In this episode, we talk to David Pinsof about the surprising ways people form their beliefs and build alliances. Drawing on his survey with Cards Against Humanity, he shares how people often hold contradictory views and what this reveals about group coordination. We also dive into his game-theoretic model of coalition-building, explore how humor functions as a coordination tool, and discuss the deeper logic behind seemingly irrational behavior.
David Pinsof is a behavioral scientist whose work combines evolutionary psychology and game theory, to understand belief formation and social dynamics. He is also one of the co-creators of "Cards against Humanity", the author of the blog Everything Is Bullshit and recently launched the podcast - Evolutionary Psychology (The Podcast) - in which he explores cutting-edge work in the evolutionary behavioral sciences.
You can find the paper „Strange Bedfellows" David mentioned in the episode here.
Game Changer - the game theory podcast