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People Who Read People: A Behavior and Psychology Podcast — Science
People Who Read People: A Behavior and Psychology Podcast

This is a podcast about deciphering human behavior and understanding why people do the things they do. I, Zach Elwood, talk with people from a wide range of fields about how they make sense of human behavior and psychology. I’ve talked to jury consultants, interrogation professionals, behavior researchers, sports analysts, professional poker players, to name a few. There are more than 135 episodes, many of them quite good (although some say I’m biased). To learn more, go to PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

Copyright: © 2024 People Who Read People: A Behavior and Psychology Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Many take Trump's words out of context: How this relates to toxic polarization Oct 22, 2024

In a recent Fox News interview, Trump was asked whether he thought there would be chaos and violence if he won the election, and his response included mentioning that, if necessary, the National Guard or other military might be needed. Many framed this response as indicating that Trump would go after his political opponents and those who opposed him using the military, leaving out the context that the question asked was about election-related violence. I discuss what this incident can teach us about our toxic political divides. Topics discussed include: Republican-side grievances and how incidents like this relate; how conflict leads us to filter things in more pessimistic and negative ways; the self-reinforcing nature of toxic political polarization; the importance of trying to understand your opponents’ narratives; how understanding doesn’t require agreeing; Trump’s “bloodbath” language and similar highly negative reactions to that; the ease with which we can be biased without even realizing it, and more. Learn more about my polarization work at american-anger.com.

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Analyzing behavior of Peter Todd, who's accused of being Bitcoin's creator | Jeremy Clark Oct 18, 2024

In the documentary Money Electric, filmmaker Cullen Hoback put forth the theory that developer Peter Todd was Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious creator of Bitcoin. In this episode, I talk to cryptocurrency expert Jeremy Clark (pulpspy.com) about this theory, with a focus on the language and behavior of Peter Todd. We discuss: the 2010 forum post by Peter Todd that forms the backbone of Hoback’s theory; Peter’s behavior in the film when confronted, which many people saw as suspicious and strange; the difficulties of relying on nonverbal behavior for clues; and how simple, neat, and exciting stories can attract us.

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Scammer on Nextdoor gets my personal info: Tips for spotting online marketplace scam tells Oct 15, 2024

On the Nextdoor app, a fake account succeeded in getting some personal info from me before I realized they were a scammer. I discuss how that scam went down, share an audio call I had with the scammer, and give some tips for spotting online scammer behaviors and traits. These tips are focused on online marketplace scams but should be applicable for a lot of online scammers in general.

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What’s the problem with the Myers-Briggs personality test?, with Randy Stein Oct 08, 2024

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) personality test is used by many organizations and consultants, but it's been criticized by many as pseudo-science that's unhelpful, and even harmful. I talk to Randy Stein, who has researched the Myers Briggs and personality tests in general. Topics discussed include: the reasons people object to the Myers Briggs test; the downsides of personality tests that group people into boxes (as opposed to using a spectrum-like approach); the Forer effect, where people often believe that vague descriptions apply to them; the downsides of labeling ourselves and others; how the complexity of a question can wrongly seem like deepness; how Myers-Briggs relates to the more scientifically respected "Big Five" personality traits. We also talk about Randy's research on political polarization, showing how we can be drawn to being the opposite of a disliked group.

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Some useful and reliable poker tells: A talk with Zach Elwood Oct 01, 2024

This episode includes part of a poker tells webinar that I, Zach Elwood, did with Terry Wood, owner of PokerRailbird.com. I'm the author of three respected books on poker tells, including Exploiting Poker Tells and Verbal Poker Tells. My first book, Reading Poker Tells, has been translated into eight languages. You can learn more about my poker tells work at readingpokertells.com. Topics discussed: two important categories of poker tells; some specific examples of poker tells (including eye contact tells and how people move their eyes after betting); how tells vary when you go from lower stakes to higher stakes, and more.

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Chase Hughes, NLP, & hypnosis: Putting a top-secret military spin on old NLP ideas Sep 26, 2024

This is my third episode about Chase Hughes, the self-titled “#1 expert in behavior and influence.” My first episode about him examined his early deceptions and exaggerations, and his involvement in pick-up artistry and vitamin supplement sales. In this one, I talk about how Chase’s work relates to Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and NLP-related hypnosis. Long story short: Chase has used the NLP trainer template but repackaged it with a military/secret-agent/MK-Ultra-type spin. I examine the connections between NLP and Chase’s content. I also attempt to explain why Chase (and people like him) can acquire good reviews and fans, despite so much of it being obviously silly and also expensive. I also examine Chase’s recent promoting of supplements sold by a chiropractor. And I talk about the various people who've promoted Chase, from influential podcasters to Dr. Phil to his fellow Behavior Panel members, and why there seems to be such a lack of interest in these people examining his background and claims. A later episode will focus specifically on behavior analysis and the Behavior Panel. This episode is focused squarely on NLP/hypnosis.

Topics discussed in this video include: how Chase’s concepts relate to NLP; what NLP is and why people attend those seminars; my own personal experiences working for an NLP trainer; how NLP seminars relate to other experiential/transformational multi-day seminars; good/neutral aspects of NLP/hypnosis/influence type content and training; the many influential people who’ve promoted Chase; why these things can impress people despite being so obviously silly and strange; what a hypnosis expert had to say about Chase's stuff; why behavior-analysis and influence/hypnosis-type offerings lend themselves to exaggerated claims; and more.

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We’re MASSIVELY overstating our political violence problem — and that’s dangerous! | Sean Westwood Sep 16, 2024

Many surveys and headlines have claimed there's a large percentage of Americans who support political violence. Some estimates have been around 25% – and some have gone as high as 40%! This is very scary; it ramps up fears of a violent and chaotic American future, and even fears of a civil war. But political polarization researchers like my guest Sean Westwood have shown that many people are massively overstating the problem. And that overstatement is leading to hysterical and unhelpful framings and debates. Worst of all, these exaggerated fears can even contribute to a self-reinforcing cycle… a self-fulfilling prophecy. Topics discussed include: what the faulty surveys and studies are missing; how bad survey design (ambiguous questions, or leading questions) can lead to faulty estimates; what more accurate survey results tell us; how exaggerated fears can contribute to a self-fulfilling prophecy; and why people embrace and promote overly pessimistic narratives.

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Angry Chase Hughes’ fans lash out after his many lies are revealed Sep 09, 2024

This is a follow up to my last episode, in which I shared information about the many lies of Chase Hughes, the self-described “#1 expert in behavior and influence.” Some of the fans of Chase Hughes and the show he’s on, The Behavior Panel, responded in angry, unreasonable ways, personally insulting me and downplaying the significance of Chase’s many deceptions. Some of the people who responded in these ways, from what I’ve been told, are also social media content moderators who work for Chase Hughes and the Behavior Panel. In this episode, I examine these behaviors and talk about how this ties in with similar things, like people taking it personally when political leaders they like are criticized, or cult members taking criticisms of cult leaders personally, things like this. I read some of the more angry and emotional YouTube comments people sent me.

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Examining the lies of Chase Hughes, the self-proclaimed "#1 expert in behavior" Sep 02, 2024

An examination of the deceptive and strange background of Chase Hughes, who refers to himself as the “#1 expert in behavior and influence.” A popular YouTube show that he’s on, the Behavioral Panel, gets millions of views. Dr. Phil has called him the “best on the globe.” But Chase’s career is built on a foundation of lies and exaggerations — not only in the behavior and psychology space, but also in other pursuits, including pick-up artistry and vitamin supplements. He has made many grandiose claims that just about every psychology expert would disagree with (for example, claims that he can teach people to hypnotize others and make them do things against their will, and even teach how to do that quickly). He has claimed since 2012 to be well known in the behavior and psychology space, despite there being almost no mention of him online in the 2010s. This video, the first of at least a two-part series, examines his many deceptions and grandiose (often absurd) claims. It establishes the extremely deceptive patterns that Chase Hughes has been practicing since 2007, when he wrote his pick-up artist book "The Passport."

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I don't believe in astrology but I talked to an astrologer Aug 26, 2024

I talk to a professional astrologist named Ophira Edut. I myself don't believe in astrology but I was interested in asking her questions I've wanted to ask about astrology, and about belief in astrology. Topics include: why she believes in astrology, how her beliefs in that relate to other beliefs (like Reiki or other metaphysical ideas), people's negative views about astrology (including the view that people promoting astrology are doing harm); the importance of engaging respectfully with people we strongly disagree with, and more. Whether you're into astrology or whether you’re a hardcore skeptic, I think you’ll like this episode.

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Faux behavior expert Jack Brown analyzes Trump's behavior at press conference Aug 19, 2024

I talk again about fake behavior expert Jack Brown, whose pseudoscientific behavior analysis work I devoted a past episode to. Brown got some recent attention in a Raw Story article for an analysis he wrote about how Trump's body language at a press conference showed that Trump was lying. Topics discussed include: the silliness of Brown's work and why it's silly; tips for recognizing fake behavior experts; how this stuff connects to toxic political polarization; a reading of Brown's recent analysis with comments.

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A sad cry for help from failed podcast host and author Zachary Elwood Aug 13, 2024

Apologies for the sad clickbait-y title. I'll be okay. I was trying to be a little funny. This is just some updates on things I've been working on and how you might help me if you'd like to do so. Or apart from helping me, you might like learning some details about how my books and podcast have been doing (spoiler alert: not great).

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How magicians misdirect attention and manipulate audiences, with Anthony Barnhart Aug 05, 2024

Psychologist and magician Anthony Barnhart discusses some behaviors magicians use to misdirect attention and manipulate an audience. Other topics include: the role blinking can play in misdirection; magic acts that claim to use psychology and behavior-manipulation to achieve their feats (e.g., Derren Brown); neuro-linguistic programming (NLP); a magic show Tony was impressed by recently, and more.

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Tackling objections to reducing political polarization Jul 31, 2024

Media bias specialist Vanessa Otero, founder of Ad Fontes Media, talks to me (Zach Elwood) about my books aimed at reducing toxic political polarization in America. Topics discussed include: common objections to and skepticism about this work (for example, views that those working on depolarization are "helping the bad guys"; why overcoming objections is so important; how conflict makes people behave in ways that amplify the toxicity of the conflict (often without knowing it); our distorted views of each other; how our contempt can help create the very things we're upset about; and more.

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How small changes in language patterns can influence us, with Liz Stokoe Jul 21, 2024

I talk with Liz Stokoe, who studies conversation analysis (CA) and who's the author of the book "Talk: The Science of Conversation." Stokoe studies how language choices can impact us and change our behavior, often without us being aware of that. Topics include: the more surprising and interesting things Stokoe has found in her work; the popularity of the very wrong "most communication is non-verbal" concept; the practical use of CA work in persuading people to do things; why Stokoe analyzes scripts from comedy shows (like Friends) in her work; perceptions that men and women talk differently; ideas about building rapport.

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Why are lie detectors used if they don't work?, with Leonard Saxe Jul 14, 2024

A talk with psychologist Leonard Saxe, who is known for, amongst other things, his research into lie detectors (also known as polygraphs). Topics discussed include: why polygraphs and other forms of deception detection are unreliable; the use of polygraphs as a tool to extract information and confessions; the Richard Ames case, which involved a high-level CIA employee spying for the Soviet Union and beating a polygraph when questioned; a story where someone’s life was ruined due to cops trusting polygraph evidence far too much; and more.

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Examining indicators that a video showing harassment was staged Jul 03, 2024

This episode examines a video from 2020 that seemed to show a black person being harassed by a racist white woman. The video was shared by the celebrity gossip personality Perez Hilton, and was then picked up by several low-quality news sites, like RawStory.com and DailyDot.com. But the video was staged; it was done as a joke, for reasons unknown. This episode examines the reasons why I confidently believed the video was staged after watching it for only a few seconds

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The awe and horror of existence: a talk with psychologist Kirk Schneider Jun 24, 2024

A reshare of a 2022 talk I had with existential psychologist Kirk Schneider. We talk about existential psychology and the power of being able to better understand and recognize the core anxieties we all have about existence, such as our fear of death, meaninglessness, isolation, and freedom. Other topics: how existence can be awe-inspiring but also terrifying; what “existential psychology” and “humanistic psychology” are and how those forms of psychology/therapy differ from more well known and traditional forms of therapy (e.g., psychotherapy); the psychology behind political polarization and narcissism.

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The strangeness of life and existential psychology Jun 16, 2024

Thoughts about how an awareness of life's strangeness might impact us, both positively and negatively, and how that might relate to existential psychology concepts. Topics include: how an awareness of life's strangeness might be seen to be a core existential stressor (like the fear of death, or fear of isolation); how this might relate to religious/spiritual experience; how this might relate to traumatic experience and PTSD; how being aware of life's strangeness might make one more likely to embrace nonsensical, low-evidence beliefs of various sorts; how this might relate to mental illness (including psychosis and delusion).

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Psychology in waiting tables and running a restaurant, with Robin Dibble Jun 01, 2024

A talk with Robin Dibble, an experienced Albuquerque-area service industry professional who’s worked in every aspect of the business, from waiting tables, to cooking, to managing restaurants and night clubs. Topics include: psychological strategies servers use to get more tips; how menu design can affect what people order; reading customer satisfaction as a restaurant manager; the factors in deciding to cut someone off from drinking; lighting and acoustics considerations when designing a comfortable space. This is a reshare of a 2019 talk.

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Two former congresspeople, a Democrat and a Republican, discuss toxic polarization May 21, 2024

I talk to former members of the House of Representatives Luke Messer (Republican) and Elizabeth Esty (Democrat). We talk about: political polarization; their experiences being in congress during such a highly polarized period of time; their ideas for reducing toxic polarization, and more.

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The complexity and ambiguity of aphantasia and other inner experiences, with Russell Hurlburt May 13, 2024

A talk with Russell Hurlburt, who’s researched inner experience for more than five decades. He is the author of 6 books and many articles on the topic of mental experience. Topics discussed include: The difficulty of describing inner experience; the ambiguities in the classification of “aphantasia” (reporting no visual qualities in one’s thought processes); the ambiguities in the “inner monologue” concept; thought on whether dreams are visual or not; and more.

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How a bus driver predicts the behavior of drivers and passengers, with Brendan Bartholomew May 07, 2024

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To reduce polarization, is it optimal to work on systemic change or cultural change?, with David Foster Apr 05, 2024

A talk with David Foster, who writes about polarization and media at knowthesystem.org and is the author of "Moderates of the World Unite!: Reworking the Political Media Complex." Topics discussed include: the optimal approach for reducing toxic political polarization (cultural change vs systemic changes); defining the word 'moderate' and examining some of the negative connotations it has; the difficulty of making changes in a polarized, high-animosity environment; why some conservatives dislike the idea of making systemic changes; the ideas in David's book for improving the media environment and political discourse.
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To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

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Do simplistic ideas of power (e.g., oppressed/oppressor framings) reduce empathy? with Elizaveta Friesem Mar 26, 2024

Elizaveta Friesem writes about media and about social power (i.e., the power people exert over other people). I first interviewed her about media and polarization in 2021 about her book "Media Is Us." Topics we discuss here include: Michel Foucault’s ideas about power (often referenced in liberal academic world); the oppressed/oppressor framework (also often referenced); how simplistic views of social power can be divisive and result in a reduction in people's empathy; how the free will debate ties into these ideas; political polarization related to some of these ideas.

The LYLAS Podcast
If you know what LYLAS stands for, then this podcast is for you! Two besties since...

Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

What's life like when you don't believe in free will?, with physicist Daniel Whiteson Mar 12, 2024

A talk with Daniel Whiteson, a professor of physics and astronomy, about free will, with a focus on what the effects in one's life are when one doesn't believe in free will. Topics discussed: Our thoughts on why we think free will is unlikely to exist; psychological and emotional aspects of living without a belief in free will; the anxiety and even anger that some people can have about the idea that we lack free will; the idea that a lack of belief in free will can be part of a spiritual, positive way of experiencing the world; and more.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

News media tends to deepen our divides. Does Isaac Saul have a solution? Mar 04, 2024

A talk with journalist Isaac Saul, founder of Tangle News (readtangle.com), which shares takes from across the political spectrum. I think Tangle is doing amazing work. I think the more Americans there are who read Tangle, the less toxically polarized we'll be. Topics we discuss include: aspects of Tangle News that make it depolarizing and anger-reducing; how Isaac conceives of the problem of political polarization; his work debunking "the election was stolen" narratives in 2020, and more.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

The allure of deciphering behavior, with Rounders screenwriter Brian Koppelman Mar 01, 2024

A talk with screenwriter/producer Brian Koppelman, known for many TV and film projects, including the poker movie Rounders, the show Billions, and the series Super Pumped: The Battle For Uber. Topics discussed: how he decided to create Rounders; poker tells in Rounders; the excitement of reading people and their behaviors; the difficulty of reading behaviors in most real-world situations; and the anxiety-reducing benefits of transcendental meditation.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

How a pro poker player makes use of poker tells, with Dara O'Kearney Feb 18, 2024

A talk with professional poker player Dara O’Kearney about poker tells (aka, physical and verbal behaviors in poker). Dara is the co-host of the popular poker podcast The Chip Race and the author of several books, including GTO Poker Simplified. We talk about: the importance of poker tells compared to strategy; how Dara’s views on tells have changed over time; some ways poker players can get info from opponents (e.g., insulting them or being nice to them); some poker hands where opponent behaviors played a role in a decision.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

Tips on interrogating people for information and confessions, with David Zulawski Feb 05, 2024

A reshare of a talk with David Zulawski from 2018. Zulawksi is an expert in interrogation and interview techniques and the cofounder of Wicklander Zulawski and Associates. Topics discussed include: Why is the non-confrontational, rapport-focused technique he recommends the best one? Why is it important to downplay the significance of a crime? Why is it important to try to prevent someone from denying the crime/accusation? Why is it important to not tell a suspect all the evidence you have against them? What are some behavioral clues a suspect is lying or telling the truth?

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

Reading behavior and motivations in the Robbi Jade Lew poker hand, with Yakov Hirsch Jan 28, 2024

A talk with professional poker player Yakov Hirsch about the well known high-stakes poker situation where amateur Robbi Jade Lew was accused of cheating by professional player Garrett Adelstein. We give our takes on the hand, and the overall situation, and we talk about Robbi's possible motivations and thought processes during this hand, and about what her behavior might indicate about her thinking.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

Understanding Trump and his voters' animosity towards the media, with Yakov Hirsch Jan 20, 2024

A talk about trying to understand Trump's anger at the American media and how that relates to American polarization. This is from a talk I had with Yakov Hirsch in late November 2023. Other topics discussed include: Trump-Russia media coverage; Americans' polarized views of Trump; the importance of trying to understand even those people we perceive as dangerous and harmful; American polarization and conflict dynamics in general. This is from a video talk; you can find the video talk on my People Who Read People YouTube channel.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

The exaggeration of antisemitism, and the importance of understanding the "other side," with Yakov Hirsch Jan 14, 2024

Another talk with Yakov Hirsch, who writes about the Middle East conflict and about "Hasbara culture": what he sees as the tendency of some Israel-defending people to be overly antagonistic and us-vs-them in their thinking (for example, unfairly framing criticism of Israel as "antisemitic"). If you haven't heard the first talk, I recommend that one. This talk is more generally about the nature of conflict, and about how conflict can make us perceive the world and the people around us in overly pessimistic and antagonistic ways, which in turn leads to more conflict. It's also about the importance of trying to have cognitive empathy for people we disagree with and see the world from their perspective; even for people we may think are harmful and dangerous. This will be followed by a second talk where Yakov and I talk about American polarization and polarized views of Trump.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

Why do some people want to watch the world burn?, with Kevin Arceneaux Jan 04, 2024

A talk with Kevin Arceneaux, whose research found that a surprising number of people (around 40%) either agreed with or did not disagree with statements like “When I think about our political and social institutions, I cannot help thinking 'just let them all burn'?” In their paper, they called this a "need for chaos." We talk about what the study entailed, what they found, and what the factors might be that help explain the finding. We also talk about its relation to toxic polarization, and to social media. (This is a talk from 2021.)

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

Reading "tells" in football, baseball, and other sports, with Jon Hoefling Dec 21, 2023

A talk with Jon Michael Hoefling, a sports analyst, about reading behavioral tells and indicators in football, baseball, tennis, and other sports. We focus on a 2021 story that quarterback Ben Roethlisberger had a tell: how he positioned his foot before a play was a strong indicator of whether he'd run or pass. We also talk about reading tells and predicting actions in baseball, tennis, and other sports. One story we talk about was Andre Agassi claiming to once have had a very reliable tell on Boris Becker. (This is a reshare of a July 2021 episode.)

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

Dealing with debilitating anxiety, with Scott Stossel Dec 14, 2023

A talk with Scott Stossel, author of "My Age of Anxiety: Fear, Hope, Dread, and the Search for Peace of Mind." Scott is also national editor of The Atlantic. Scott's book is a history of the condition and treatment of anxiety, and also a personal history in which Scott talks honestly about his struggles with debilitating anxiety. I talk to Scott about what he's learned in his research and personal life about the factors behind anxiety and how we might, as much as we are able to, overcome it. We also talk about some fairly unexamined nuances about anxiety: for example, how the word can contain a multitude of very different experiences. I also talk about my own anxiety, which has been quite severe.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

Electrodermal activity is what lie detectors measure, but what is it?, with Christopher Moyer Dec 08, 2023

I talk with psychologist Christopher Moyer about electrodermal activity (EDA), also known as galvanic skin response (GSR), which is what lie detectors measure. Topics discussed include: What are spikes in electrodermal activity actually telling us? We talk about its use in lie detectors. We talk about lowerings in skin conductance and what that indicates. We talk about the nature of stress; and how there can be good and bad stress. We talk about poker and gambling, including some gambling-related studies that measured electrodermal activity.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

Dogs' and cats' interactions with humans, with Daniel Mills Nov 29, 2023

Animal behavior researcher Daniel Mills talks about various aspects of the human-pet relationship, with a focus on his research. Topics include: dogs' abilities to read human emotions and how they do that; the effects of pets on our mental health; animals' ability to perceive images on a TV screen; the differences between the human and animal mind; pets' abilities to sense their owners arriving home from far away; how cats communicate relaxation to each other.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

On the art of listening and the challenges of being an introvert, with Joel Berman Nov 20, 2023

Joel Berman is a practitioner of Compassionate Listening (compassionatelistening.org). Joel has travelled to the Middle East and talked with Israelis and Palestinians about their experiences and grievances. Topics discussed: Joel's experiences in the Middle East; what the Compassionate Listening methodology entails; the bravery required for conflict resolution work; and both of our experiences being introverts with a lot of social anxiety.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

Learn more and sign up for a premium subscription at PeopleWhoReadPeople.com.

Tricks and strategies in door-to-door sales Nov 11, 2023

A talk with two people with door-to-door sales experience. We talk about the tricks and strategies they used to close sales, and the psychological factors in why those strategies work. Topics discussed: verbal and physical sales scripts some companies use, and why they work; the use of ambiguous language in deception; the power of personal anecdotes in gaining rapport; the importance of getting a customer to commit in writing to the deal; how simply spending time together can build rapport and make a sale more likely. This is a reshare of a 2019 episode.

Support the show

To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

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How is bias in media related to polarization?, with Vanessa Otero Oct 29, 2023

Vanessa Otero is the creator of a popular and well respected media bias chart that ranks the bias of many news outlets, and she's the founder of Ad Fontes Media. Topics discussed include: the process her team uses to determine bias; the difficulties of determining what is "left" and "right" in a polarized and fast-changing political landscape; recognizing that everyone is biased and that the best we can do is try to reduce our bias; the relation between media bias and polarization; perceptions of the word 'misinformation' being liberal-leaning; liberal-leaning journalists' pushback to Trump being elected; and more.

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Why is criticism of Israel sometimes portrayed as antisemitic?, with Yakov Hirsch Oct 22, 2023

A talk with Yakov Hirsch, who thinks that some Jewish people have exaggerated ideas about the amount of antisemitism in the world, and overly pessimistic ideas about the nature of antisemitism. This can make some Jewish people see disagreement, criticism, and conflict too often through the lens of antisemitism. Hirsch ties this into the Israel/Palestine conflict, and also relates this to a long-running debate about the "banality of evil" (which relates to, amongst other things, the motivations of Nazis during the Holocaust). We talk about Hirsch's ideas in the context of conflict dynamics and conflict resolution: for example, the tendency in conflict for people to have distorted views of people on the "other side."

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Is our desire for certainty our biggest weakness?, with Maria Konnikova Oct 14, 2023

Maria Konnikova is the best-selling author of the books The Biggest Bluff, The Confidence Game, and Mastermind: How To Think Like Sherlock Holmes. Topics discussed include: the human desire for certainty and story/narrative, and our discomfort with ambiguity and uncertainty; how she decided to get into poker and write The Biggest Bluff; why she finds poker such an interesting game; how one can pursue a career one finds interesting and rewarding.

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Understanding an orchestra conductor's gestures, with Ming Luke Oct 03, 2023

A talk with orchestra conductor Ming Luke (mingluke.com). Topics discussed include: what a conductor's body language and gestures can communicate to the orchestra; how small differences in gestures can sometimes result in significant musical differences; the difference in conducting styles that can exist between conductors; the role conductors play and the benefits they bring; the leadership and managerial skills required to be a strong conductor.

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Examining behavior pseudo-expert Dr. Jack Brown Sep 16, 2023

This episode is about "behavior bullshit." There are many self-proclaimed behavior experts spreading bad, misleading, and irresponsible concepts about human behavior, and some of these people are quite popular. This episode focuses on Jack Brown (Twitter: @drgjackbrown), one of the more egregious offenders amongst behavior bullshitters. Other topics discussed include: eye-quadrant behavior analysis (for example, someone looking to upper right); NLP (neuro-linguistic programming); some of the common bad ideas in behavior bullshit ; the use of ambiguous language to make one's background seem impressive; and more.

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Understanding what drives MAGA anger, with ex-Trump voter Rich Logis Sep 11, 2023

For the purposes of depolarization, I think it's important to understand the us-vs-them political narratives around us. This is a talk with Rich Logis (www.perfectourunion.us), who describes his journey as going "from ultra-MAGA to Never-Trump." Rich was an involved pro-Trump activist, who'd written many political op-eds and who volunteered for pro-Trump causes, and who, in 2021, switched to being very critical of Trump and MAGA. I ask Rich about the reasons he was enthusiastic about Trump: what the sources of his anger were, and why he viewed Hillary Clinton winning in 2016 as an "existential threat." We discuss some of the more rational reasons behind Trump support, and why he believes most Trump voters are good people, and why liberals should care to understand Trump voter perspectives. We talk about the nature of us-vs-them conflict and how it distorts our thinking and emotions. We talk about what led to his abrupt change of mind when it came to Trump and MAGA.

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Examining some common scams and the strategies behind them, with Martina Dove Sep 06, 2023

A talk with Martina Dove, author of the book The Psychology of Fraud, Persuasion and Scam Techniques, about some common scams you and people you know might encounter (phishing scams, "pig butchering" scams, romance scams, wrong-number-text scams, and more). We discuss how these scams work, and some strategies for avoiding them.

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The narcissism spectrum: from healthy narcissism to the more toxic forms, with Craig Malkin Aug 25, 2023

Craig Malkin is the author of 'Rethinking Narcissism: The Secret to Recognizing and Coping with Narcissists', in which he describes the spectrum of narcissism: how it can be healthy to have positive illusions about one's self and one's life, as long as those illusions don't become pathologically unhealthy and toxic. Topics discussed include: the spectrum of narcissism, as Craig sees it; common misconceptions about narcissism; the Narcissistic Personality Inventory, which is the basis of many people's understanding of narcissism; existential and psychological factors that can lead to more narcissistic ways of engaging with the world.

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Resolving conflict in our relationships, with couples therapist Bill Doherty Aug 11, 2023

A talk with Bill Doherty, a relationship therapist and the co-founder of Braver Angels, a political depolarization-aimed group. Topics discuss include: his approach to couples counseling; thoughts on dealing with the common situation where one partner is much more interested in healing the relationship than the other; the importance of seeing our role in a conflict, and why that can be hard for us; how he got into the depolarization work; the similarities he sees between relationship counseling and political depolarization work; the psychological principles that have informed Braver Angels' approaches; thoughts on what we are asking of people who want to help with depolarization work.

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Understanding the behavior of people under anesthesia, with Ashita Goel Aug 02, 2023

A talk with anesthesiologist Ashita Goel about her work. Topics include: the sometimes strange behaviors of people under anesthesia; the hypnotic and "truth serum"-like effects of anesthesia; factors in determining drug dosage; the various states one can put people into; why anesthesiologists often seem outgoing and fun; the viral video of the man who woke up from anesthesia and didn't recognize his wife; and more.

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Psychological factors in conspiracy theory beliefs, with Mikey Biddlestone Jul 15, 2023

A talk with psychology researcher Mikey Biddlestone, who specializes in conspiracy theory beliefs, about some of the more psychological factors that can make belief in conspiracy theories more likely. We talk about "just world" beliefs (beliefs that the world is largely just and fair) and how those might relate to conspiracy-minded thinking. Other topics discussed: how narcissistic and antisocial personality traits can relate to such beliefs; how we might define what is an unreasonable level of conspiracy-minded thinking; how conspiracy-minded thinking relates to anti-establishment views; the survey result that showed that 12 million Americans believe in "lizard people"; and how conspiracy-minded thinking ties into political polarization.

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Understanding the behavior of autistic people, with Barry Prizant Jun 30, 2023

A talk with Barry Prizant (barryprizant.com), author of the influential book Uniquely Human: A Different Way of Seeing Autism, and co-host of the Uniquely Human podcast. The focus is on understanding the experiences and behaviors of autistic people. Topics discussed include: understanding the underlying causes behind the sometimes seemingly inexplicable behaviors of autistic children; the various types of experiences contained within the label of 'autism'; the role that sensitivity to sensation and associated anxiety plays in autism; the question of how empathetic autistic people are; the causes of autism.

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How does anxious body language affect a job interview?, with Simonne Mastrella Jun 22, 2023

A talk with Simonne Mastrella, author of the research paper "Acting Anxious: The Impact of Candidates' Anxious Nonverbal Behavior on Interview Performance Ratings." Topics discussed include: the design of the study; her findings; whether they found any differences in gender or in the nature of the job interviewed for; and the challenges of using actors to emulate behaviors for a study.

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What do we owe to our fellow citizens? (even when we think they're very wrong), with Robert Talisse Jun 10, 2023

A talk with political theorist Robert Talisse, author of Sustaining Democracy: What We Owe To The Other Side, which is one of the best book about American polarization that I've read. We talk about: the limits and realities of democracy and what it can achieve; separating expected and healthy polarization from unhealthy, toxic polarization; what we owe to our fellow citizens even when we see them as very misguided and even dangerous; how extreme polarization can make our relationships and coalitions even with politically similar people suffer and fall apart.

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Behavioral analysis in security and risk assessment, with Philip Baum May 31, 2023

Aviation security professional Philip Baum talks about analyzing behavior for aviation security and risk assessment purposes, and for security purposes in general. Topics discussed include: looking for deviations from the baseline behaviors normal in an environment; successes of behavioral analysis for security purposes; what can make some of this work controversial; thoughts on what aviation security does wrong.

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Poker tells in a hand from the World Series of Poker Ladies Event, with Lara Eisenberg May 13, 2023

A talk with poker player Lara Eisenberg, who won the 2021 World Series of Poker Ladies Event, and who cashed in a 2022 World Poker Tour event for $481,000. Topics we talk about include: how her thoughts about poker tells have changed over time; some specific behaviors from a poker hand from the Ladies Event; some behavioral patterns she noticed in herself; the anxiety involved in bluffing; and skydiving, which Lara has done competitively.

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The illusions of memory and self, with Anne Wilson May 03, 2023

A talk with social psychologist Anne Wilson about memory and how we define who we are. Topics discussed include: the nature of self; the nature of memory; the fallibility of our memories; the theory of temporal self appraisal (which is about how we experience ourselves as being close to or far away in time from different versions of ourselves); false memories; the role creative storytelling plays in constructing our views of self and the world; and political polarization.

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My book Defusing American Anger is out Apr 20, 2023

Some updates about: the release of my Defusing American Anger book (available at www.american-anger.com); some depolarization-aimed videos I put on YouTube; and my upcoming interview with Robert Talisse, author of Sustaining Democracy.

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On the loneliness of leaving one's cult, with Calvin Wayman Apr 11, 2023

Calvin Wayman was raised in a fundamentalist Mormon cult, with four mothers and 44 siblings. This world was everything he had known. At the age of 30, he left that world, and was effectively on his own, isolated from everything that had previously given his life meaning. We talk about that experience with a focus on the existential feelings of isolation and loneliness that accompanied it. Topics discussed include: how he began to question his world; factors he sees as present that made him someone willing to question things; Plato's allegory of the cave; The Matrix and our willingness to take the "red pill"; how his community and family reacted to his decision; the human desire for certainty; and more.

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On psychopaths, dark traits, and "dark empaths," with Nadja Heym Mar 23, 2023

A talk with Nadja Heym, a psychology researcher who specializes in dark traits, like psychopathy, narcissism, and sadism, and who has researched so-called "dark empaths": people with dark traits who have a good amount of empathy. We delve into some nuance in the area of psychopathy. Topics discussed include: How she defines psychopathic traits; The misuse of the term "psychopath" (and related misuse of other terms like "narcissist"); Can we say from a brain scan if a brain is "psychopathic"?; "Bad seed"-like concepts of how psychopaths arise; Can an environment (like a highly competitive job) make someone have more psychopathic traits?; What are "dark empaths"?

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Do our anger and insults help create the very things we're angry about? Mar 13, 2023

When trying to convince people of the problem of polarization and the necessity for depolarization endeavors, a common objection from politically passionate people goes, "But the other side is horrible, so polarization makes sense." In this episode, I talk about one of the main counterpoints to that objection: that us-vs-them anger, in a non-obvious way, helps create the very things we're angry about. For this reason, if one wants to defeat extreme views on the other side (or on both sides), the way to achieve that goal is to take a depolarizing, anger-reducing, de-escalating approach.

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Reading situations and opponents in racecar driving, with Andy Lally Mar 11, 2023

A talk with racecar driver Andy Lally, who specializes in endurance GT (sportcar) racing. Topics we talk about include: What's the breakdown in skill versus chance in an average race? What are the considerations when trying to pass other drivers, or trying to prevent drivers from passing? Where’s the boundary between acceptable behavior versus behavior that people would consider too-aggressive and dangerous? What are some spots where Andy was proud of his decisions? What it’s like being a vegan in an industry where that’s pretty rare?

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Do we have recurring facial expression patterns that are tied to personality traits?, with Herman Ilgen Mar 05, 2023

A talk with Herman Ilgen, who's been a negotiator for more than 30 years and who is the founder of the Institute for Nonverbal Strategy Analysis (INSA). Ilgen has researched how facial expression patterns may be connected to personality traits. His paper was titled "Personal Nonverbal Repertoires in facial displays and their relation to individual differences in social and emotional styles." Topics discussed include: what led him to do that work; what the findings were; how he makes practical use of those findings; and general thoughts on negotiation strategies.

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An angry us-vs-them divide in a small town, with Rebecca Schillenback Feb 19, 2023

In the small town of Caroline in central New York state, there seems to be a war going on. A large sign in the town reads, "There’s a war in the valley, time to pick a side." The divide is over proposed zoning laws. Rebecca Schillenback is a resident who wrote a letter to the local paper objecting to the war-like us-vs-them rhetoric she sees her neighbors using. I talk to Rebecca about: the nature of this divide and the roots of the emotions; how it relates to our national us-vs-them divides; and her Quaker faith and its role in her attempt to reduce anger.

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Improving sexual satisfaction in long-term relationships, with Jessica Maxwell Feb 15, 2023

A talk with psychologist Jessica Maxwell about her research on sexual relationships. We talk about "growth" versus "destiny" views on sex: in other words, whether someone sees sexual satisfaction as something one must work on, or if one sees it as largely an issue of destiny--something that’s either present or it’s not. Other topics include: the role of media in affecting our views on sex; how boredom and lack of novelty can hurt sexual satisfaction; performance-related anxiety; how porn might be affecting people’s ideas of sex; thoughts on scheduled date nights versus more spontaneous attempts at romance; sleeping in separate bedrooms.

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How our body language can affect teammates and competitors, with Philip Furley Feb 09, 2023

A talk with Philip Furley, who has done a lot of research on behavior and psychology in sports. Topics discussed include: how an athlete's body language can influence teammates, opponents, and even judges; behaviors and strategies of penalty kickers and goalkeepers in soccer; some specific behaviors from the recent World Cup; collective displays of team unity (like the "Haka"); the difficulties of finding behavioral patterns in sports; thoughts on making practical use of Furley's research findings.

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Why are we so gullible?, with Brian Dunning Jan 23, 2023

A talk with Brian Dunning, who you might call a professional skeptic. He has been doing the Skeptoid podcast since 2006, and is the creator of multiple books and video projects aimed at promoting critical thinking and skepticism. We talk about the reasons why we're so often drawn to pseudoscience, bullshit, and no/low-evidence ideas in general. I also get his takes on assorted ideas, such as chiropractic work, acupuncture, UFOs, eye movement desensitization therapy, the placebo effect, and more.

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How big a problem are hate crimes in the U.S.?, with Wilfred Reilly Jan 18, 2023

Wilfred Reilly is a political scientist, professor, and author of the 2019 book Hate Crime Hoax. Topics discussed include: how hate crimes are tracked; why it can be hard to get a clear picture of hate crime numbers; the logic of 'hate crime' as a legal designation; irresponsible media coverage of racism-related issues; the motivations of people who fake hate crimes; distorted perceptions of American hate crimes and racism; how distorted perceptions can amplify polarization; and what it's like working on these topics while teaching at a historically black college.

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About this podcast: why I do it and why I think it's important Dec 10, 2022

This episode is all about the People Who Read People podcast. Topics discussed: the origins and goals of this podcast; my approach to deciding on who to interview and what questions to ask; why I focus on polarization-related topics and why I think that work is important; details on audience numbers and financial stuff.

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Examining American antisemitism, with James Kirchick Dec 10, 2022

A talk with journalist James Kirchick about the origins of various types of American antisemitism. Topics discussed include: controversial statements made by Kanye West and Whoopi Goldberg; Donald Trump; Israel; George Soros; Louis Farrakhan; Black Hebrew Israelites; the term "globalist", and more.

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Is liberal bias impeding U.S. depolarization and conflict resolution efforts?, with Guy Burgess Nov 20, 2022

A talk with conflict resolution specialist Guy Burgess, who, along with his wife Heidi Burgess, run the project www.beyondintractability.org. Guy and Heidi wrote a paper in 2022 titled "Applying conflict resolution insights to the hyper‐polarized, society‐wide conflicts threatening liberal democracies." I talk with Guy about: how conflict resolution principles might be applied to U.S. polarization problems; the importance of addressing liberal-side contributions to polarization; the common objections people can have to seeing polarization as a problem that both sides must tackle; how some in the conflict resolution space may be hindered from helping by their own liberal bias and polarization; the Burgesses' ideas for what society must do to reduce polarization to more healthy levels, and more.

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The art of recruiting, with Blake Mobley Nov 18, 2022

A talk with Blake Mobley about the business of recruiting: matching job seekers with companies that are hiring. Blake is the co-founder and managing director of recruiting company Keeper Recruiting, which specializes in biotech. Topics discussed include: what the process of recruiting is like; how Keeper goes about learning pertinent details about job seekers; the metrics by which recruiting companies are judged to be successful; the different "core motivators" people can have in their lives and how that relates to recruiting; personality tests; and Blake’s earlier career in the intelligence community and how he sees that relating to his recruiting work.

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Dealing with anxiety and mental health issues as a college student Nov 10, 2022

I was interviewed on Mahima Samraik's podcast Breaking The Facts about my struggles with anxiety and mental issues as a young man, which led to me dropping out of college in the middle of my second year of college. We talk about what that experience was like; recommendations for people dealing with similar problems; and the obstacles that can get in the way of getting help.

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Understanding madness, with Richard Bentall Nov 04, 2022

A talk with psychologist Richard Bentall, author of the well known book Madness Explained, which examines the psychological causes of the symptoms associated with psychosis, schizophrenia, mania, and other mental issues. Topics we talk about include: the experiences and mental struggles that can lead to psychosis and other mental illness; how theories of mental illness have changed over time; pushback and criticism of psychology-focused explanations of mental illness; aspects of madness that most of us experience at some point; the role of feelings of isolation in madness; and the difference between beliefs and delusions.

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Reading tells in football, with Larry Hart Oct 29, 2022

A talk with Larry Hart, a football coach at the University of Houston, and the author of the book The Recruit's Playbook. Topics discussed include: common behavioral patterns (tells) that are used to get an edge on opponents and teams; reading the signals that opponent coaches give to players; reading formation patterns; the importance of reviewing game tape; predicting how athletes will perform when one is recruiting them; and more.

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The challenges and rewards of studying nonverbal behavior, with Alan Crawley Oct 15, 2022

A talk with nonverbal behavior expert Alan Crawley, also known by his online handle Sin Verba (www.sinverba.com). Topics discussed include: why he became interested in behavior; the challenges of studying behavior; the practical benefits of studying behavior (including connecting better with others); irresponsible "behavior experts" who share bad information; and how to spot bad behavior information.

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How do we react when our sense of meaning is threatened?, with Steven Heine Oct 10, 2022

A talk with Steven Heine about how we react to our sense of meaning being threatened. What happens when our mental frameworks of how the world works don’t hold up and things seem chaotic? What happens when our sense of what’s existentially meaningful in our lives is threatened? Topics discussed: Heine et al’s Meaning Maintenance Model; existential crises, including mid-life crises and adolescent angst; how polarization might be related to threats to meaning; positive aspects to our worldviews suddenly changing; and more.

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Is the entire world becoming more polarized?, with Andrew O'Donohue Oct 01, 2022

A talk with Andrew O'Donohue, co-author of Democracies Divided: The Global Challenge of Political Polarization. Andrew has studied how societal conflicts play out in many countries, and the harm those conflicts inflict. Topics discussed include: why it is that political polarization is so common a state for humans; how polarization has played out in various countries; countries that can serve as comparisons for America in terms of polarization; the psychological drivers of polarization; the impact of social media and modern life on polarization, and more .

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Are eye movement patterns linked to personality traits?, with Sabrina Hoppe Sep 21, 2022

A talk with Sabrina Hoppe about a 2018 study that showed how eye movements are correlated with personality. That paper was named 'Eye movements during everyday behavior predict personality traits.' We talk about how the study was set up, what the results were, how strong the correlations found were, reasons for why such patterns might exist, possible applications, and more.

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Is body language actually useful for detecting lies?, with Tim Levine Aug 30, 2022

A talk with communication researcher Tim Levine about nonverbal behavior and deception detection. Tim's stance is that there's no evidence that nonverbal behavior is useful for detecting deception. He's the author of Duped: Truth-Default Theory and the Social Science of Lying and Deception. His work was featured in Malcom Gladwell's book Talking to Strangers.
Topics discussed include: what the research says about nonverbal behaviors; why it's so hard to get reliable indicators of deception; common nonverbal behavior myths and bullshit; why we expect others to tell us the truth; why we tend to tell the truth; Paul Ekman's work, including micro-expressions and "truth wizards"; reading behavior in interrogations; the differences between analyzing verbal content and nonverbal behavior; the TV show Lie to Me; poker tells; and more.

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Reading "drug-seeking" behaviors, with Dr. Casey Grover Aug 17, 2022

A talk with Dr. Casey Grover, addiction specialist and host of the podcast Addiction in Emergency Medicine and Acute Care, about how doctors attempt to determine if a patient is trying to get a drug prescription under false pretenses (e.g., claiming to be in pain to get opioids). Topics discussed: why "drug-seeking behavior" is not a good phrase; what some classic drug-seeking behaviors are and also why they're not very reliable; steps doctors take if they think someone might have a use disorder; America's drug problems, and more.

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Predicting psychosis and schizophrenia using language patterns, with Neguine Rezaii Aug 09, 2022

This is a reshare of a 2020 talk with psychology researcher Neguine Rezaii. She and her research team used machine learning to find language patterns used by teenagers who were at risk of schizophrenia that were correlated with later schizophrenia diagnosis. The two language patterns found in the subjects' speech were 1) a low semantic density (i.e., low degree of meaning), and 2) speech related to sound or voices.

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Reading and predicting jury behavior, with Christina Marinakis (reshare from 2018) Jul 21, 2022

A reshare of a 2018 talk with jury specialist Christina Marinakis about how she makes use of human psychology and human behavior in her jury consultancy work. Topics discussed: jury selection procedures; what jury consultants do; the relative importance of jury selection compared to the strength of the case; clues to potential jurors' beliefs and future behaviors from their body language, verbal answers, clothes, and more.

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How to spot fake online reviews, with Olu Popoola (reshare from 2019) Jul 06, 2022

A reshare of a 2019 talk with forensic linguistic researcher Olu Popoola where we discuss indicators that online reviews are fake or genuine. We talk about his work analyzing indicators of deception, and talk about some research he did on Amazon book reviews. If you've ever read an online review and wondered "This seems fake, but how do I really know?", I think you'd enjoy this one.

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The psychological factors of polarized groups, with Matthew Hornsey Jun 11, 2022

A talk with psychology researcher Matthew Hornsey about political polarization and the psychology behind it. Other topics discussed include: why people can believe such different (and unreasonable) ideas; persuasive tactics; the importance of people criticizing their own group; why groups mainly listen to in-group members and ignore the same ideas from out-group members.

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Analyzing written and verbal statements for hidden meaning, with Mark McClish (reshare from 2018) May 22, 2022

A rebroadcast of one of my most popular episodes: a talk from 2018 with Mark McClish, who's an expert in analyzing spoken and written statements for hidden meaning, and who's been a US Marshal and law enforcement trainer. He's the author of the books I Know You Are Lying and Don't Be Deceived.

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Behavioral indicators of good and bad relationships, with Brandi Fink May 08, 2022

As part of an effort to share some of the best and most popular early episodes of my podcast, this is a rebroadcast of a 2019 episode where I interviewed psychology and relationship researcher Brandi Fink. We talk about behavioral patterns that indicate either healthy or unhealthy relationships, talk about analyzing video footage of interpersonal interactions, cultural differences in relationship dynamics, and more.

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Psychological effects of social media content moderation policies, with Bill Ottman May 01, 2022

A talk with Bill Ottman, co-founder and CEO of the social media platform Minds, which is known for its minimal content moderation approach. Ottman and others (including Daryl Davis, a black man known for singlehandedly deradicalizing white supremacists) recently wrote a paper titled "The Censorship Effect," which examined how strict censorship/banning policies may actually increase antisocial, radicalized views. We talk about the psychology behind how increased censorship policies may increase grievances and anger, about Elon Musk buying Twitter and what it means, about the complexity of the problems we face, and about strategies they've used on the Minds platform.

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Are a majority of Americans actually racist?, with Leonie Huddy Apr 19, 2022

A talk with political scientist Leonie Huddy on the topic of research on American racism and prejudice. I was interested in discussing framings like this one from a 2012 USA Today article: "U.S. majority have prejudice against blacks" and ask her if such confident framings were justified based on the research, or if they were over-stated and irresponsible. Topics discussed: the ambiguity that can be present when attempting to study prejudice, especially for studies that seek to measure it rather indirectly; how worst-case and pessimistic framings and interpretations of studies and surveys can add to us-versus-them political animosity.

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Cryptocurrency, problem gambling, and addiction, with Paul Delfabbro Apr 10, 2022

A talk with psychology and addiction behavior researcher Paul Delfabbro about cryptocurrency, problem gambling, and addiction. Delfabbro has worked on several papers related to cryptocurrency, including a paper titled "The psychology of cryptocurrency trading: Risk and protective factors" and one titled "Cryptocurrency trading, gambling, and problem gambling." Also discussed: the role of social media in amplifying addictions, day trading, and video game addiction.

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Why do people believe the U.S. election was stolen?, with Peter Wood Mar 17, 2022

An examination of the reasons why people believe the 2020 election was "rigged," stolen, or otherwise illegitimate. This includes a talk with Peter Wood, a sociologist and political thinker and writer, who strongly believes that the 2020 election was stolen. Other topics discussed: election distrust by liberals (in 2016, for example), and how election distrust and chaos is a common endpoint for very polarized democratic nations.

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Detecting lies via facial muscles and machine learning, with Dino Levy Mar 16, 2022

A talk with Dino Levy about his research team's research, which used monitoring of facial muscles and machine learning to detect lies at an impressive 73% success rate. Their paper was titled "Lie to my face: An electromyography approach to the study of deceptive behavior." We talk about the results, the possible explanations, comparisons to polygraph lie detection, and applications of this research and lie detection technology in general.

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How many Americans actually support political violence?, with Thomas Zeitzoff Mar 05, 2022

A talk with political scientist Thomas Zeitzoff, who has studied political conflicts. We talk about survey results that show an increase in Americans' willingness to support political violence, and how that relates to our fears over future violent conflicts and "civil war" scenarios in America. Other topics discussed include: the psychology of polarization; the Ukraine-Russia conflict and the role of social media in that; the effects of social media on society in general.

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Studying poker tells scientifically, with Brandon Sheils Feb 16, 2022

Brandon Sheils is a professional poker player who recently did a scientific study of poker tells as part of getting a Masters degree in Psychology. Topics discussed: the challenges of studying poker behavior; how he structured his study; what the results were; AI and machine learning potential for studying behavior; some times he's used behavior to make a poker decision.

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On how distance makes it easier to kill (and do other things), with Abe Rutchick Feb 09, 2022

Abe Rutchick talks about his psychology research that showed that killing is easier at a distance, how the experiment was designed, and about antisocial behavior in general being more likely when at a distance. We talk about his research related to how people attribute moral responsibility when it comes to harm inflicted by autonomous self-driving vehicles. And we talk about some studies he worked on that involved poker.

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On American polarization and being a black conservative, with John Wood Jr. Feb 03, 2022

John Wood Jr. is a leader and ambassador of the depolarization group Braver Angels. He ran for Congress in 2014 as a Republican against Maxine Waters. Topics discussed include: the history of American polarization; us-vs-them behaviors of leaders on both political sides; what drew him to conservative politics; how traditional conservatism differs from the Trump brand of conservatism; what it's like being black and conservative; black American political thought; GOP efforts to make voting harder.

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The awe and the horror of existence, with existential psychologist Kirk Schneider Jan 28, 2022

A talk with Kirk Schneider, an existential-humanistic psychologist and therapist, and the author of many books, including Existential-Humanistic Therapy, Awakening to Awe, The Polarized Mind, and more. We talk about: how existential psychology is about facing the givens of life (e.g., fear of death, isolation, meaninglessness, freedom) and why that can be so helpful to people; how our society tends to avoid talking about these deep questions and stresses; the psychology that drives extreme polarization and narcissism; and more.

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Using conversation analysis to make your language more persuasive, with Elizabeth Stokoe Jan 15, 2022

A talk with Liz Stokoe, a conversation analysis (CA) researcher and the author of "Talk: The Science of Conversation." This is my second episode focused on CA. Topics discussed include: What are some of the most useful learnings from CA, in Liz's view? Does the common perception that men and women talk differently have much scientific support? How do the "turns we take" help define us in others' eyes? Why is the "most communication is non-verbal" concept wrong and yet so popular? What do people get wrong with their focus on "rapport"? What can CA teach us about political polarization dynamics and how to persuade others or avoid angering others?

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How many Trump supporters really believe the election was rigged?, with Tom Pepinsky Jan 06, 2022

A talk with political scientist Thomas Pepinsky, who has studied, amongst other things, beliefs that elections aren't legitimate. Topics discussed include: How much can we deduce from U.S. surveys that show high distrust in election legitimacy (from both conservatives and liberals)? To what extent do Trump supporters really believe the 2020 elections were rigged? If Trump had succeeded in overturning the 2020 election, what would life in the U.S. be like?

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Inherent aspects of social media that amplify divides and bad thinking Dec 28, 2021

This is a piece that I, Zach Elwood, wrote about the ways in which social media (and internet communication more broadly) may be amplifying us-versus-them polarization and extreme thinking. Much of the mainstream coverage of how social media may be amplifying divides and making people unhappy is on product-specific features and algorithms. But what if there are inherent aspects of internet communication that amplify animosity and bad thinking, no matter the format or structure of the tool? What if "the medium is the message" in some way? This piece examines the psychological processes by which social media may be deranging us and talks about strategies for reducing unhelpful group-versus-group animosity.

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Artificial intelligence and the nature of consciousness, with Hod Lipson Dec 21, 2021

A talk with roboticist and artificial intelligence researcher Hod Lipson. Topics include: how close we are to self-aware machines; research strategies that will likely yield self-aware machines; what it takes for something to be self-aware; the risks of AI; how such research can help us better understand human minds and behavior.

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Does video surveillance decrease crime?, with Eric Piza Dec 04, 2021

A talk with criminologist Eric Piza about how video has affected crime rates. Topics discussed include: what the research shows about video surveillance and crime reduction; what factors make camera presence more likely to be effective; the effectiveness of police body cams; some practical ideas for how one might discourage crime at one's property; and the role of America's huge number of guns on violence by police.

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Rittenhouse verdict reactions and political polarization Nov 22, 2021

Host Zachary Elwood examines liberal reactions about the Rittenhouse verdict and how some of the more extreme and pessimistic reactions may be seen as being caused by political us-vs-them polarization.

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Conversation analysis and ethnomethodology, with Saul Albert Nov 12, 2021

A talk with social scientist Saul Albert (saulalbert.net) about conversation analysis — the scientific analysis of talking — and the wider field of ethnomethodology. Topics discussed: what conversation analysis (CA) is and how it's done; some of the interesting findings in CA; Saul's own research; the complexity and difficulty of communication; the role of silence in conversation; transcription/notation methods used; and more.

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Tracking people over land, aka "sign cutting," with Rob Speiden Oct 28, 2021

An interview of Rob Speiden, an expert in sign cutting, which is the tracking of humans or animals over the ground using clues of physical disturbance. Rob's site is at www.trackingschool.com. Topics discussed include: common methods of tracking; how tracking is used in search and rescue scenarios; debunking some misconceptions about what's possible with tracking; the importance of being fully aware and open to all sensory input; and interesting stories from his career.

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What does research say about how social media affects polarization?, with Emily Kubin Oct 14, 2021

A talk with Emily Kubin, who recently, with her co-researcher Christian Von Sikorski, did a comprehensive review of 121 studies on social media effects on political polarization. We talk about her research, why polarization is a problem, the different types of polarization (affective vs ideological), our psychology tendency to become us-versus-them in our thinking, her own opinions on what social media is doing to us, and the mechanisms by which social media may be amplifying polarization.

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Understanding behavior and psychology as a professional musician, with Ben Tyler (aka Small Skies) Oct 03, 2021

An interview with Ben Tyler, a professional musician and musical educator based in Portland, Oregon, about reading and understanding people in the musical world. Topics include: reading fellow band members' gestures and eye contact in jazz and other musical performances; being able to tell when audiences are having a good time or not; how practicing improvisation can make us more flexible; and the social aspects of the musical world. Ben's personal musical project is called Small Skies.

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Nostalgia and our attraction to the past, with Jannine Lasaleta Sep 16, 2021

A talk with Jannine Lasaleta, who has researched the psychological effects of nostalgia, including how nostalgic feelings make people more loose and uncaring with money. We talk about the connection between our desire for nostalgia and our desire to engage in old-fashioned or ancient or "authentic" activities . We talk about how our attraction for these things might be connected to our search for meaning, our desire to have a consistent and stable sense of self, and our attempt to fend off existential anxieties related to meaninglessness and isolation.

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Is paying excessive attention to politics hurting us?, with Chris Freiman Sep 08, 2021

If you're someone who pays a lot of attention to politics, but feels that doing so makes you miserable, this may be an important listen. What if someone were to tell you that paying attention to politics is not a morally correct way to spend your time and energy? Political philosopher Chris Freiman is the author of Why It's OK to Ignore Politics. He makes a case that paying a lot of attention to politics is often a waste of time, and may even be immoral compared to other ways you could be spending your time and energy. We talk about how our collective focus on and anger about politics may be contributing to society's us-versus-them animosity and polarization (which may be the root cause of our dysfunction).

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How has polarization affected beliefs about election security?, with Jennifer Cohn Aug 31, 2021

Jennifer Cohn is an attorney and election integrity advocate. Since 2016 she has been drawing attention to problems with U.S. election security and was frustrated during the Trump admin years to see the GOP block efforts to improve security. Now that GOP has become the party of "the election is illegitimate", things have swung the other way and it is Democrats who seem unwilling to acknowledge flaws that many on that side were willing to talk about up until recently. We talk about how politics and polarization can impact attempts to solve election security problems, and she gives insights on the problems she sees with elections.

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Does blaming "media" help us avoid personal responsibility?, with Elizaveta Friesem Aug 18, 2021

Elizaveta Friesem thinks and writes about media and how we relate to it. Her recent book is called "Media Is Us" and it examines the idea that media is not something "out there" but more something that is part of us, something that happens internally, similar to any other human communication. And perhaps this means that acting as if "media" of various sorts is to blame for various problems is a simplistic way to view the world. We talk about the need for personal responsibility for how we consume media, power dynamics in society, the power of empathy and understanding others, and more.

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Reading poker tells, with Dara O'Kearney Aug 11, 2021

An interview with professional poker player Dara O'Kearney about poker tells (behavioral patterns in poker). We talk about how useful tells are compared to strategy, what are some of the tells he's used, how his opinion about tells has changed over time. We also discuss poker more generally, including its complexity, game theory optimal topics, how running long distance may have helped him with poker, and more.

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Talking about police violence with politically liberal police captain James Mitchell (part 2) Aug 07, 2021

The second of two interviews with James Mitchell, a recently retired police captain who worked in Prince George's County, Maryland. We attempt to understand the factors behind the problem of American cops having a high rate of shootings and other forms of excessive force. Factors discussed include: the role of guns, racism, the fact that juries seldom convict cops, police unions, and cops living in the communities they police. (In the first interview, other factors, like mental health and approach/de-escalation strategies, were discussed.)

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Why do so many people want to watch the world burn?, with Kevin Arceneaux Jul 28, 2021

An interview with Kevin Arceneaux, a researcher on the “need for chaos” research project, which found that a surprising number of people, around 40% of those polled, seem to have antisocial views about society in that they either agreed with or did not disagree with statements like “When I think about our political and social institutions, I cannot help thinking 'just let them all burn'?” We talk about what the study entailed, and what the factors could be that help explain this surprising find.

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What is quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's tell?, with Jon Hoefling Jul 25, 2021

A talk with sports analyst and broadcaster Jon Michael Hoefling, who writes for Deadspin. We discuss a recent story about Steelers quarterback Roethlisberger and an apparent tell he has, where his foot position indicates whether he'll run or pass. We also discuss some other tells in football and sports in general, including the story about Andre Agassi having a read on Boris Becker, and some tells in baseball.

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Might gender identity theory itself be creating gender dysphoria?, with Carey Callahan Jul 17, 2021

An interview with Carey Callahan, a therapist who writes about gender dysphoria and transgender issues, with a focus on medical and healthcare aspects. Topics include: why well meaning attempts at discussing transgender topics can inspire so much anger; how polarization on this topic relates to polarization in other areas; controversy around how many obstacles there should be for someone who wants to transition; criticisms of gender identity theory; the idea that gender identity theory itself may be amplifying dysphoric symptoms; the role of environmental factors in gender dysphoria.

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How might we better connect with people?, with Ted Brodkin and Ashley Pallathra Jul 14, 2021

How might we connect better with each other? An interview with Ashley Pallathra and Edward Brodkin, co-authors of Missing Each Other: How to Cultivate Meaningful Connections. We talk about the obstacles we face in our attempts to form better connection with others.

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Reading tells in the video game Apex Legends, with Brandon Singer, aka Nocturnal Jun 26, 2021

An interview with professional gamer Nocturnal (OhNocturnal on Twitch), about reading opponent behavior in Apex Legends. We also talk about the financial aspects of being a pro video gamer.

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Reading opponent tells in tennis, with Carlos Goffi Jun 04, 2021

An interview about the role of psychology and understanding behavior in tennis, with experienced tennis player and coach Carlos Goffi. Goffi has coached tennis for more than 30 years, has coached John McEnroe, and is the author of the well known tennis book Tournament Tough. We talk about reading opponents' physical tells and their mood, about psychological strategizing, and about the impact of personal life factors on a player's ability to compete. We also talk about Andre Agassi's claim that he had a very reliable tell on Boris Becker.

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Talking about police violence with politically liberal police captain James Mitchell (part 1) Apr 19, 2021

First of two interviews with James Mitchell, a retired police captain who worked in Prince George's County, Maryland. We talk about the U.S. problem of excessive police violence, with the goal of understanding some of the factors that can lead to unjustified and too aggressive police responses. Issues include: George Floyd's death and how the cops handled that; how mental health issues relate to police response issues; how cops can escalate a situation whether they mean to or not, and more. In the second interview, other factors are discussed, such as the role of guns, and racism.

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Living with anxiety, with Scott Stossel, national editor of The Atlantic Apr 14, 2021

I interview Scott Stossel, who is the national editor of the magazine The Atlantic, and the author of the book My Age of Anxiety: Fear, Hope, Dread, and the Search for Peace of Mind. That book is a history of humanity's understanding and treatment of anxiety, and also a personal history in which Scott recounts honestly and openly his own struggles with extreme, debilitating anxiety. I talk to Scott about what he's learned in his research and personal life about the factors behind anxiety and how we might, as much as we are able to, overcome it. I (host Zach Elwood) also talk about my own struggles with anxiety, which have taken a different form from Scott's.

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Psychological and environmental factors in psychosis and schizophrenia, with Nathan Filer Mar 27, 2021

An interview with Nathan Filer, author of the non-fiction book 'The Heartland: Finding and Losing Schizophrenia' and the fiction book 'The Shock of the Fall'. We talk about environmental, experiential factors in schizophrenia, about the understandable pushback there can be to examining these areas, about the uncertainty around these topics, and about the power of language and the namings we give things. I also talk about the mental issues I struggled with as a young man.

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I talk to an 8-year-old kid Feb 25, 2021

In this episode, I interview an 8-year-old. We talk about such topics as: how she knows other kids want to be her friend, how she knows adults are upset with her, tricks she uses to watch more TV, the etiquette around Infection Tag (one of her favorite games), and her thoughts on various supernatural beings, including Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy.

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Gina Assaf, who has "long haul" covid, discusses her research on it Feb 23, 2021

An interview with Gina Assaf about her patient-led research on "long haul" Covid, which refers to long term Covid-19 effects. Assaf is not a professional medical researcher; she was motivated to initiate this research due to her own covid experiences and frustration with the lack of information about her, and other sufferers', experience. We talk about the benefits and challenges of such "patient led" research, and interesting findings her team has made. One topic discussed is the similarity between long haul covid and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS, ME) symptoms.

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Why hasn't crowdsourcing of medical data from public disrupted healthcare?, with Jamie Heywood Feb 05, 2021

An interview with Jamie Heywood, who got into the medical research field when his brother was diagnosed with ALS and Jamie wanted to do everything he could do to save him. Jamie started an ALS research institute, and later was co-founder and CEO of PatientsLikeMe, an organization for collecting real-world medical data directly from patients. He discusses the strengths and challenges in collecting real-world patient-reported data, why such tactics haven't been as disruptive and revolutionary as their potential suggests, and thoughts on the problems we face in medical research and healthcare solutions in general.

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Reading online dating profiles (part 2), with Scott Jan 26, 2021

Second of two episodes about online dating. This is a conversation about online dating with Scott, a straight man in his 30s who lives in Portland, Oregon. We talk about the reads/indicators he gets from online dating profiles and pictures that let him know if someone might be a good potential match.

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Reading online dating profiles (part 1), with Celia Jan 20, 2021

First of two episodes about online dating. This is a conversation about online dating with Celia, a straight woman in her 30s who lives in Portland, Oregon. We talk about the reads/indicators she gets from online dating profiles and pictures that let her know if someone might be a good potential match.

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How does a disbelief in free will affect one's life?, with physicist Daniel Whiteson Jan 09, 2021

The idea that humans don't have free will, that we don't have any control of our lives, can be a scary or depressing one for some people. This is a talk with Daniel Whiteson, physics professor of UC Irvine, about why he thinks free will is unlikely, and about the psychological and emotional impacts that can be associated with believing or not believing in free will. For more about this podcast, see www.readingpokertells.video/blog.

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How does aphantasia (lack of mental imagery) impact one's life?, with Zach Elwood Dec 10, 2020

An interview of host Zachary Elwood about his own aphantasia, which is defined as an inability to visualize images mentally. This is a rebroadcast of an interview from The Untypical Podcast, hosted by Visakan Pillai. Topics discuss include: aphantasia and what it's like, aphantasia effects on life and creativity, the nature of thought and memory, psychedelic drugs, visualizing in dreams, and more. For more about this podcast, see www.readingpokertells.video/blog.

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How do insults and hurt feelings affect political conflicts?, with Karina Korostelina Nov 25, 2020

An interview with Karina Korostelina, a social psychologist and the author of Political Insults: How Offenses Escalate Conflict. We discuss her work creating categories for insults, the role insults play in political conflict, why groups and group leaders use insults, and the role of the internet in amplifying opportunities for insults and insult perception. For more about this podcast, see www.readingpokertells.video/blog.

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Why does democracy fall apart and authoritarianism rise?, with Thomas Carothers Nov 13, 2020

An interview with Thomas Carothers, an expert on foreign policy, democracy, and political polarization. He is co-author/editor of the book Democracies Divided, a summary of the national situations of several extremely polarized countries, including the U.S., Turkey, India, Poland, Kenya, and Brazil. I ask Carothers about what he views as the root psychological and social causes of extreme polarization, the erosion of democracy, and the rise of authoritarian leaders. For more about this podcast, see www.readingpokertells.video/blog.

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Questioning how much social media plays a role in political polarization, with Levi Boxell Nov 11, 2020

A talk with Levi Boxell about his research showing that older Americans, who use social media less than younger Americans, have become more antagonistic towards the opposite political party than younger people. We also discuss his research studying how political polarization has changed over time in other countries. We discuss what factors may contribute to polarization, and whether it's still possible that social media could be a major factor. He also discusses his research on news outlet bias being present in the types of politician images are chosen.

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Are some political party stances due to randomness and chance?, with Michael Macy Nov 06, 2020

An interview with Dr. Michael Macy of Cornell University, who has done research on "opinion cascades," showing that some political party stances on specific issues may be rather arbitrary, the result of initial conditions and how early influencers staked out political positions. This means that some stances that are strongly associated with a certain political party could just as easily be associated more with the opposite political party.

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How does Facebook increase political polarization and animosity?, with Jaime Settle Oct 22, 2020

A talk with Dr. Jaime Settle, a political scientist who has studied how social media may be increasing political animosity and division. She is the author of Frenemies: How Social Media Polarizes America, which describes her research showing how Facebook seems to increase people's animosity towards members of the opposite political party. Topics: political polarization, psychological effects social media has on us, internet communication in general.

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Examining causes of polarization in the U.S. and other countries, with Jennifer McCoy Oct 09, 2020

Jennifer McCoy, a specialist on political polarization and election processes, talks about problematic political polarization in the United States: how it compares to other countries that have seen extreme polarization and democracy degradation; the causes and dynamics of extreme polarization; the negative results of this process; and what might be done to help prevent worst-case outcomes in very polarized countries.

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Do violent protests and riots cause people to vote more conservatively?, with Omar Wasow Sep 17, 2020

An interview with Dr. Omar Wasow, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Politics at Princeton, and author of a paper entitled "Agenda Seeding: How 1960s Black Protests Moved Elites, Public Opinion and Voting," in which he found that civil rights-related violent activity in the United States in the 1960s shifted public opinion and voting more conservative/Republican. Topics discussed include: how violence in the streets can affect voting; what lessons there are for today's racial justice activists; negative responses to the ideas in his paper; thoughts on current political climate and how protests may affect things.

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Understanding violent protester behavior: an interview with a Portland antifa/BLM protester Sep 02, 2020

An interview with a self-described anti-fascist who has frequently taken part in the more militant and unlawful aspects of the BLM-focused protests and riots that have occurred in Portland, Oregon in the wake of George Floyd's death. This person has also taken part in physical confrontations with alt-right pro-Trump groups, like the Proud Boys. They talk about the motivations behind and goals for these protests, why violent protest is justified, and the logic behind confronting groups like the Proud Boys. For more about this podcast, see www.readingpokertells.video/blog.

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Did Cambridge Analytica exaggerate their abilities and not actually do anything impressive?, with Dave Karpf Aug 22, 2020

Political scientist David Karpf talks about Cambridge Analytica, and about how their perception by many as masters of advanced digital influence (as portrayed in, for example, the documentary The Great Hack) is inaccurate and exaggerated. Dr. Karpf talks about the effects of political ads, about the role of social media and the internet in politics, and what he sees as the real problems we're facing as a modern society. He also talks about the time he made a tweet comparing Bret Stephens to a bedbug and crazy things ensued.

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Evaluating psych patients in the ER, and discussion of personality disorders, with Rob Tarzwell Aug 09, 2020

Dr. Rob Tarzwell talks about his experiences being a psychiatric doctor in Canadian ER (emergency room) settings, and the challenges of evaluating and diagnosing patients. Topics include: strategies for distinguishing psych disorders from other conditions; the nature of self and consciousness and how that relates to psych issues; and the impact and meaningfulness of the language used to describe mental issues. We discuss some specific examples of people behaving in offensive ways and the factors that can be behind that. And we talk about 'personality disorders' and what those are.

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Is some offensive behavior due to psychological conditions?, with Timothy Jay Aug 02, 2020

A talk with psychologist and expert on cursing Dr. Timothy Jay about some lesser known factors that can be present when people use offensive language, with a focus on the modern phenomenon of videos widely shared on social media showing people saying or doing offensive things. We discuss factors that may influence offensive behavior, including Tourette's Syndrome, brain disorders like Alzheimers, substance abuse, mental illness, and personality disorders. Dr. Jay is the author of the books Why We Curse, Cursing in America, and We Did What?.

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Can you predict schizophrenia by studying the language of teenagers?, with Neguine Rezaii Jul 17, 2020

An interview with psychology researcher Dr. Neguine Rezaii about her work using machine learning to predict conversion in teenagers from prodromal symptoms to psychotic episodes. The two language patterns found in the subjects' speech were 1) a low semantic density (i.e., low meaning), and 2) speech related to sound or voices. Topics: psychology, schizophrenia, machine learning, language, psychosis.

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Can you see what people are thinking with a scan of their brain?, with Marcel Just Jun 06, 2020

An interview with Dr. Marcel Just about his research using fMRI brain imaging to identify brain activity associated with specific thoughts: for example, identifying that a subject is thinking about an apple, or about death. Dr. Just and his team have been twice featured on the show 60 Minutes. Topics: brain imaging, fMRI, neuroscience, psychology.

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Indicators that English text is written by a native Russian speaker, with Brian Baer May 29, 2020

A talk with Dr. Brian Baer, a skilled translator, about indicators in an English language text that the author may be native-Russian. Also discussed are Russia's attempts at online disinformation and deception. Dr. Baer also talks about the nature of language in general, and his work as a translator. Topics: Russia, disinformation, fake news, language, translation.

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Interpreting brain imaging, with Rob Tarzwell May 20, 2020

A talk with Dr. Rob Tarzwell about his research using SPECT neuroimaging to find indicators of traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This work was voted by Discover Magazine as one of the top 20 science stories of 2015. Also discussed is Tarzwell's research on finding neuroimage indicators of the effects of talk therapy. Topics: brain imaging, neuroscience, psychology, PTSD, therapy.

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Reading behavior in Rock Paper Scissors, with Jason Simmons, aka Master Roshambollah Mar 25, 2020

A talk with Jason Simmons (aka Master Roshambollah), an experienced Rock Paper Scissors player. Simmons discusses how serious RPS players try to read and influence the behavior of their opponents. Topics: Rock Paper Scissors (RPS), games, strategy, behavior, tells, manipulation.

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Driving a San Francisco city bus, with Brendan Bartholomew Mar 20, 2020

A talk with Brendan Bartholomew, a San Francisco bus driver and writer. Brendan talks about how understanding human behavior plays an important role in his duties as a city bus driver. Topics: bus driving, transportation, understanding and predicting passenger and driver behaviors.

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What does skin conductance (aka GSR aka EDA) tell us?, with Christopher Moyer Dec 28, 2019

A talk with Dr. Christopher Moyer, PhD, about measuring skin conductance, also called electrodermal activity (EDA) and galvanic skin response (GSR): what it is, what it's thought to measure, and how it's been used in psychology research, including his own research. Dr. Moyer is a counseling psychologist who has published research on the anxiety-reducing effects of massage therapy and the neurological effects of meditation. Topics: electrodermal activity, galvanic skin response (GSR), psychological research, massage therapy, meditation, lie detectors.

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Behavior in social deduction game Secret Hitler, with Polina Vorozheykina Nov 01, 2019

A talk with Polina Vorozheykina, a software engineer based in Portland who is skilled at social deduction games like Secret Hitler, Werewolf/Mafia, Resistance, and Avalon. We do a quick review of the rules of the game Secret Hitler, and Polina talks about common behaviors/tells that give away information.

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Indicators of fake Amazon reviews, with Olu Popoola Aug 04, 2019

A talk with Olu Popoola, who is a forensic linguistic analyst, deception researcher, and fraud investigator. We talk about the science of using "coherence relations" (i.e., how the phrases and sentences in a text relate to each other and form a coherent structure) to detect indicators of deception. We spend most of the time talking about Popoola's work on finding indicators of deceptive Amazon book reviews, including his analysis of reviews for Hillary Clinton's recent book.

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Prison life and behavior, with Benjamin Moots Aug 02, 2019

A talk with Benjamin Moots, who served 15 years in prison for second degree murder, mostly in maximum security settings. Topics include: his story of what led to his murder conviction, descriptions of prison life, prison slang, sexual and physical assault dynamics, how prison encourages aggression, how poker games work in prison, and more.

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Reading indicators of good and bad relationships, with Brandi Fink Jun 01, 2019

A talk with Dr. Brandi Fink, a psychology researcher who has done work analyzing the interpersonal dynamics of couples and families, including couples and families having physical abuse and drug/alcohol abuse issues. We talk about: the reasons why researchers and therapists attempt quantification of interpersonal behavior; how some analysis/coding systems work; the challenges in coding behavior; common physical and verbal patterns that can point to interpersonal problems; brain scan research on the effects of alcohol; and more.

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Reading customers in door-to-door sales, with Conrad Smith and Dave Mock May 15, 2019

A talk about how understanding psychology and behavior can play a role in successful door-to-door sales. Host Zach Elwood interviews two experienced door-to-door salespeople: Conrad Smith, who was a top salesman for a well-known home security system company, and David Mock, who did door-to-door sales for a large, well-known home remodeling company.

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Restaurant and service industry psychology, with Robin Dibble Apr 20, 2019

A talk with Robin Dibble, an experienced service industry professional who has worked all sides of the restaurant business, from waiting tables, to cooking, to managing restaurants and nightclubs. Topics: the role of psychology and perception-manipulation in the restaurant and service industries.

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Psychology and behavior in MMA and jiu-jitsu, with Robert Drysdale Mar 18, 2019

A talk with Robert Drysdale, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu and mixed martial arts expert and world champion, on the roles psychology and predicting opponent behavior can play in professional fighting. Topics: the role of psychology, mental preparation, and action-anticipation in MMA and jiu-jitsu.

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Reading opponent behavior in the sport of fencing, with Seth Baldwin Mar 09, 2019

A talk with Seth Baldwin about the sport of fencing and the roles that psychology and predicting opponent behavior can play in the sport. Baldwin is an experienced fencer who, at the peak of his game, got 3rd at the 2004 U.S. National Championships.

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Social engineering, with Jenny Radcliffe Jan 10, 2019

A talk with Jenny Radcliffe, an expert in social engineering: the manipulation of people to gain access to information or materials. Radcliffe talks about her work infiltrating companies as a paid security consultant, and discusses some of the psychological and behavioral aspects of that work. Radcliffe has her own podcast about psychology and security: The Human Factor. Her website is www.JennyRadcliffe.com.

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Interrogation techniques, with David Zulawski Dec 14, 2018

A talk with David Zulawski, an expert in interrogation/interview techniques. Zulawski is co-owner of Wicklander Zulawski and Associates (w-z.com), a firm specializing in interview and interrogation consulting and education. Zulawksi is co-author, with Wicklander, of the respected and widely-used book "Practical Aspects of Interview and Interrogation." We talk about interrogation techniques, with a focus on psychological and behavioral aspects.

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Jury selection strategies, with Christina Marinakis Sep 24, 2018

A talk with Dr. Christina Marinakis, J.D., Psy.D., jury selection and voir dire expert. Marinakis is the Director of Jury Research at Litigation Insights, a large trial consultancy firm. Dr. Marinakis answers questions about: how the jury selection process works; strategies used to expose potential juror bias; and how psychology, stereotyping, and human behavior can play a role in that work.

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Analyzing written and verbal statements, with Mark McClish Sep 07, 2018

An interview of Mark McClish, an expert in analyzing written and verbal statements. McClish is a former U.S. Marshal and law enforcement trainer on interview and interrogation techniques. He's the author of two books on Statement Analysis®: "I Know You Are Lying," and "Don't Be Deceived." Topics discussed in this episode include: common deceptive patterns, why people find it difficult to straightforwardly lie, and discussion of some criminal cases, including the Chris Watts case, Steven Avery, OJ Simpson, and more.

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Reading the audience when doing standup comedy, with Alex Falcone Aug 21, 2018

An interview with Portland, Oregon-based comedian Alex Falcone about the role of understanding and using human psychology and behavior in stand-up comedy.

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