectations, we can transform our mindset into an incredibly powerful psychological tool.

Women Do Too Much Non-Promotable Work: How To Say No More with Linda Babcock from 2022-05-09T03:03

Women are more likely to volunteer for a non-promotable task at work, than men. But why do women volunteer themselves more? What repercussions does this have on women and on the organization? An...

How The Invisible Influence of Culture Shapes Our Behavior | Michele Gelfand from 2022-05-02T02:23:39

The culture we live in has an invisible influence over our individual and collective behaviors. The tendency towards openness or order in a society is expressed by Michele Gelfand, as the loosen...

The Psychological Benefits of Using a Process to Achieve an Outcome | Joseph Keebler PhD&Peter Krask from 2022-04-27T05:55:35

Processes decrease our cognitive load and increase our productivity. On Behavioral Grooves we have talked with out guests a lot about habits and routines, but not so much about the processes beh...

Transport Your Thinking; Why We Need To Reframe Travel | Rory Sutherland&Pete Dyson from 2022-04-24T03:03

Transporting humans from A to B is about more than just speed, efficiency and duration. Comfort, Wi-Fi access, entertainment and our habits, among many other factors, influence our choice of tra...

Why Not All Nudges Work ”In The Wild” | Nina Mazar&Dilip Soman from 2022-04-17T03:03

Read Nudge and you are inspired by how behavioral science works. But how can we translate and scale behavioral science effectively into policies and organizations? Indeed, can all academic resea...

The Steps Needed To Empower the Powerless | Julie Battilana PhD from 2022-04-10T03:03

Personality or wealth are often assumed to be prerequisites to gaining power, something that is only garnered by having control over others. An organization chart in a company, however, does not...

Why Talking To Strangers Is Actually Good For Your Wellbeing | Nick Epley from 2022-04-03T03:03

Do you strike up a conversation with a stranger on a plane or while waiting in line? If you don’t already, you will after listening to Nick Epley in th...

If You’re Wrong It’s Meaningless, But If I’m Wrong It’s Valuable | Peter Montoya from 2022-03-30T02:39:32

As the political divide between left and right widens in the US and around the world, we seem to spend increasing amounts of time focusing on the idea that other people are wrong. But what if we...

The Three Phases of Growth and Learning | Whitney Johnson from 2022-03-27T01:57:40

We are always learning, whether it’s changing careers or learning a new instrument. But how do we transition from the curiosity stage, to completely mastering the skill? It turns out it’s a rath...

Mindset Matters Most: Top Tips from The Sales Evangelist, Donald C. Kelly from 2022-03-23T03:03

Creating a motivating mindset is the most important component of any sales role. In fact, it’s a critical component of everything we do, but Donald C. Kelly enthusiastically reminds us in this e...

Is The A-nus Really The Key To All Intelligent Life? | Henry Gee from 2022-03-20T03:09:04

Paleontologist Henry Gee humorously explains to us why the anus was the key to large animals evolving, how the large size of our “dangly bits” is unique to our species, and what exactly has been...

Why Applying Behavioral Science to Public Policy Delivers Better Policy | David Yokum PhD from 2022-03-13T03:03

Connecting evidence-based behavioral science with public policy has been shown to deliver more effective government policies that strengthen communities. And there’s no-one better to explain thi...

Why Leaders Need To Care For People, Not Manage Them | Sesil Pir from 2022-03-06T03:03

Control is the opposite of caring. And a caring mindset is one of the most important things a leader can possess. In a caring workplace, workers experience lower absenteeism, less burnout and mo...

Do We Judge Others By The Way They Speak? | Katherine Kinzler PhD from 2022-02-27T03:03

We gravitate to people who are like us; our “tribe”. One factor that we use to assume that others are like us, is by the way they talk. Not just the words they speak, but the accent that they us...

We Are Greater Together; The Power Of Belonging | Dominic Packer PhD from 2022-02-20T03:03

We all have an inherent need to belong. And the groups we feel part of actually shape our behavior, more than we realize. They influence how we navigate the world and the way we relate to each o...

How Can Smart, Kind People Harness Their Influence? | Zoe Chance from 2022-02-13T03:03

Influential is probably not a word you use to describe yourself if you are the quiet/smart/kind type of person. Furthermore, you probably have misconceptions about what it even means to have inf...

No Regrets? Really? Why Regrets Actually Bring Us Hope | Daniel H. Pink from 2022-02-06T03:03

No regrets is a phrase thrown around like a badge of honor. Tattoos, songs and marketing taglines all boast this notion of curating a liberated life that you wouldn’t alter, change or modify in ...

How To Stay Motivated So You Exceed Your Goals | Ayelet Fishbach PhD from 2022-01-30T03:14:26

When we set goals, we’re excited, engaged and motivated to complete them. But after a while, the momentum can slow, we lose enthusiasm and we start cutting corners. The “middle problem” is somet...

A Long, Happy Life? The Impacts of Increasing Our Longevity | Bradley Schurman from 2022-01-26T03:03

Societies around the world are getting older; a combination of people living longer and having fewer children. The 85+ population is now the fastest growing demographic on the planet. The causes...

Why Finding Pleasure in Life is a Painful Journey | Paul Bloom from 2022-01-23T03:03

Why do people train for a marathon? Listen to sad music? Eat really spicy food? All of these activities induce a painful response, yet they also bring us pleasure. We often set ourselves up for ...

How Collaboration is Growing Behavioral Science: Learnings from BX Arabia from 2022-01-16T03:03

BX Arabia is a regional behavioral insights conference that started in 2018 to emphasize the application of behavioral science in the Global South. Kurt and Tim were fortunate to be invited to m...

How To Turn Your Creative Dreams Into Reality | Jeff Madoff from 2022-01-09T03:58:21

If you have a creative vision, how do you focus your skills on making it happen? Can you turn your dream into a career? How can we encourage more creative entrepreneurs? And can we incorporate m...

How To Create New Goals That Will Really Motivate You in 2022 from 2021-12-29T03:03

It’s the time of year for setting New Year’s resolutions. But how can you set goals that you will actually achieve? Will you look back at the end of 2022 and feel a sense of accomplishment? The ...

The Behavioral Science Books We Just Couldn’t Put Down in 2021 With Louise Ward from 2021-12-26T03:03

What a year for books 2021 has been! It seems like authors, editors and publishers have all been working overtime this year to bring us some incredible new content. Books that have challenged ou...

More Than Just A Checklist: How to Effectively Apply Behavioral Science | Torben Emmerling from 2021-12-19T03:03

Applying Behavioral Science insights at work takes more than just another checklist or document, it’s about creating an environment that enables people to make good decisions. Torben Emmerling s...

Our Love Of Music And The Influence Of The Pandemic With Mark Thorley from 2021-12-12T03:03

Where and how we listened to music shifted during the pandemic. But the music industry itself had to quickly adapt in 2020 to how music was recorded and produced. Our very musical conversation w...

Please Help Us by Voting for Behavioral Grooves - it takes 10 seconds from 2021-12-09T11:09:30

Habit Weekly, a wonderful organization founded by Samuel Salzer, is asking people to weigh in on their favorite podcast by casting a vote at https://...

Trust: The Four Key Steps to Genuinely Build It | Sandra Sucher from 2021-12-05T04:52:37

In 2021, people started to trust business organizations more than governments, NGOs or the media, according to global research by the Edelman Trust Baraometer. The Covid pandemic has seen people...

Focus More on HOW to Think, and Less on WHAT to Think | Dr. Howard Rankin PhD from 2021-11-28T03:09:14

If we are open minded, we challenge our beliefs and accept that our thinking can, at times, be misguided. After all, our thoughts are merely a function of our personal habits, experiences and in...

Need a Laugh to Get Through Your Workday? Dan Hill from 2021-11-24T04:30:30

Need some respite from the work day grind? Join the fun on this episode for a light-hearted take on workplace humor. Dan Hill delivers a real tongue-in-cheek take on the corporate lingo and jarg...

Feeling Fearful: Why People Seek Out Conspiracy Theories | Eric Oliver from 2021-11-21T03:03

What makes us more likely to believe in conspiracy theories? Can our religious beliefs or political affiliations determine whether we're less likely to believe in scientific facts? Why are healt...

Why We Are More Vulnerable To Harmful Conspiracy Theories Than We Think | Andy Norman from 2021-11-14T03:03

Misinformation is like a virus, spreading quickly and propagating in a way that doesn’t benefit its host. Andy Noman describes harmful ideas as acting like “mind parasites” that deploy clever ta...

Conspiracy Theories: How To Talk to A Science Denier | Lee McIntyre from 2021-11-07T04:57:50

How do you respond to someone who says “the earth is flat” or “Covid is a hoax”? Before we can try and reason with conspiracy theorists, we must first understand the reason they have ventured do...

Conspiracy Theories: Hidden Brain‘s Shankar Vedantam | The Delusion of Nations from 2021-11-03T03:03

Host of Hidden Brain podcast, Shankar Vedantam talks with us about the powers: both useful and harmful, of our delusional thinking. Nations are an example of useful delusions; they are an entire...

Halloween Special: Grooving on Scary Biases from 2021-10-31T03:03

Listen to Kurt and Tim’s spooky Halloween Special about some common biases that can seem a bit scary. But don’t fear, the scariest thing about this episode is actually Kurt and Tim’s jokes! Find...

Why Does Rude Behavior Really Bother Us So Much? | Trevor Foulk PhD from 2021-10-27T14:23:28

Rudeness is contagious, in a similar way to a virus. When experiencing a rude encounter, our brain perceives it like a threat. And once we’ve tuned in to this low-level threat, we’re more likely...

Helping People To Assemble Better Decisions | Eric J. Johnson from 2021-10-24T03:03

How do we make decisions? What factors influence the final outcome? Do default settings change our preferences? Every decision we make; from choosing something on a menu to deciding whether to b...

Anxiety at Work: Why We Feel It and How To Manage It | Chester Elton from 2021-10-17T02:57:30

Anxiety in the workplace has always been present, even pre-pandemic but rates of anxiety, particularly among young employees, have worsened since 2020. So what obligation do organizations have t...

The 5 Healthy Brain Habits Of A Neuroscientist | Dr Daniel Almeida from 2021-10-10T03:03

What life habits keep our brain healthy? How does our mind respond to trauma? And why does the way we talk about suicide and mental health make such a difference to those who are struggling? We ...

Money Does Boost Happiness, But Not The Way We Think It Does | Daniel Crosby from 2021-10-03T03:03

The clearest indicators of our financial solvency are based on the behaviors we exhibit with our investments. Dr. Daniel Crosby PhD is a psychologist, behavioral finance expert, asset manager an...

Why You Don‘t Need to be Powerful to be Influential | Vanessa Bohns from 2021-09-26T03:03

To be influential you do not require power, but wielding your influence is powerful. Vanessa Bohns, social psychologist and professor of organizational behavior at Cornell University, joins us t...

Leading Human™: How to Avoid Burnout and Create a Positive Organization from 2021-09-19T03:03

Employee burnout, The Great Resignation, Office Covid Regulations; these are all major concerns for leaders in the workplace right now. But how can managers successfully navigate these stresses,...

Kwame Christian: On Compassionate Curiosity, Social Justice Conversations, and Cinnamon Toast Crunch [Republish Episode 178] from 2021-09-12T03:04

[NOTE: This episode is republished from #178 in October 2020.]

Kwame Christian, Esq. is the author of “Nobody Will Play With Me: How to Use Compassionate Curiosity to Find Confidence in C...

Vaccinating the World: How Behavioral Science Helps. With Michael Coleman from 2021-09-05T02:41:20

How can behavioral science aid the mammoth task of vaccination the world against Covid? What common barriers cause vaccine hesitancy in populations around the globe? And how can behavioral desig...

Can People Learn to be Better at Thinking? With Richard E. Nisbett from 2021-08-29T03:03

Few psychologists in the world have contributed more to scientific discovery than our guest Richard E. Nisbett. He joins us to discuss his latest book, the title of which embodies one of his fav...

Do We Control Situations or Do Situations Control Us? With John Bargh from 2021-08-22T03:03

Can we control our unconscious behavior? How much does the situation we’re in control us? Can we prime people to behave a certain way? Is it even ethical to try? To what degree do cultural ident...

Stanford Prison Experiment, 50 Years On: What Have We Really Learnt? With Dr Philip Zimbardo from 2021-08-15T03:03

The Stanford Prison Experiment has been the topic of movies, newspaper articles, textbooks and TV shows. Extensively published controversy has surrounded the social psychology experiment ever si...

[INTERVIEW] Are You More Honest with Google or Your Friends? With Seth Stephens-Davidowitz from 2021-08-08T03:20

The truth is we divulge more information to Google that we do to our friends, our family or even our doctors. Our social media persona can paint a very different picture to what we secretly sear...

[GROOVING SESSION] Are You More Honest with Google or Your Friends? With Seth Stephens-Davidowitz from 2021-08-08T03:05

This follow-up episode is a free-flowing Grooving Session where Tim and Kurt chat about their discussion with Seth Stephens-Davidowitz (Episode 246). You’re more than welcome to listen to this a...

[INTERVIEW] Does Money Really Make You Happy? The Research with Johannes Haushofer from 2021-08-01T03:22

What link is there between happiness and income? Does winning the lottery make you happier? What does the research say about poverty and our mental health? 

Our guest on this episode has ...

[GROOVING SESSION] Does Money Really Make You Happy? The Research with Johannes Haushofer from 2021-08-01T03:05

Kurt and Tim discuss the links between poverty and mental health, how higher income is linked to better well-being, and the idea of a Universal Basic Income. This is a free-flowing discussion de...

[INTERVIEW] Smart Behavioral Economics Secrets Every Marketer Needs with Melina Palmer from 2021-07-25T04:40:13

What does your customer want but can’t tell you? What effective marketing techniques use behavioral economics? If only you had a way of understanding how your customer’s brain made decisions. We...

[GROOVING SESSION] Smart Behavioral Economics Secrets Every Marketer Needs with Melina Palmer from 2021-07-25T04:32:39

How can your organization improve its marketing messaging using proven behavioral science techniques? As part of our series on Marketing & Employee Engagement this month, we were joined by Melin...

[INTERVIEW] Why Good, Honest Employees Really Do Steal With Kelly Paxton from 2021-07-18T03:14:07

Do honest people steal? Our guest, Kelly Paxton investigates and researches low level crimes such as book-keeping fraud; also known as Pink Collar Crime. She discusses how a hostile work environ...

[GROOVING SESSION] Why Good, Honest Employees Really Do Steal With Kelly Paxton from 2021-07-18T03:13:27

Continuing our series on Marketing and Employee Engagement this month, we were joined by Kelly Paxton on our latest interview episode: Why Good, Honest Employees Really Do Steal With Kelly Paxto...

Who Makes You Feel Grateful? Tell Them! With Chester Elton from 2021-07-14T03:52:07

When did a colleague last thank you for your work? Managers generally underappreciate their employees, but more importantly, they tend to undervalue the benefits of expressing their gratitude. B...

[INTERVIEW] Attention: How to Capture It and Keep It with Ben Parr from 2021-07-11T07:26:07

What is the science behind capturing people’s attention? And what do you do after you have someone’s attention; what is your intention? Is our attention fleeting and fickle, like a goldfish? Or ...

[GROOVING SESSION] Attention: How to Capture It and Keep It with Ben Parr from 2021-07-11T07:24:58

Continuing our series on Marketing and Employee Engagement this month, we were joined on our latest interview episode (#237) by Ben Parr, author of “Captivology: The Science of Capturing People'...

[INTERVIEW] Make Choice Rewarding: Behavioral Insights in Marketing with Matthew Willcox from 2021-07-05T14:34:54

Welcome to our series of episodes on Marketing and Employee Engagement. We'll be sharing insights into how to apply behavioral science in business. And we’ve started the series off with award-wi...

[GROOVING SESSION] Make Choice Rewarding: Behavioral Insights in Marketing with Matthew Willcox from 2021-07-05T14:33:36

We’re doing things a little differently this month on Behavioral Grooves. Instead of discussing Matthew Willcox’s interview in our Grooving Session at the end of the episode, we’ve decided to ma...

Katy Milkman: How to Make Healthy Habits that Actually Last [GROOVING SESSION] from 2021-06-27T03:17:13

We’re doing things a little differently this week. Instead of discussing Katy Milkman’s research at the end of our interview (Episode 232), we’ve decided to make our Grooving Session a separate ...

Katy Milkman: How to Make Healthy Habits that Actually Last [INTERVIEW] from 2021-06-27T03:13:12

We all appreciate a fresh start. Time to start again. A clean slate. Maybe we want to go to the gym more often, eat more vegetables, or read more books. But why do we often fail to maintain our ...

Why We Work At Our Best, When We Feel At Our Best with Larry Senn from 2021-06-23T06:01:49

Today's guest is Dr. Larry Senn, PhD, a pioneer in the field of corporate culture. He founded Senn Delaney as a culture shaping firm back in 1978, based on his principle that organizations becom...

How Good People Fight Bias | Dolly Chugh from 2021-06-20T02:55:43

Dolly Chugh is an award-winning associate professor and social psychologist at the Stern School of Business at New York University. Her research focuses on the “psychology of good people”. How a...

How Good People Fight Bias | Dolly Chugh from 2021-06-20T02:55:43

Dolly Chugh is an award-winning associate professor and social psychologist at the Stern School of Business at New York University. Her research focuses on the “psychology of good people”. How a...

From Holding the Mic to Theory of Mind: Rob Leonard's Love of Language from 2021-06-20T02:38:23

Talk about a unique career path! From performing at Woodstock before Jimi Hendrix, with his band Sha Na Na, to now being a Forensic Linguist, testifying for infamous court cases, one theme runs ...

Getting to Yes, And...Behavioral Grooves: Two Podcasts in One from 2021-06-13T03:03

This episode is a Behavioral Grooves first: we bring you our first ever joint podcast! Mid-way through the episode the tables turn and our guest interviews us! Our guest is the amazing Kelly Leo...

Get More from Reading your Favorite Books with Pique founder Bec Weeks from 2021-06-06T02:47:23

On this episode of Behavioral Grooves we chat with the founder of the engaging new app PIQUE. Bec Weeks is a behavioral scientist turned accidental entrepreneur! By joining forces with some of t...

The Power of Unity: Robert Cialdini Expands His Best Selling Book Influence from 2021-05-30T03:03

The GodFather of Influence, Robert Cialdini joins us again on Behavioral Grooves to share his motivation for expanding his bestselling book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion ( Listen

Donating Our Money Is Irrational, So Why Do We Do It? Tim Kachuriak Explains Our Motivations from 2021-05-12T03:04

Tim Kachuriak is the founder and Chief Innovation and Optimization Officer for NextAfter (https://www.nextafter.com/), a fundraising research lab and con...

How Do You Become Influential? Jon Levy Reveals His Surprising Secrets from 2021-05-09T03:03:54

Our guest, Jon Levy, is arguably one of the most influential behavioral scientists in the world. Over 10 years ago, Jon founded The Influencers Dinner, a secret dining experience for industry le...

Why Music Makes You Feel Better with Pablo Ripollés and Ernest Mas Herrero from 2021-05-02T02:07:47

In this episode we are thrilled to be discussing our two favorite topics: human behavior and music. We learn that music, more than any other activity, can help lift our mood, during COVID. Our g...

Share, Like, Comment: Sandra Matz PhD Exposes The Truth Behind your Digital Footprint from 2021-04-25T03:05

Our guest this week, Sandra Matz PhD exposes the truth behind our online presence. In our conversation, Sandra reveals tha...

3 Ways to have a Positive Chat About Vaccine Hesitancy with Friends and Family from 2021-04-21T03:05

Research is showing that there are four broad groups of people who are the most vaccine hesitant:

• African Americans
• Latinos...
  Listen

How a Compelling Story Packs a Persuasive Punch with Melanie Green from 2021-04-18T03:05

Dr. Melanie Green is a professor at the University of Buffalo. She joined us on the podcast to explain how the power of a compelling narrative, including the effects of fictional stories, can be...

Secrets of Subtraction: Donut Holes, Lego and Bruce Springsteen with Leidy Klotz from 2021-04-14T03:04

Leidy Klotz is the Copenhaver Associate Professor of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Virginia. His research fills in underexplored overlaps between enginee...

Observing the Non-Obvious: How to Spot Trends Around You with Rohit Bhargava from 2021-04-11T02:56

Rohit Bhargava is on a mission to help everyone in the world become a non-obvious thinker. In this episode, he talks with us about how intentionality is the key to seeing the non-obvious and how...

Why It's Astoundingly Easy, But Not Better, to Be Tribal with Tim Ash from 2021-04-04T03:03

Tim Ash is a very interesting guy. He is both an authority on evolutionary psychology and digital marketing, which puts him in pretty rarified air. He is the bestselling author of Unleash Your P...

Scrutinizing Hype: Powerful lessons from The Hype Handbook with Michael F. Schein from 2021-03-31T03:02

Michael F. Schein is a hype specialist and the author of The Hype Handbook: 12 Indispensable Secrets from the World’s Greatest Propagandists, Self-Promoters, Cult Leaders, Mischief Makers, and B...

A Thousand Thanks: A Lifetime of Experiments and Gratitude with AJ Jacobs from 2021-03-28T03:02

AJ Jacobs is an author, journalist, lecturer, and human guinea pig. He has written four New York Times bestsellers, including The Year of Living Biblically, that combine memoir, science, and hum...

Linda Thunstrom: Are Thoughts and Prayers Empty Gestures to Suffering Disaster Victims? from 2021-03-21T05:04

Linda Thunstrom, PhD is a Swedish economist working as an assistant professor of economics at the University of Wyoming. (That’s in Laramie, Wyoming, not Wyoming, Sweden.) Her research interests...

GAABS and Improving the Future for Every Applied Behavioral Scientist from 2021-03-14T05:05

GAABS is an organization that was recently founded to act as an accrediting body for applied behavioral scientists. GAABS is The Global Association of Applied Behavioral Scientists and is open f...

Dessa: The Attention Shepherd on the Curious Act of Being Deeply Human from 2021-03-07T05:02

Dessa is a singer, rapper, writer, speaker, science and philosophy connoisseur, podcast host, and ice cream flavor inventor. (Her flavor is Dessa’s Existential Crunch which consists of crème fra...

Jonathan Mann: Is it Possible to Design an Experience? from 2021-02-28T05:03

Can you design an experience for someone else? Jonathan Mann, the Vice President of User Experience at Renaissance Learning says, “Umm, not really.” Prior to joining Renaissance, Jonathan led us...

Why We Need Robots with Kind Faces with Bertram Malle from 2021-02-21T05:02

Bertram Malle, PhD teaches social cognitive science and social psychology at Brown University, he’s the author of dozens of articles and has focused his recent work on how humans feel about robo...

The Myth of the "Relationship Spark" with Logan Ury (featuring a guest appearance by Christina Gravert, PhD) from 2021-02-14T05:03

Logan Ury studied psychology at Harvard, was a TED Fellow, then became a behavioral scientist at Google, where she ran Google’s behavioral science team – which we now know as The Irrational Lab....

How Shelley Archambeau Flies Like an Eagle from 2021-02-07T05:02

Shellye Archambeau is the author of “Unapologetically Ambitious: Take Risks, Break Barriers, and Create Success on Your Own Terms.” It’s part memoir, part inspiration, and career guidebook. Whil...

On Fake Memories and Whistleblowers with Nuala Walsh from 2021-01-31T05:03

Nuala Walsh is a strategic adviser with MindEquity, working with organizations to create reputation, commercial and cultural change. She is a global leader, an award-winning marketeer, and a beh...

How Chaning Jang Works Around Not Being WEIRD from 2021-01-24T05:05

Chaning Jang is the CSO of the Busara Center for Behavioral Economics and has helped lead the organization since 2013. He is responsible for strategy, and a portfolio of projects, primarily focu...

The Counterintuitive Persuasion of The Catalyst with Jonah Berger from 2021-01-17T05:36

Jonah Berger is a marketing professor in the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and the internationally best-selling author Contagious and Invisible Influence. He consults with som...

Time is Money – How Do You Value It? from 2021-01-13T05:39

Recently, NPR’s Planet Money penned an article about how much our time is worth based on some research that was sponsored by the rideshare company Lyft. According to the article, Lyft economists...

How Decision Making is Critical for Back Country Skiers and Sex from 2021-01-11T14:02:31

Have you ever been caught in an avalanche or spoken to someone who survived? In this episode, you’ll hear what living through an avalanche is really like.

Audun Hetland (a psychologist) a...

The Role of the Unconscious in Everyday Behaviors with Joel Weinberger from 2021-01-03T05:25

Joel Weinberger is a Professor of Psychology at the Derner Institute at Adelphi University with Postdoctoral training in motivation at Harvard University. He is a Fellow of the Association for P...

Successful New Year’s Resolutions in 4 Quick Tips from 2020-12-30T05:04

If you’re like the rest of us, your new year’s resolutions don’t last beyond St. Valentine’s Day. That’s okay – it’s normal. The trouble is it’s not what you want.

If you WANT success wit...

Living Happier By Making the World Better with Max Bazerman from 2020-12-27T05:04

Max Bazerman is the Jesse Isidor Strauss Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School and is the author of “Better, Not Perfect.” It is the latest in a string of 21 books Max ...

Reflecting on the Best Podcast Insights from 2020 from 2020-12-23T05:36

This is THE episode to listen to if you have missed the last 90 episodes.

We can all agree that 2020 has been one hell of a year. Many people have been severely impacted by the pandemic, ...

The 10 Best Behavioral Science Books for 2020 from 2020-12-20T05:52

Pretty much everyone around the world agrees that 2020 was a challenging year and we’re glad it’s all but over. However, 2020 was a year we upped the number of guests (to 90), upped our reading ...

How to Deal With Anxiety Over COVID Vaccines from 2020-12-16T10:29:41

Are the new COVID-19 vaccines are safe? It will probably take time to know for sure; however, this week Kurt and Tim discuss the behavioral aspects of the transition. Kurt was engaged by an arti...

Amy Bucher on Participatory Design, Trust and Engaging Your Audience from 2020-12-13T05:43

Amy Bucher, PhD is the Vice President of Behavior Change Design at Mad*Pow and the author of “Engaged” a new book on how to apply behavioral science to the design and development of products. At...

Evolving HR Using Behavioral Science with Ryan McShane from 2020-12-06T05:50

Ryan McShane is the President and CEO of HR Evolution, a consultancy that designs systems that support employee alignment to organizational purpose through HR best practices, organizational deve...

Cornelia Walther on POZE: Pause, Observe, Zoom in, and Experience from 2020-11-27T12:16:54

Cornelia Walther has spent most of her professional career with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Program (WFP). She was the head of communications in large-scale em...

Kevin Vallier: What to Do About Polarization from 2020-11-22T09:33:37

Kevin Vallier, PhD is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at Bowling Green State University, where he directs their Philosophy, Politics, Economics, and Law programs. Kevin’s interests span a w...

IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY BY MAKING YOUR WORKFORCE PSYCHOLOGICALLY SAFE from 2020-11-20T05:27

[NOTE: This episode was originally published as a Weekly Grooves podcast. We wanted to share it with our Behavioral Grooves listeners and we hope you enjoy it.]

We were inspired by a rece...

Bill von Hippel on The Social Leap, Context, and Max Weinberg from 2020-11-15T05:48

Bill von Hippel, PhD is an evolutionary psychologist from Alaska who has lived in Australia for more than 20 years. Bill teaches at the University of Queensland and his body of research is so wi...

World Kindness Day Through a Behavioral Lens from 2020-11-13T14:03:13

World Kindness Day is November 13th and has been celebrated in many countries around the world since 1998. World Kindness Day was developed to promote good deeds in communities and focus on how ...

How Do We Deal with Disinformation? from 2020-11-11T05:05

[NOTE: This episode was originally published under our sister-podcast, Weekly Grooves. We are republishing it here to share relevant behavioral science information. We hope you enjoy it.]

Elspeth Kirkman and Michael Hallsworth on Designing Behavioral Interventions from 2020-11-08T05:11

CORRECTION: In this episode, we incorrectly state that Michael Hallsworth started the BIT North American team.  In fact, the BIT North America team was founded in 2015 by Elspeth Kirkman. Under ...

Iowa Caucus Conspiracy Theories – How to Inoculate Yourself from 2020-11-05T05:42

[NOTE: This episode was originally published under our sister-podcast, Weekly Grooves. In our effort to share relevant behavioral science information, we are republishing it here. We hope you en...

Rippling with Jez Groom and April Vellacott from 2020-11-01T05:58

Jez Groom and April Vellacott, our guests in this episode, are co-authors of “Ripple - The Big Effects of Small Behavior Changes in Business.” It’s a practical, application-focused romp that use...

Grooving: The Single Largest Driver of Misinformation from 2020-10-31T07:11:34

[NOTE: This episode was originally published under our sister-podcast, Weekly Grooves. In our effort to share relevant behavioral science information, we are republishing it here. We hope you en...

Vote Now (for Behavioral Grooves) from 2020-10-30T12:57:35

The presidential election is going full tilt in the United States and we want to emphasize the importance of acting on your constitutional rights if you are eligible to vote here. However, Kurt ...

Play, Reciprocity and Context: The Keys to Happy Communities with Jessica Mayhew from 2020-10-28T05:05

Jessica Mayhew, PhD teaches Biological Anthropology as well as Primate Culture & Cognition at Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Washington. She got our attention when her comments abo...

Kwame Christian: On Compassionate Curiosity, Social Justice Conversations, and Cinnamon Toast Crunch from 2020-10-25T05:55

Kwame Christian, Esq. is the author of “Nobody Will Play With Me: How to Use Compassionate Curiosity to Find Confidence in Conflict.” He is the host of two podcasts, “Negotiate Anything” and “As...

Matt Johnson&Prince Ghuman on Mid-Liminal Marketing and the Ethics of Applied Neuroscience from 2020-10-18T08:39:37

Matt Johnson, PhD and Prince Ghuman are the authors of “Blindsight: the mostly hidden ways marketing shapes our brains.” We caught up with them to discuss the book, basketball, ethics, and old s...

Annie Duke on How to Decide from 2020-10-11T11:39:18

Annie Duke first guested on Behavioral Grooves on Episode 31, which was released on September 30, 2018. For some reason, the three of us hit it off and we’ve had the pleasure of each other’s com...

Andy Luttrell: Pro’s and Con’s of Persuasion When Issues are Moralized from 2020-10-05T13:59:40

Andy Luttrell, PhD is an assistant professor of psychological science at Ball State University and the podcaster/host of Opinion Science, one of Kurt and Tim’s favorites.

Andy’s research ...

Secrets to a Successful Marriage with Eli Finkel from 2020-09-27T08:03:06

Eli Finkel, PhD is a social psychology professor who studies interpersonal attraction, marriage, and how our social relationships influence our goal achievement. He is the author of the bestsell...

Grooving: Colleges and the Coronavirus from 2020-09-23T07:32

[NOTE: You may or may not know that Kurt and Tim host a sibling podcast called Weekly Grooves. We thought this was such an important topic that we wanted to share it with the Behavioral Grooves ...

How to Talk to Your Friends About Their Conspiracy Theories with Eric Oliver from 2020-09-20T09:44:40

Eric Oliver, PhD is a Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago. Although the majority of his work is squarely in the realm of how we view our political systems and make politi...

Self Control, Belonging, and Why Your Most Dedicated Employees Are the Ones To Watch Out For with Roy Baumeister from 2020-09-12T17:56:26

Roy Baumeister, PhD is a world-renowned researcher known for his work on the subjects of willpower, self-control, and self-esteem and how they relate to human morality and success. Most recently...

Seven Questions to Assess the Psychological Safety of Your Teams with Susan Hunt Stevens from 2020-09-06T13:22:03

Susan Hunt Stevens is the Founder and CEO of WeSpire, a technology platform that helps achieve the company’s goals through better employee engagement. WeSpire delivers applications at scale incl...

Eugen Dimant, PhD: What To Do About Bad Apples from 2020-08-30T13:03:58

[NOTE: Republished in its entirety from original episode #104 on December 15, 2019.]

Eugen Dimant, PhD is a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Master of Behavioral and Decision Sciences Depar...

Working through the Stages of Grief, Pandemics and the Psychology of Protests with Nicole Fisher from 2020-08-23T13:00:22

Nicole Fisher, DrPH is the president of Health and Human Rights Strategies and is a regular contributor to Forbes magazine on social justice issues. Her piece in Forbes about “The Psychology of ...

How Babies’ Faces on Shop Doors Can Reduce Crime: With Tara Austin from 2020-08-16T07:17:35

Tara Austin is a strategist and was recently the Chief Strategy Officer for Kindred in London. Many of us know her for her public speaking events, like her presentation at Nudgestock in June 202...

Elspeth Kirkman: Best Models for Identifying a Problem from 2020-08-10T13:25:32

Elspeth Kirkman is responsible for BIT’s work on health, education, and local government. Prior to this role, she oversaw the establishment and growth of BIT’s North American office from New Yor...

Shlomi Ron: Visual Storying Telling In a Time of Crisis from 2020-08-02T09:13:28

Shlomi Ron is the CEO of the Visual Storytelling Institute. He co-founded the institute after 20 years of digital marketing with some of the largest brands in the world. Its purpose is to help b...

Steve Wendel, PhD: Designing for Behavior Change from 2020-07-26T08:42:28

Stephen Wendel, PhD is an applied behavioral scientist who studies how digital products can help people take action more effectively. He currently serves as Head of Behavioral Science at Morning...

Grooving: On the Principle of Scarcity from 2020-07-15T07:46

[NOTE: This episode is republished from #74 in June 2019.]

This episode is a discussion on the principle of scarcity. Kurt and Tim attempt to illuminate the power of this very fundamenta...

Katy Milkman, PhD: Using Behavior Change for Good from 2020-07-12T06:58

[NOTE: This is a republished episode from #99 in November 2019.]

Katy Milkman is no ordinary behavioral scientist. She’s a Professor of Operations, Information and Decisions at Wharton. ...

Grooving: On Goals and Goal Setting from 2020-07-08T09:46:33

[NOTE: This episode is republished from #92 in October 2019.]

Goals are often misunderstood. Goals are much more than just objectives that are handed down to subordinates. Rather, goals ...

Covid-19 Crisis: Caroline Webb, Senior Advisor at McKinsey, on The Value of Where We Place Our Attention and Amplifying Certainty from 2020-07-05T05:57

Caroline Webb, a Senior Advisor at McKinsey, is an executive coach, author, and speaker specializing in insights from behavioral science to improve our lives at work. Her book on that topic, How...

Covid-19 Crisis: Margaret Robinson Rutherford, PhD on Perfectly Hidden Depression from 2020-06-28T08:48:08

Margaret Robinson Rutherford, PhD, is a clinical psychologist in private practice with more than twenty-five years of experience treating individuals and couples for depression, anxiety, and rel...

Grooving: Where Will You Live if You WFH? from 2020-06-21T06:39:47

We saw an article in the Wall Street Journal titled “When Workers Can Live Anywhere, Many Ask: Why Do I Live Here?” and it got us thinking. Millions of white-collar workers have been displaced f...

Covid-19 Crisis: Elizabeth Gilbert, PhD on Adaptability, Imaginal Exposure and Lists from 2020-06-19T11:22:15

Elizabeth Gilbert, PhD is the Head of Research at PsychologyCompass, a content platform that uses insights from psychology and neuroscience to teach people how to be happier and more productive....

John Bargh: Dante, Coffee and the Unconscious Mind from 2020-06-14T06:50:08

John Bargh, PhD is a Professor of Psychology and Management at Yale University. His name may be familiar because of the replication crisis, but there is so much more to John Bargh than a couple ...

Covid-19 Crisis: Howard Friedman, PhD on The Value of Human Life from 2020-06-07T07:56

Howard Friedman is a data scientist, health economist, and writer with decades of experience in both the private and public sectors, as well as academia. He is widely known for his work as a sta...

Grooving: Protests Sparked by the Death of George Floyd in Minneapolis from 2020-06-05T14:50:59

On May 25, 2020, a white Minneapolis police officer killed George Floyd, an unarmed black man, by holding him down with a knee on his neck for over 8 minutes. This was done while three other off...

Covid-19 Crisis: Chris Pfeiffer on Tips for Adjusting Sales Comp Plans from 2020-06-03T08:06:09

Chris Pfeiffer is a Senior Business Analyst at Tegra Analytics. Chris specializes in salesforce effectiveness in the life science industry, which includes incentive compensation, targeting and s...

Dan Hill, PhD: On the Facial Coding of Trump, Hendrix, Prince, Gretzky and the Beatles from 2020-05-31T09:06:19

Dan Hill, PhD is an internationally recognized expert on the role of emotions in politics, business, sports, and popular culture. He pioneered the use of facial coding (the analysis of facial ex...

Covid-19 Crisis: Claire Bidwell Smith on Grief During the Crisis from 2020-05-27T09:49:56

Claire Bidwell Smith is a licensed therapist specializing in grief and the author of three books of nonfiction, most recently ANXIETY: The Missing Stage of Grief. She has written for The New Yor...

Covid-19 Crisis: Kristen Berman on Remote Work, Quaranteams and Marinades from 2020-05-24T11:56:52

Kristen Berman is the co-founder of Irrational Labs and co-founder and principal at Common Cents Lab,  a non-profit behavioral consulting company, with Dan Ariely. They work focuses on the finan...

Covid-19 Crisis: Stephen Curtis on Neuroplasticity and Creating the Ideal from 2020-05-19T06:15

Stephen Curtis, PhD is a Clinical Psychologist with a doctorate in Neuroscience Experimental Psychology. He specializes in Performance Psychology with professional and college athletes, musician...

Gary Latham, PhD: Goal Setting, Prompts, Priming, and Skepticism from 2020-05-17T15:58:44

Gary Latham, PhD is the Secretary of State Professor of Organizational Behaviour at the Rotman School of Management in the University of Toronto. His research in the field of organizational psyc...

Covid-19 Crisis: Mariel Beasley on Increasing Short Term Savings During the Crisis from 2020-05-13T07:15:44

Mariel Beasley is the Co-Director of the Common Cents Lab at the Center for Advanced Hindsight at Duke University. She works on applications of behavioral research, primarily in the financial se...

Samuel Salzer: Benefits and Perils of Streaks from 2020-05-11T12:20:48

Samuel Salzer is a leading behavioral strategist and habit expert, having worked with organizations across Europe, Australia, and North America. Among other things, he’s one of the first Chief B...

Covid-19 Crisis: Kaveh Yasdifard on Uniting Innovators from Tehran from 2020-05-05T07:29:29

Kaveh Yazdifard is the Chief Innovation Officer at Sahab Pardaz located in Tehran, Iran. He is also the Director of Urban Innovation for the city and COO of Avatech Accelerator, a firm focused o...

Covid-19 Crisis: Gretchen Chapman, PhD on The Psychology of Vaccinations from 2020-05-03T07:33:19

Gretchen Chapman, PhD researches how we make decisions about vaccines. She is a Professor in the Social & Decision Sciences department at Carnegie Mellon University and works across disciplines ...

Covid-19 Crisis: Jules Nolan on The Kids are Alright - Insights on Coping Through the Crisis from 2020-05-01T08:33:04

Jules Nolan, PhD is a psychologist, speaker, and author. She is the president of the Minnesota School Psychology Association and chairwoman for the Human Diversity Committee for the Internationa...

Thanks For No Memories During the Coronavirus Pandemic from 2020-04-29T06:15:20

Our inspiration this week comes from an article written by Shayla Love for Vice titled, “You’ll probably forget what it was like to live through a pandemic.” We thought it would make a great jum...

Covid-19 Crisis: Greg Davies, PhD on the Fetish of Optimization from 2020-04-28T08:14:22

Greg Davies, PhD is a specialist in applied behavioral finance, decision science, impact investing, and financial wellbeing. He founded the banking world’s first behavioral finance team at Barcl...

Iris Tzafrir: A Kind Word from 2020-04-26T08:05

Iris Tzafrir is an inspirational and influential cross-functional leader in strategy and business development, deal making, value actualization, and merger integration. She grew up in a Kibbutz ...

Covid-19 Crisis: Anurag Vaish on Risk is a Feeling, Not a Number from 2020-04-20T06:59

Anurag Vaish is the co-founder and director of The FinalMile in Mumbai, India. In building the company's practice of Behavior Architecture, Anurag led the conceptualization and development of di...

Artem Petakov: Our Biggest Competitor is the Couch from 2020-04-19T08:50:42

Artem Petakov is a co-Founder of Noom, a behavioral change and weight loss product that marries both psychology and AI to help people form more healthy behaviors and lose weight. You’re probably...

Covid-19 Crisis: Michael Boden on How Field Sales Reps Are Adapting to the Crisis from 2020-04-17T12:09:25

Michael Boden is the Head of U.S. Crop Protection Sales at Syngenta, a global agrochemicals and seeds firm based in Basel, Switzerland. He joined the company in 1986 and has held global sales an...

Covid-19 Crisis: Alessandro del Ponte on Moral Dilemmas with Economic Consequences from 2020-04-14T07:15:20

Alessandro del Ponte is a research fellow at the National University of Singapore working in the Behavioral Change program at the Global Asia Institute. He recently earned his PhD in behavioral ...

Stuart King: On the “What The Hell” Effect from 2020-04-12T11:48:59

Stuart King designs evidence-based interventions for children and adults to change their behavior and manage their weight. He has worked with the UK’s NHS as an Obesity Lead, as a Senior Scienti...

Covid-19 Crisis: Cristina Bicchieri – Messaging Rules For Improving Social Behavior from 2020-04-11T12:50:23

Cristina Bicchieri, PhD is the S. J. Patterson Harvie Professor of Social Thought and Comparative Ethics, a Professor of Philosophy and Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, a Professor ...

Grooving: The Impact of Temporal Discounting from 2020-04-05T10:30

In this grooving episode, Kurt and Tim discuss Temporal Discounting and it’s closely related cousins. Temporal discounting is where we tend to value events in the near term more than similar eve...

Covid-19 Crisis: Aline Holzwarth on Our Behavioral Immune System from 2020-04-03T13:20:25

Aline Holzwarth is the head of Behavioral Science at Pattern Health in Durham, North Carolina and a writer who supplies work to Behavioral Scientist and Forbes and has well as her blog on Medium...

Covid-19 Crisis: Brad Shuck, PhD on Pausing, Building Capacity and "Not Business as Usual" from 2020-04-01T16:49

Brad Shuck, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Leadership, Evaluation and Organizational Development at the University of Louisville. He is also the Program Director ...

Covid-19 Crisis: Eugen Dimant, PhD on the Roles of Social Norms and Good Science from 2020-03-31T09:03

Eugen Dimant, PhD is an Associate Professor of Practice in Behavioral and Decision Sciences, which is part of the new Center for Social Norms and Behavioral Dynamics under Cristina Bicchieri, Ph...

Covid-19 Crisis: Wendy Wood, PhD on Habits, Productivity and Being Gentle with Yourself from 2020-03-30T10:20:11

Wendy Wood, PhD is a social psychologist whose research addresses the ways that habits guide behavior. She researches and teaches at USC both in psychology and in the business school and is a wo...

Deborah Small, PhD: Processing Probabilistic Events and Making Donations from 2020-03-29T06:47:36

Deborah Small, PhD is a professor of marketing in the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Her research crosses the intersections of psychology and economics, examining fundamental ...

Covid-19 Crisis: Rodd Wagner on The Zen of Staying Safe from 2020-03-28T07:42:48

Rodd Wagner is a Forbes columnist and bestselling author of books on leadership, employee engagement and collaboration. Rodd’s books have been published in 10 languages and his articles have app...

Covid-19 Crisis: Annie Duke on Hedging and the Last Disaster Syndrome from 2020-03-27T12:26:49

Annie Duke is an author, corporate speaker, and consultant in the decision-making space. Her most recent book, Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don’t Have All the Facts, quick...

Covid-19 Crisis: Ali Fenwick, PhD on Leveraging the Crisis for Good from 2020-03-25T09:15

Ali Fenwick, PhD is a Professor of Organizational Behavior at Hult International Business School in London and Dubai. He specializes in applying behavioural traits and behavioral interventions f...

Covid-19 Crisis: James Brewer on Changing His Mind from 2020-03-24T09:55

James Brewer is the Director of Marketing Platforms and Global Customer Operations for Eli Lilly and Company.  Over the years, Kurt and Tim have worked with James on applying behavioral science ...

Covid-19 Crisis: Don’t Outsource Your Critical Thinking with Christian Hunt from 2020-03-23T08:28

Christian Hunt is the founder of Human Risk, a Behavioral Science consulting and training firm specializing in risk, compliance, conduct & culture. Previously, Christian was the head of Behavior...

Covid-19 Crisis: Barry Ritholtz on Keeping Perspective from 2020-03-22T11:46:53

Barry Ritholtz is the CIO of Ritholtz Wealth Management and the host of the Bloomberg podcast Masters in Business, where he talks almost as much about markets, investing and business as he does ...

Covid-19 Crisis: Emotional Impact of WFH with Liz Fosslien from 2020-03-21T15:37:54

Liz Fosslien was our guest on Episode 56 and we asked her back to kick off our series on the behavioral aspects of how life is changing with quarantines, sheltering in place and working from hom...

Managing Coronavirus - An Introduction to Weekly Grooves from 2020-03-17T08:45:37

This is an episode originally produced for Weekly Grooves. We hope you enjoy!

Coronavirus and the disease it’s created – Covid-19 – is alive and well and getting stronger every day. How ...

Chiara Varazzani: Behavioral Science Needs More Neuroscience from 2020-03-15T07:37

Chiara Varazzani, PhD is the Principal Advisor at the Behavioral Insights Unit in the Victorian Government's Department of Premier and Cabinet in Australia. Chiara is Italian born, French-educat...

John Fuisz: Tracking Emotional Vectors from 2020-03-08T08:25:50

John Fuisz is co-founder of Veriphix and a marketer who believes in building great brands. He does so with a sophisticated system that, on the surface, appears simple and direct; however, it’s b...

Andrew Wagner: The Economics Inside Online Games from 2020-03-01T08:58:42

Author and economist Andrew Wagner’s new book, The Economics of Online Gaming, shares how economic decisions get made by players of online games. We discuss how reputations and player behaviors ...

Ethical Application of Behavioral Science in the Workplace from 2020-02-23T12:01:10

In this special edition, bestselling author and Forbes contributor, Rodd Wagner, organized a question-and-answer session with Kurt and Tim in front of a live audience to discuss whether behavior...

Adam Hansen: Beyond Innovation from 2020-02-16T07:19:03

As a new product and innovation professional, Adam Hansen has always believed in the power of possibility – accepting new approaches, questioning conventional wisdom, and being open to anything....

Caroline Webb: Still Having a Great Day from 2020-02-09T14:49:59

For this episode, we’re republishing a terrific conversation we had with economist and author, Caroline Webb, PhD (in episode 33). We loved her book, How to Have a Good Day, and still do, and we...

Grooving: The Behavioral Diagnosis from 2020-02-02T07:28

In this grooving session, Kurt and Tim share how to conduct a behavioral diagnosis. A behavioral diagnosis is a tool we use to uncover the underlying drivers of behavior inside an organization t...

Announcing Weekly Grooves from 2020-01-30T14:35:12

Kurt and Tim are producing a new podcast called Weekly Grooves, launching January 31, 2020.

Weekly Grooves is the weekly podcast that offers insights into the headlines through a behavio...

Steve Martin and Joe Marks: The Messenger is the Message from 2020-01-26T08:00:56

Stephen Martin and Joe Marks, PhD dive deep into one of the most important eye-openers about communication in our world today: the importance of WHO delivers the message. Their book, “Messengers...

Melina Palmer: Using Behavioral Economics to Help Businesses from 2020-01-19T09:53:15

Melina Palmer is the host of The Brainy Business podcast and she has dedicated her career to seeking answers to these questions for herself and her clients. Melina uses behavioral economics to h...

Grooving on Our Favorite Podcast Episodes of 2019 from 2020-01-12T08:35:22

Too often, in our estimation, people make recommendations to us with the intent to improve our life but the effect on us is the opposite of that. Rather than completely engaging us, some recomme...

Rory Sutherland: The Opposite of a Good Idea is a Good Idea from 2020-01-07T09:31:30

Rory Sutherland is a British advertising executive who became fascinated with behavioral science. Between his TED talks, books and articles, he has become one of the field’s greatest proponents....

Jana Gallus: The Role of Precision in Incentives from 2019-12-29T07:12

Jana Gallus, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Strategy and Behavioral Decision Making at UCLA’s Anderson School of Business and our discussion dissected the intersection of behavioral economics,...

Reuben Kline: When Too Many Choices Might Be Just Right from 2019-12-23T09:10:44

The research that Reuben Kline, PhD is working on is focused on climate change mitigation. As an associate professor of political science and the director of the Center for Behavioral Political ...

Eugen Dimant: What to Do About Bad Apples from 2019-12-15T08:09:36

Eugen Dimant, PhD is a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Master of Behavioral and Decision Sciences Department and a Senior Research Fellow at the Identity and Conflict Lab, Political Science Depar...

Grooving: Kiki and Bouba Minds from 2019-12-11T07:05

Imagine that the two drawings below are called Kiki and Bouba in some alien language.  If you had to guess which one was Kiki and which one was Bouba - without any other information, which one w...

Cristina Bicchieri: Social Norms are Bundles of Expectations from 2019-12-08T07:36

Cristina Bicchieri, PhD is the S. J. Patterson Harvie Professor of Social Thought and Comparative Ethics, a Professor of Philosophy and Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, a Professor ...

Grooving: 2019 Reading List from 2019-12-05T07:05

Kurt and Tim like to read about behavioral science and a variety of related fields. To help those interested in the subject, but unsure how to pick good books to either get started or advance th...

The 100th Episode Celebration in Philadelphia from 2019-12-01T07:20

This is Behavioral Grooves’ 100th episode!

Who would have thought when we started out two years ago without a clue about HOW to produce and publish a podcast that we’d reach this milesto...

Katy Milkman: Behavior Change for Good from 2019-11-24T08:38

Katy Milkman is no ordinary behavioral scientist. She’s a Professor of Operations, Information and Decisions at Wharton and has a secondary faculty appointment in the University of Pennsylvania’...

Chris Nave: Educating BeSci Practitioners at UPenn from 2019-11-17T08:44:08

Chris Nave, PhD is the Associate Director of the Master of Behavioral and Decision Sciences Program at the University of Pennsylvania. We caught up with Chris at the NoBeC conference (Norms and ...

Chris Brown: Avalanches and System 1 Thinking from 2019-11-10T11:16:58

Chris Brown is in human risk management and practice is set in backcountry snow. He grew up outside of Philadelphia and after graduating with a degree in Urban Design/Architecture, he moved to U...

Zarak Khan and Erik Johnson: Action Design Network and Beyond from 2019-11-02T06:31:12

Sometimes things just go better in twos and that was the case regarding our guests for this episode. Zarak Kahn is the Behavioral Innovation Director at Maritz and Erik Johnson is an independent...

Victoria Shaffer: End of Life Decision Tools from 2019-10-27T07:35:52

Victoria Shaffer is a researcher and professor at the University of Missouri. Victoria focuses on applying decision psychology and behavioral economics to medical decision making. In particular,...

Grooving: UPenn Norms and Behavioral Change Workshop from 2019-10-20T09:31:35

Kurt and Tim were invited to attend the Norms and Behavioral Change (NoBeC) workshop at the University of Pennsylvania on October 17 and 18, 2019, and what we experienced blew us away. We were i...

Paul Hebert: 7 Deadly Incentive Sins from 2019-10-13T08:52:57

Paul Hebert knows incentives. He is the Vice President of Individual Performance Strategy at Creative Group, Inc. and a writer, speaker and consultant and is widely considered an expert on motiv...

Grooving: On Goals from 2019-10-09T07:20:10

Goals are often misunderstood. Goals are much more than just objectives that are handed down to subordinates. Rather, goals are self-determined in the best cases, and at the very least, are set ...

Brad Shuck: Being Ignored is Worse Than Having a Stapler Thrown at You from 2019-10-06T07:31:44

Brad Shuck, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Leadership, Evaluation, and Organizational Development at the University of Louisville.  He is also recognized as one o...

Jim Guszcza: Data Science AND Behavioral Science, New Wine in a New Bottle from 2019-09-29T07:37:16

Jim Guszcza is the chief data scientist at Deloitte Analytics. His title paints a picture that he’s a total numbers geek. And that would be a fair, but single-dimensional assessment. What it doe...

Gina Merchant: Combating Misinformation from 2019-09-22T14:13:02

Gina Merchant, PhD is a behavioral scientist who wound her way through academia and into the corporate world for the purpose of improving the health of communities, not just individuals. Her wor...

Annie Duke: Revisiting the Matrix from 2019-09-15T11:23:12

We are re-sharing our original September 2018 discussion with Annie Duke to announce the Behavioral Grooves 100th Episode on the evening of October 17, 2019 in the Historic Hamilton Auditorium a...

Announcements: Minneapolis and Philadelphia Events from 2019-09-09T13:29:31

Groovers, a couple of announcements for you:

1. Kurt and I are hosting a meetup immediately after Customer Focus North in Minneapolis on September 19, 2019: Listen

Grooving: On Behavioral Songs from 2019-07-28T07:07

Kurt and Tim groove on where behavioral science shows up in popular music. Social norms, loss aversion…all at its best. The human condition is redolent in popular music and we hope you notice so...

Grooving: On Cognitive Dissonance from 2019-07-21T07:05:48

We met up with Kathleen Vohs, PhD at our Behavioral Grooves Meetup in Minneapolis on the evening that her op-ed article appeared in the Washington Post on July 18, 2019. She had been asked by th...

Matt Loper: Helping Patients Adhere to Medication Plans from 2019-07-14T07:22:20

In this episode, we spoke with Matt Loper, CEO and Co-Founder of Wellth, an app that helps people with chronic conditions improve their health through better adherence to their prescriptions. Ma...

Grooving: On Liking from 2019-07-07T07:36:08

In this episode, Kurt and Tim explore Robert Cialdini’s Fifth Principles of Influence: Liking. In it, we groove on the very powerful tool for influence and persuasion and give examples of how to...

Nurit Nobel: De-Biasing the Recruiting Process from 2019-06-30T07:02:41

In this episode, we spoke with Nurit Nobel, who is living in Stockholm, Sweden where she’s working on her PhD. Nurit is a co-founder of Impactually, along with one of our favorite guests, Christ...

Thomas Steenburgh: On Selling New Products from 2019-06-23T13:12:20

We are excited to re-share our favorite episodes from time to time and this discussion with Tom was terrifically informative about the sales managers can be more effective at introducing new pro...

Jonathan Mann: Integrating Behavioral Science into User Experience from 2019-06-16T07:15:36

The role of the User Experience (UX) designer is growing in corporations around the world. UX Designers have a great deal of influence over how a customer CAN take an action. Relatedly, behavior...

Grooving: On Scarcity from 2019-06-09T13:52:07

This episode is a discussion on the principle of scarcity. Kurt and Tim illuminate the power of this very fundamental effect in behavioral science with some real-world examples. Simply put, the ...

Terry Esau: Carbon Fiber Therapist from 2019-06-02T05:39:05

Terry Esau is the founder of Free Bikes 4 Kids, a non-profit based in Minneapolis that collects and distributes tens of thousands of bikes to needy children every year around the holiday season....

Roger Dooley: Friction and Engagement from 2019-05-26T07:15:31

Roger Dooley is the author of Friction, his newest book that summarizes great examples of companies do good things to reduce friction for customers and some not-so-good things to increase fricti...

Alex Imas: Clawback Incentives and Tom Waits from 2019-05-20T11:40:21

Alex Imas is an assistant professor of economics in the Social & Decision Sciences department at Carnegie Mellon’s Dietrich College. His research dovetails perfectly into the department’s cross-...

Grooving: The Uber Science Symposium from 2019-05-15T07:05

On May 3, 2019, Kurt and Tim attended an invitation-only Science Symposium featuring a track on behavioral science at the San Francisco headquarters of human and food transportation giant Uber. ...

Russell Golman: On Information Avoidance from 2019-05-12T06:11:16

Russell Golman is an Assistant Professor of Behavioral Economics and Decision Sciences in the Social & Decision Sciences Department at CMU.  His pioneering, interdisciplinary work has been publi...

The Value of Understanding Microexpressions for Leaders from 2019-05-05T07:05

Todd Fonseca is an executive in clinical research and communication for Medtronic and holds an interesting array of certifications includi...

Julie Downs: From Sexual Health to the Sahel from 2019-04-28T15:36:31

Julie Downs, PhD is an associate professor of psychology in the Social and Decision Sciences department at Carnegie Mellon’s Dietrich College and fits perfectly into the cross-disciplinary cultu...

George Loewenstein: On a Functional Theory of Boredom from 2019-04-21T09:34:50

George Loewenstein, PhD is the Herbert A. Simon Professor of Economics and Psychology in the Social and Decision Sciences Department in the Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences at ...

Silvia Saccardo: Ethics of Decisions and Italian Rap from 2019-04-17T07:02

Silvia Saccardo, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Management in the Social and Decision Sciences department in the Dietrich College of Humanities & Social Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University....

Grooving: Listeners, can you help us? from 2019-04-16T07:05

At this writing, we’ve recorded and published 64 episodes of Behavioral Grooves and we’d like to make sure we’re on the right course for our listeners. If you would be so kind, we would apprecia...

Danny Oppenheimer: Governance and Helicopter Parenting from 2019-04-14T07:02

Daniel Oppenheimer, PhD, known to all as “Danny,” is a professor of psychology in the Social and Decision Sciences department in the Dietrich College of Humanities & Social Sciences at Carnegie ...

Jeff Galak: High Heels and Hedonic Decline from 2019-04-10T07:05

Jeff Galak, PhD is a professor at the Social and Decision Sciences department in the Dietrich College of Humanities & Social Sciences at Carnegie Mellon University. Jeff’s primary assignment is ...

Linda Babcock: Helping Women Build Better Careers at Carnegie Mellon from 2019-04-07T11:51

This is the first in a series featuring researchers from Carnegie Mellon University’s Social and Decision Sciences (SDS) department in the Dietrich College of Humanities & Social Sciences. We be...

Amit Sood: The Ultimate Happiness Doctor from 2019-03-31T13:02

Looking for a simple 5-step plan to be happier? Our guest has one.

Amit Sood, PhD is an author and physician at the world-renowned Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minnesota. He specializes in...

Francesca Gino: Curiosity and Rebellion Makes Your Career from 2019-03-24T11:55

Imagine a company where 100% of the employees are rebels – would it be chaotic or wonderful? Our guest from the Harvard Business School, Francesca Gino PhD, argues that rebels are not just essen...

Jeanie Whinghter and Afra Ahmad: Balance vs. Harmony from 2019-03-17T08:59:01

In this episode, we had the pleasure of speaking with two guests: Jeanie Whinghter, PhD and Afra Ahmad, PhD. Jeanie is the Chair of Industrial and Organizational Psychology and General Psycholog...

Michael Kaplan: Seeking Naysayers from 2019-03-10T12:08

Michael Kaplan is a private equity and angel investor who was part owner and president of the wildly successful carpet cleaning franchise called Zerorez. (...

Grooving on Reciprocity from 2019-03-06T07:05

This is the second episode in a series on the 6 Principles of Persuasion as identified by Robert Cialdini, PhD, in his 1984 book, No Hard Feelings: The secret power of embracing emotions at work.  The book is a wickedly funny ...

Luke Battye: The Peak-End Effect and Fast Food from 2019-02-25T07:02

Luke Battye is a product/service consultant with a background in Experimental Psychology and innovation. Luke founded a behavioral design co...

Saurabh Bhargava: A More Serene Path to Financial Wellbeing from 2019-02-18T07:32

Saurabh Bhargava, PhD is a professor and researcher at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, and he joined us in the Behavioral Grooves studio dur...

John Sweeney: Everything Is a Story from 2019-02-11T06:06:45

John Sweeney is the author of Innovation at the Speed of Laughter: 8 Secrets to World Class Idea Generation, corporate keynote speaker, improvisational impresario, the actor known for his charac...

Rodd Wagner: This Episode Could Save Your Life from 2019-02-04T07:16:24

The safety insights from our guest could save your life! 

Rodd Wagner is The New York Times bestselling author of the book " Listen

Thomas Steenburgh: How to Sell New Products from 2019-01-28T07:05

Thomas Steenburgh, PhD is a senior professor of Business Administration and Senior Associate Dean at...

Robert Cialdini, PhD: Littering, Egoism and Aretha Franklin from 2019-01-21T07:04

Robert Cialdini, PhD is counted among the greatest psychological researchers alive today and his published works have been cited thous...

Grooving: Political Stalemates - Insights on Consistency from 2019-01-18T14:43:19

This episode is first in a series called Exploring the Principles of Influence, named for Robert Cialdini, PhD’s principles in his 198...

Ori Brafman: On Starfish, Burning Man and Efficient Markets from 2019-01-14T07:03

In this episode, we had a discussion with Ori Brafman about decentralization and how our brains respond to cash and cocaine. Ori is a multiple New York ...

Barry Ritholtz: How to Reduce Evolutionary Panic from 2019-01-06T07:01

In this special edition, we sat down with Barry Ritholtz, a Wall Street investment maven, host of the podcast Sam Tatam is the behavioral strategy director at Ogilvy in London. Sam helps his clients dev...

Will Leach: Marketing to Mindstates from 2018-12-17T06:50:01

Will Leach is a marketer, econometrician and author whose recent book, Marketing to Mindstates, captured our attention...

Grooving on: New Year's Resolutions from 2018-12-10T08:12:56

Every year, millions of people make resolutions at the start of the new year and researchers indicate that 91% of those resolutions are sunk by the end of the second week in January.

In ...

Michael Hallsworth: From MINDSPACE to EAST from 2018-12-03T07:29

In this episode, we spoke with Dr. Michael Hallsworth PhD, the Managing Director of the Brian Ahearn is the Chief Influence Officer at Influence People, LLC, and one of only 20 Listen

Linnea Gandhi: Crushing on Statistics from 2018-11-19T10:56:02

University of Chicago MBA professor Linnea Gandhi talked with Kurt and Tim recently about her consulting work, her passion for statistics,...

Grooving on Civil Discourse at the Thanksgiving Table from 2018-11-16T08:38:34

Political discussions in many places around the world have become more contentious than at any time in our recent history. It seems almost impossible to have a calm conversation with someone who...

David Yokum: Science is Hard from 2018-11-12T09:30:52

David Yokum may not be a household name but that shouldn’t stop you from listening. If you’ve ever wondered about police officer body camera...

Grooving on Waiting: Why we don't like to be idle from 2018-11-07T06:28

While Kurt and Tim were waiting for a podcast interviewee to log in recently, we decided to discuss the behavioral and psychological aspects of waiting. What do you do when you have unplanned ti...

Koen Smets: The Altered Chord from 2018-11-05T06:51

Koen Smets is not a household name, but it ought to be. Pronounced KEWN, our guest in this episode is Belgian by birth and has lived in the U...

Caroline Webb: Having a Good Day from 2018-10-30T10:49:42

Caroline Webb is an overachiever. Oxford, Cambridge, Levy Economics Institute, McKinsey & Associates, Carnegie Hall performer, Davos Wor...

Grooving on Books: Our Top 10 Recommended books on Behavioral Science from 2018-10-14T08:21:07

In this grooving session, Kurt and Tim discuss books that they believe every behavioral science nerd should (yes: should) read. Kurt was limited to 5 picks, but didn't stay in the lines, and Tim...

Leaving the Matrix: Annie Duke and Insights into how you can improve your thinking! from 2018-09-30T06:01

 Annie Duke’s latest book, Thinking in Bets, Making Smarter Decisions When You Don’t Have All the Facts, ...

Education: The Path to a More Prosperous Life with Sarita Parikh from 2018-09-26T10:53:15

Sarita Parikh is the Senior Director of Consumer Experience and Strategy at GED Testing Service, a business that helps adults use educatio...

Beyond a Framework featuring Bri Williams from 2018-09-23T08:47:39

Bri Williams is an Australian pioneer in the application of behavioral sciences. She was an early follower of Priming is a technique whereby exposure to one stimulus influences a response to a subsequent stimulus without conscious guidance...

Grooving on Goals: The Magic of Goals from 2018-09-02T07:01

Goals are as common and as misunderstood as mobile phones. We think we know how to use them, but we don’t get it right every time. And if we were asked to explain how they work, we’d be clueless...

Ruchir Sehra on The Behavioral Effects of Sleep from 2018-09-01T07:47:09

Ruchir Sehra is an entrepreneur, cardio physiologist, MBA and a curious and caring human being. Our interview with Ruchir was set in the discussi...

Facial Muscles Speak Louder Than Words with author Dan Hill from 2018-08-06T10:54:39

Dan Hill, PhD, researcher, author and founder of Sensory Logic, shares his wit, wisdom and...

April Seifert on Digital Exhaust Analysis and Gender Stereotyping from 2018-07-19T08:05

April Seifert, PhD considers herself a multi-passionate person. In this episode, our conversation with her covered skydiving, motherhood, data...

Grooving on Self Identity from 2018-07-18T08:33:54

In this episode on the mysterious world of self-identity and self-schema, we offer 4 tips on how you make the most of your self-identity. 1. Fake it 'till you make it.  2. Insure your self talk ...

Grooving on Cash vs. Non-Cash from 2018-07-01T11:55

Kurt and Tim have experience in designing and implementing rewards programs for sales reps, channel partners and loyal customers as well as corporate recognition programs. In this episode, we di...

Grooving on Applying Behavioral Sciences at Your Office from 2018-06-29T11:46:38

Kurt and Tim have decades of experience applying BS (behavioral sciences) in corporate environments (and non-profits) and this episode walks through some tips that YOU can use to apply BS (behav...

The Teaspoon Hustle - Part 2 with Rob Burnett from 2018-06-17T14:26

This podcast is Part 2 of a 2-part podcast. Our interview with Rob Burnet, founder of Rob Burnet, founder of Michael Ahearne PhD, a professor and researcher at the University of Houston. Mike is an expert ...

The Accidental Behavioral Scientist with David Hussman from 2018-05-17T16:30

From being a recording engineer at Prince's Paisley Park studios, to playing with the big-hair metal band Dr. Christina Gravert is a Post-Doc at the University of Gothenburg and Chief Behavioral Economist of Impactf...

A New Leadership Model with Bain&Company's Mark Horwitch from 2018-05-14T07:08:41

In this episode, we spoke to Mark Horwitch, Partner for Co-Creation ~ Flexibility ~ Openness ~ Vision at Bain & Company about his...

Grooving with Kurt&Tim - The 4 Drive Model from 2018-04-23T15:38:56

When Kurt and Tim founded the Behavioral Grooves, we wanted to glean insights into the applications of behavioral sciences from world-renowned researchers and practitioners. So far, so good! In ...

When Marketing Is Good, You Don't See It from 2018-03-27T13:55

This episode’s guest is Kyle Simenson, a marketing consultant who noted that ‘When marketing is good, you can’t see it.’ His comment insta...

Mapping the Influence of Corporate Cultures - Silke Brittain from 2018-03-20T13:55

When we started our conversation with Silke Brittain by talking about her thrill-seeking nature and her background in gymnastics, we couldn't have predicted the deep conversation about influence...

Growth Tribes and Pirate Funnels - Bernardo Nunes from 2018-03-15T13:55

Bernardo Nunes, PhD believes that applying behavioral sciences to startups is the fastest way to get entrepreneurs up and running in a fast-changing world. At Growth Academy in Amsterdam, the st...

Changing the World One View at a Time - with Reddit superstar Kal Turnbull from 2018-03-11T18:28:17

"One begins with a judgment and ends with a judgment, and the purpose of facts and figures is to come in between them is to make the one you end with more accurate." This wise comment came from ...

Don't Be Creepy - Data Transparency with Charlotte Blank from 2018-02-25T16:13:47

Charlotte Blank, Chief Behavioral Officer at Maritz, says her job is 'selling science.' In this interview, held immediately bef...

The Employee Value Proposition at the NSA from 2018-02-13T10:26:16

Chris Dobyns, the Human Capital Strategic Consultant in the Office of Human Resource Strategy & Program Design at the NSA (the National Security Agency), joined us to discuss how the NSA is enga...

Applying the 4 Drive Model to Rewards&Recognition from 2018-02-02T14:40:04

Many firms use rewards and incentives to motivate their reps. However, it was only when a complete audit of all the rewards and recognition tools in place at a large pharmaceutical firm did the ...

Using Behavioral Science to Save Lives with Anurag Vaish,TheFinalMile from 2018-01-20T13:20:29

In this episode, we talk with Anurag Vaish, Co-Founder of TheFinalMile, one of the largest behavioral science consultancies in the world. TheFinalMile has offices in Mumbai and Chicago and we ca...

Grooving on Branding with Aaron Snyder, PhD from Lexicon from 2018-01-20T12:08:16

In this episode, we spoke with Aaron Snyder, Director of Special Projects at Lexicon. Lexicon is one of the largest branding companies in the world.  They are responsible for creating some of th...

BG 3: Scott Jeffrey, PhD, Monmouth University from 2018-01-02T15:27:54

In this episode, we discuss the concept of justifiability with one of its earliest researchers, Scott Jeffrey, PhD. Scott was early among researchers, including Itamar Simonson at Stanford, to n...

Behavioral Grooves 2: Chad Emerson, President of The 421 from 2018-01-02T15:06:13

Chad Emerson founded The 421 to help people with addictions make better decisions. He focuses his comments on being "change ready" and the importance of preparing oneself for making a change in ...

Behavioral Grooves 1: James Heyman, PhD from 2017-10-23T18:39:50

In the Behavioral Grooves first podcast, Kurt Nelson, PhD and Tim Houlihan interview James Heyman, PhD, a professor and researcher at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. Dr. Hey...