PsychSessions: Conversations about Teaching N' Stuff

Latest Episodes:

E018: RE-RELEASE: Michael Wertheimer Aug 04, 2026

Show notes

Step into psychology history with Michael Wertheimer.

In this (Re-Release) episode of PsychSessions, Michael reflects on his remarkable career, his educational journey, and what it was like growing up as the son of Max Wertheimer, founder of Gestalt psychology. Along the way, he shares stories from serving as a teaching assistant at Harvard for E. G. Boring and B. F. Skinner, plus insights on balancing work, life, and a lifelong love of travel.

Listen wherever you get your podcasts. 🎧

E256: Nancy Segal: Twin studies, identity mysteries, and genetic reflections (with guest host Jane Halonen) Jul 28, 2026

Show notes

In this episode Garth and special guest host Jane Halonen interview Nancy Segal from California State University, Fullerton in Fullerton, CA. Nancy discusses her lifelong twin research, books, and current projects. She describes how an undergraduate essay sparked her career, her work with the Minnesota twins reared-apart study, and how behavioral genetics became more accepted as evidence accumulated. She previews her trade book Twinship: What Twins' Ties Reveal About Relationships and notes she has nine published books, including work on Auschwitz twins, switched-at-birth Colombian identical twins, and a case involving gay fathers and twin sons. Nancy discusses twin-loss research, expert-witness cases, and doppelgangers used to counter "treated alike" critiques. She explains rising twinning rates (delayed childbirth, IVF), emphasizes twin studies' relevance to everyone, rejects evidence for "twin telepathy," and invites participation via her website and twin study center.

[Note. Portions of the show notes were generated with Descript AI.]

E017: RE-RELEASE: Carol Tavris Jul 21, 2026

Show notes

🎙️ How do we separate good science from good storytelling?

In this RE-RELEASE episode of PsychSessions, Garth sits down with Carol Tavris to discuss scientific integrity, critical thinking, cognitive dissonance, and the responsibility of communicating psychology accurately to the public.

This thought-provoking conversation is a powerful reminder that evidence—not popularity—should guide what we believe and teach.

🎧 Listen now and be inspired to think more critically.

E255: Jared Keeley: Passion, pedagogy, innovation, and excellence Jul 14, 2026

Show notes

In this episode Garth interviews Jared Keeley from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA. Jared serves as the first-year director of clinical training and talks about VCU's urban, community-serving campus and student body. He describes his dual interests in clinical psychology and the scholarship of teaching and learning, focusing on the Teacher Behavior Checklist (TBC), developed with Bill Buskist, based on interviews with award-winning teachers to create a more theory- and data-informed, formative teaching feedback tool. Jared recounts his path from Colorado to Knox College, Auburn's renowned teacher-training program, and how his work on clinician classification led to field-trial contributions to the World Health Organization's ICD.

[Note. Portions of the show notes were generated by Descript AI.]

E016: RE-RELEASE: Victor Benassi Jul 07, 2026

Show notes

🎙️ What does great teaching actually look like—and can it be taught?

In this RE-RELEASE episode of PsychSessions, Chris sits down with Victor Benassi to explore the science of exceptional teaching and what it takes to truly transform learning in higher education.

Whether you're a new instructor or a seasoned educator, this conversation will challenge, inspire, and remind you why teaching matters.

🎧 Listen now and rethink what's possible in the classroom.

Portions of the show notes were generated by Descript AI.

E254: Jon Krosnick: Interdisciplinary excellence, building bridges, education, research, and jazz Jun 30, 2026

Show notes

In this episode Eric interviews Jon Krosnick from Stanford University in Stanford, CA. Jon discusses his cross-appointments and major initiatives, including a new sustainability school funded by a $1.3–$1.4B private gift, hiring about 60 faculty members, and the role of Environmental Social Sciences in ensuring that engineered solutions work with human behavior. He describes the interdisciplinary challenges of building a new PhD core, admits difficulty saying no, and explains the Stanford Institute for Excellence in Survey Research and his focus on meticulous methodology. He recounts training at Harvard and Michigan's Institute for Social Research, Ohio State (18 years), and a fellowship that shaped his ethical perspective. Discussing activism, he says protests may not change attitudes but strongly signal constituent passion to lawmakers; attitude change is often small and short-lived, so campaigns focus on turnout. He also explains Census Bureau work improving household respondent selection protocols and shares his parallel career as a jazz drummer with long-running bands and about 200 performances a year.

[Note. Portions of the show notes were generated by Descript AI.]

E015: RE-RELEASE: What is labor based grading? Jun 23, 2026

Show notes

In this AskPsychSessions RE-RELEASE feature, Marianne speaks with Jasmine Mena from Bucknell University. They cover the basics of labor based grading — an approach that evaluates students on the effort and labor they invest in their work rather than traditional quality-based standards. She discusses how this method empowers students with agency over their learning, and incorporates scaffolded assignments, reflection, and compassion into the classroom.

[Portions of the show notes were generated by Descript AI.]

Stubborn (Bernie's Dad, Season 01, Episode 12) Jun 18, 2026

Show notes

Bernie's Dad: Personal Reflections is a short-form, reflective podcast hosted by psychology educator Eric Landrum that explores the surprising parallels between a 35-plus-year academic career and life with a new puppy named Bernie Sanders. Through brief, one-word–titled episodes inspired by psychological descriptors, Eric offers thoughtful, often warm reflections on teaching, growth, patience, and professional identity. Blending humor, insight, and personal storytelling, the podcast invites listeners to pause, reflect, and recognize connections between their own careers, relationships, and everyday experiences.

Original music generated with Suno.

Leader (Bernie's Dad, Season 01, Episode 11) Jun 18, 2026

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Original music generated with Suno.

Humorous (Bernie's Dad, Season 01, Episode 10) Jun 18, 2026

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Original music generated with Suno.