

New Books in Psychology
Marshall Poe
This podcast is a channel on the New Books Network. The New Books Network is an academic audio library dedicated to public education. In each episode you will hear scholars discuss their recently published research with another expert in their field.
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Discover our 150+ channels and browse our 28,000+ episodes on our website: newbooksnetwork.com
Subscribe to our free weekly Substack newsletter to get informative, engaging content straight to your inbox: https://newbooksnetwork.substack.com/
Follow us on Instagram and Bluesky to learn about more our latest interviews: @newbooksnetworkSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 4, 2022 • 52min
Susan Chase Edgecomb, "Clearing in the West: Navigating the Journey Through Loss, Grief and Healing" (2021)
The untimely losses of her brother, her father, and her husband, make this author uniquely qualified to help support you through your loss and grief. She understands that each loss will change one’s life in different ways as she writes about the fears and questions that swirled in her head following each of the deaths in her immediate family. In Chapter nine she focuses on the first loss in the family, when her older brother was killed in action in Vietnam in 1967. Her father died of a heart attack in 1970. Chapter sixteen describes the sudden death of her husband in 1984 when he suffered a heart attack while playing racquet ball. She writes about her early months as a young widow with a three-year-old daughter and wonders if grief is cumulative.The author realized, early on, that her family’s traditional way of grieving, did not work for her. She gives important, information on how family and friends’ attempt to be helpful, can sometimes fall short. Grief overload moved her to be proactive in finding the support she needed. Because of these experiences and her commitment to moving forward and creating a new and satisfying life, she decided to tell her story. The author wants to share what she has learned about the process of grief and to inspire others to use her experiences to better understand what grief looks like from the inside out. This memoir is a testament to the resilience, strength, and determination of those coping with grief and perhaps starting to move forward on their journey.Clearing in the West: Navigating the Journey Through Loss, Grief and Healing (2021) is the author's first book. As a teacher, she taught her students to "write what you know." Now retired, she has become a writer herself. Her article, "The Wall," was published in the Boston Globe Magazine, November 11, 2018. She lives in Needham, MA and spends summer in Maine, when not traveling. Elizabeth Cronin, Psy.D., is a licensed clinical psychologist and mindfulness meditation teacher with offices in Brookline and Norwood, MA. You can follow her on Instagram or visit her website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

Mar 3, 2022 • 1h 4min
Mental Health in Academia 4: The Science of Managing “Stress”
We are delighted to present All for One and One for All: Public Seminar Series on Mental Health in Academia and Society. All for One and One for All talks will shine the light on and discuss mental health issues in academia across all levels – from students to faculty, as well as in wider society. Seminars are held online once per month on Wednesdays at 5pm CET/ 11am EST and free for all to attend. Speakers include academics, organisations, and health professionals whose work focuses on mental health. Live Q and A sessions will be held after each talk. For live webinar schedule please visit this website. Follow us on Twitter: @LashuelLabToday’s talk is with Dr. Stuart Farrimond, Dr. Hilal Lashuel and Galina LimorenkoDr Stuart Farrimond is a medical doctor turned science communicator and food scientist and is author of the DK bestsellers The Science of Cooking (2017) and Science of Spice (2018), and the Sunday Times bestseller The Science of Living (2021) (Sold as Live Your Best Life in North America). He is a science and medical writer, presenter, and educator. He makes regular appearances on TV, radio, and at public events, and his writing appears in national and international publications, including The Independent, The Daily Mail, and New Scientist. Since 2017, Dr Stu has been the food scientist for BBC's much-loved show Inside the Factory, hosted by Gregg Wallace and Cherry Healey. An avid blogger, Stuart is also the founder and editor of online lifestyle-science magazine Guru, which is supported by the Wellcome Trust, the world’s largest medical research charity.A word of caution: some viewers may find topics on mental health discussed in QnA sensitive Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

13 snips
Mar 3, 2022 • 52min
Rejection Skills: How to Win or Learn
Welcome to The Academic Life! In this episode you’ll hear about:
How rejection is normal and even inevitable
Skills to help you learn from and move through rejections toward your goals
Why you need to develop your capacity for patience
How asking people about their own rejections can help normalize yours
A discussion of the book Win or Learn
Today’s book is: Win or Learn: The Naked Truth About Turning Every Rejection into Your Ultimate Success, by rejection expert and New York Times bestselling author Harlan Cohen. Cohen lays the framework for identifying your wants, taking the risks necessary to pursue them, and finding success no matter the outcome. This step-by-step risk-taking experiment will guide you on a journey to understand your worth and fight for your goals—because rejection is a universal truth but not a final destination.Our guest is: Harlan Cohen, bestselling author of seven books, a journalist, and a speaker who has visited over 500 college campuses. He loves helping people find support, happiness, hope, love, and light. He is the author of WIN or LEARN: The Naked Truth About Turning Every Rejection Into Your Ultimate Success.Our host is: Dr. Christina Gessler, the co-creator and co-producer of the Academic Life. She is a historian of women and gender.Listeners to this episode might also be interested in:
The Naked Roommate, by Harlan Cohen
Harlan’s TedX talk (watch TEDx talk here).
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck
The Rejection that Changed My Life by Jessica Bacal
How to Fail podcast by Elizabeth Day
The Museum of Failure website
You are smart and capable, but you aren’t an island and neither are we. We reach across our mentor network to bring you experts about everything from how to finish that project, to how to take care of your beautiful mind. Wish we’d bring on an expert about something? DM us on Twitter: The Academic Life @AcademicLifeNBN. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

Mar 3, 2022 • 58min
Jay J. Van Bavel and Dominic J. Packer, "The Power of Us: Harnessing Our Shared Identities" (Little, Brown Spark, 2021)
If you're like most people, you probably believe that your identity is stable. But in fact, your identity is constantly changing—often outside your conscious awareness and sometimes even against your wishes—to reflect the interests of the groups you belong to.In The Power of Us (Little Brown, Spark, 2021), psychologists Dominic Packer and Jay Van Bavel integrate their own cutting-edge research in psychology and neuroscience to explain how identity really works and how to harness its dynamic nature to:
- Boost cooperation and productivity
- Overcome bias
- Escape from echo chambers
- Break political gridlock
- Foster dissent and mobilize for change
- Lead effectively
- Galvanize action to address persistent global problems
Along the way, they explore such seemingly unrelated phenomena as why a small town in Germany spent decades divided by shoes, why beliefs persist after they are disproven, how working together synchronizes our brains, what makes selfish people generous, why effective leaders say “we” a lot, and how playing soccer can reduce age-old conflicts.Understanding how identity works allows people to take control, moving beyond wondering, “Who am I?” to answer instead, “Who do I want to be?” Packed with fascinating insights, vivid case studies, and a wealth of pioneering research, The Power of Us will change the way you understand yourself—and the people around you—forever.Matthew Jordan is a university instructor, funk musician, and clear writing enthusiast. He studies the history of science and technology, driven by the belief that we must understand the past in order to improve the future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

Mar 3, 2022 • 38min
Kile M. Ortigo, "Beyond the Narrow Life: A Guide to Psychedelic Integration and Existential Exploration" (Synergetic Press, 2021)
Kile M. Ortigo's Beyond the Narrow Life: A Guide to Psychedelic Integration and Existential Exploration (Synergetic Press, 2021) addresses major issues that arise from the psychospiritual and therapeutic use of psychedelics. It describes a core structure that psychedelic journeys exhibit, and share, with classic mythologies; religious traditions; and spiritual practices. Its method is to integrate findings from cognitive-behavioral therapy, Jungian depth psychology, existential philosophy, compassion and mindfulness practices, comparative mythology, pop culture, film, and scientific understandings of the cosmos. The book also includes exercises designed to guide readers through the profound questions raised by diverse individual journeys of change and growth. Steve Beitler’s work in the history of medicine focuses on how pain has been understood, treated, experienced, and represented. Recently published articles examined the history of opiates in American football and surveyed the history of therapeutic drugs. He can be reached at noelandsteve@gmail.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

Mar 3, 2022 • 31min
Daniel H. Pink, "The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward" (Penguin, 2022)
Today I talked to Daniel H. Pink about his new book The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward (Riverhead Books, 2022).After the emotion of love, regret is the second most common emotion people report feeling. Regret is therefore our single most common negative emotion, and yet an emotion that we can benefit from. In this episode, the celebrated author Daniel H. Pink explains that what we regret also serves as a compass pointing us toward what we value most and want to get right in our lives. What did Pink learn from his global survey that catalogued over 16,000 regrets? That they fit into four categories: connection regrets, boldness regrets, foundation regrets, and moral regrets. From the goals of love, learning, stability, to being lovable, these regrets compel us to be better by ideally reflecting, rather than brooding, over what might have been better. One fun or at least intriguing take-away from this episode: you can hear about Pink’s own Regret Resume, i.e., the two take-away lessons that reflecting on his regrets taught him first and foremost.Daniel H. Pink is the author of the New York Times bestsellers A Whole New Mind, Drive, To Sell Is Human, and When. His books have sold millions of copies and have been translated into 42 languages. His TED talk has been viewed over 38 million times. Daniel hosted the TV series Crowd Control on the National Geographic Channel.Dan Hill, PhD, is the author of nine books and leads Sensory Logic, Inc. (https://www.sensorylogic.com). His new book is Blah, Blah, Blah: A Snarky Guide to Office Lingo. To check out his related “Dan Hill’s EQ Spotlight” blog, visit https://emotionswizard.com.Today I talked to Daniel H. Pink about his new book The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward (Riverhead Books, 2022). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

Mar 2, 2022 • 52min
David Robson, "The Expectation Effect: How Your Mindset Can Change Your World" (Henry Holt, 2022)
The Expectation Effect: How your Mindset Can Change Your World (Henry Holt, 2022) is a journey through the cutting-edge science of how our mindset shapes every facet of our lives, revealing how your brain holds the keys to unlocking a better you. What you believe can make it so.You’ve heard of the placebo effect and how sugar pills can accelerate healing. But did you know that sham heart surgeries often work just as well as placing real stents? Or that people who think they’re particularly prone to cardiovascular disease are four times as likely to die from cardiac arrest? Such is the power and deadly importance of the expectation effect―how what we think will happen changes what does happen.Melding neuroscience with narrative, science journalist David Robson takes readers on a deep dive into the many life zones the expectation effect permeates. We see how people who believe stress is beneficial become more creative when placed under strain. We see how associating aging with wisdom can add seven plus years to your life. People say seeing is believing but, over and over, Robson proves that the converse is truer: believing is seeing.Sine YaganogluHaving trained as a neuroscientist and bioengineer, I switched to industry following my PhD at ETH Zurich and have been working in innovation management and diagnostics. Besides reading about science, innovation and entrepreneurship, I have become interested in the scientific and cultural aspects of parenting and motherhood since welcoming my first child. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

Mar 2, 2022 • 57min
Oliver Burkeman, "Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals" (FSG, 2021)
The average human lifespan is absurdly, insultingly brief. Assuming you live to be eighty, you have just over four thousand weeks.Nobody needs telling there isn't enough time. We're obsessed with our lengthening to-do lists, our overfilled inboxes, work-life balance, and the ceaseless battle against distraction; and we're deluged with advice on becoming more productive and efficient, and "life hacks" to optimize our days. But such techniques often end up making things worse. The sense of anxious hurry grows more intense, and still the most meaningful parts of life seem to lie just beyond the horizon. Still, we rarely make the connection between our daily struggles with time and the ultimate time management problem: the challenge of how best to use our four thousand weeks.Drawing on the insights of both ancient and contemporary philosophers, psychologists, and spiritual teachers, Oliver Burkeman delivers an entertaining, humorous, practical, and ultimately profound guide to time and time management. Rejecting the futile modern fixation on "getting everything done," Four Thousand Weeks (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2021) introduces readers to tools for constructing a meaningful life by embracing finitude, showing how many of the unhelpful ways we've come to think about time aren't inescapable, unchanging truths, but choices we've made as individuals and as a society--and that we could do things differently. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

Mar 1, 2022 • 1h 6min
Myisha Cherry, "The Case for Rage: Why Anger Is Essential to Anti-Racist Struggle" (Oxford UP, 2021)
According to a broad consensus among philosophers across the ages, anger is regrettable, counterproductive, and bad. It is something to be overcome or suppressed, something that involves an immoral drive for revenge or a naïve commitment to cosmic justice. Anger is said to involve a corruption of the person – it “eats away” at them, or plunges them into madness.Maybe anger has been under-appreciated. Perhaps we have failed to make the right distinctions between different varieties of anger – thereby overlooking kinds that are productive and appropriate. In The Case for Rage: Why Anger is Essential to Anti-Racist Struggle (Oxford University Press 2021), Myisha Cherry argues that we need to give anger a chance. After identifying distinct forms of anger, she defends a kind of anger she calls Lordean Rage, which she argues is central to antiracist social progress.Robert Talisse is the W. Alton Jones Professor of Philosophy at Vanderbilt University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology

Mar 1, 2022 • 44min
The Future of Sleep: A Discussion with Derk-Jan Dijk
Many people, at some stage of their life, worry about sleep: are they getting enough of it? Or even, too much? Derk-Jan Dijk is Professor of Sleep and Physiology at University of Surrey. His current research interests include the contribution of sleep to brain function in healthy ageing and dementia; the role of circadian rhythms in sleep regulation; negative effects of sleep loss; understanding age and sex related differences in sleep physiology and developing tests to monitor sleep. In this podcast he discusses these issues and the future direction of the discipline with Owen Bennett-Jones.Owen Bennett-Jones is a freelance journalist and writer. A former BBC correspondent and presenter he has been a resident foreign correspondent in Bucharest, Geneva, Islamabad, Hanoi and Beirut. He is recently wrote a history of the Bhutto dynasty which was published by Yale University Press. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/psychology


