People Who Read People: A Behavior and Psychology Podcast

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.  Learn more about the show and get transcripts at⁠ ⁠behavior-podcast.com⁠⁠.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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. Learn more about the show and get transcripts at⁠ ⁠behavior-podcast.com⁠⁠.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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.   Learn more about the show and get transcripts at⁠ ⁠behavior-podcast.com⁠⁠.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An interview with professional gamer Nocturnal (OhNocturnal on Twitch), about reading opponent behavior in Apex Legends and other video games. We also talk about the financial aspects of being a pro video gamer.  Learn more about the show and get transcripts at⁠ ⁠behavior-podcast.com⁠⁠.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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.  Learn more about the show and get transcripts at⁠ ⁠behavior-podcast.com⁠⁠.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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.  Learn more about the show and get transcripts at⁠ ⁠behavior-podcast.com⁠⁠.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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.  Learn more about the show and get transcripts at⁠ ⁠behavior-podcast.com⁠⁠.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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.   Learn more about the show and get transcripts at⁠ ⁠behavior-podcast.com⁠⁠.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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. Learn more about the show and get transcripts at⁠ ⁠behavior-podcast.com⁠⁠.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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.   Learn more about the show and get transcripts at⁠ ⁠behavior-podcast.com⁠⁠.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices