What's Up Docs? Doctors' Notes: Joy
Dec 30, 2025
Professor Sophie Scott, a cognitive neuroscientist from University College London, delves into the fascinating neuroscience of joy. They explore how joy differs between spontaneous moments and achievements, discussing its evolutionary purpose. Sophie highlights the challenges in studying joy in lab settings and reflects on the bittersweet nature of parental joy. She also describes how joy can be cultivated, the risks of replacing social joy with drugs, and how music can stimulate reward networks, enhancing communal joy.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Parenting Joys And Bittersweet Memories
- Sophie Scott describes joyful parenting moments from meeting her son after a long labour to later emotional evenings when he left for university.
- Those memories remain joyful even when tinged with sadness, showing joy's lasting imprint.
A Simple Paris Break Delivered Joy
- Sophie Scott recounts a recent joyful mini-break to Paris with her partner despite travel delays.
- The simple act of making time together produced a clear, delightful sense of joy.
Imaging Misses Neurochemical Bursts
- Functional MRI often misses rapid neurotransmitter-driven emotional changes, so imaging can under-represent joy's biology.
- Neurotransmitter shifts can drive emotion without large localized activity detectable by older fMRI methods.