Why Do We Do That?

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with psychology professor Dr. Daryl Van Tongeren about the topic of leaving religion and his new book, Done: How to Flourish After Leaving Religion.

They discuss why people leave religion, what it feels like when personal beliefs no longer match religious teachings, what parts of religion stay with them after they leave, how they reconstruct meaning, identity, and community, and...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with professor of psychiatry & trauma expert, Dr. Patricia Resick. 

They discuss the difference between trauma and ordinary negative events, the defining features of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), how our thoughts can keep us stuck in distress, and what helps people truly heal.

For more on Patricia, visit www.cptforptsd.com

Why Do We Do That? is a psychology podcast...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with psychiatrist and author Dr. Joe Pierre about his new book, False: How Mistrust, Disinformation, and Motivated Reasoning Make Us Believe Things that Aren't True.

They discuss how the internet has changed the way we learn and absorb information, how human thinking often diverges from objective reality, why it's so challenging to evaluate ideas that contradict our beliefs, the...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with experimental psychologist Dr. Thuy-vy Nguyen about solitude and her book, Solitude: The Science and Power of Being Alone, co-authored along with Netta Weinstein and Heather Hansen.

They discuss the difference between solitude and loneliness, the benefits of embracing solitude, what happens when we have too much or too little solitude, and how to improve your ability at bein...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with clinical psychologist Dr. Gilly Kahn about ADHD in adolescence and her upcoming debut book Allow Me to Interrupt: A Psychologist Reveals the Emotional Truth Behind Women's ADHD.

They discuss sex differences in the presentation of ADHD symptoms, the upside of ADHD thinking patterns, how rejection sensitivity can impact a teen's identity, ADHD & friendship, and how parent...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with psychology professor & author Dr. Tovah Klein about raising resilient children and her new book, Raising Resilience: How to Help Our Children Thrive in Times of Uncertainty.

They discuss why parents need to look inward before trying to change their child's behavior, making your child feel safe while encouraging exploration, validating your child's emotions while effecti...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with Richard & Colin Guare about executive skills in children and their new book, the 2nd edition of Smart But Scattered: The Revolutionary “Executive Skills” Approach to Helping Kids Reach Their Potential.

They discuss how parents can distinguish ability from motivational deficits, the importance of addressing your child's environment, why experience is more important than ...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with cultural psychologist Dr. Michael Morris about tribal culture and his new book, Tribal: How the Cultural Instincts That Divide Us Can Help Bring Us Together.

They discuss the important elements of culture, how human coordination compares to other primates, the key instincts that facilitated tribal living, and how our tribal nature can be used to foster cooperation in today'...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with psychologist Dr. Barbara Kelly about the topic of divorce.

They discuss the reasons why people pursue divorce, common causes of communication breakdown in a relationship and how to avoid them, strategies for detaching from an intimate partner, and how to manage divorce effectively when children are involved.

For more on Barbara, visit www.kellypsychology.com

Why Do We Do Th...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with existential psychologist Dr. Clay Routledge about happiness & well-being.

They discuss the extent to which happiness is objective, the distinction between pleasure and well-being, how discomfort can be an important contributor to well-being, and how nostalgia can be used to cope with negative emotions.

For more on Clay, visit his website or subscribe to his Substack.

Wh...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with psychologist Dr. Sue Jackson about flow states and her new book, Experiencing Flow: Life Beyond Boredom & Anxiety

They discuss the characteristics of flow, common activities that can produce flow states, the arousal sweet spot that leads to flow, what elite athletes can teach us about flow, and some practical ways to experience more flow in your life.

For more on Sue, v...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with clinical psychologist Dr. Jonathan Abramowitz about obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

They discuss how OCD is different from "ordinary" obsessions, different categories of obsessive thoughts, whether or not traumatic events cause OCD, and how exposure helps to treat OCD symptoms.

For more on Jon, visit http://www.jabramowitz.com or https://iocdf.org

Why Do We Do That? is...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with educational psychology scholar Dr. Russell Warne about intelligence and his book, In the Know: Debunking 35 Myths about Human Intelligence.

They discuss the key components of intelligence, the myth of multiple intelligences, what life outcomes are improved by having higher intelligence, to what degree intelligence is determined by your genes, and how IQ scores could be used...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with emotion researcher Dr. June Tangney about shame & guilt. They discuss the difference between guilt & shame, why some people feel more shame than others, whether or not shame can be a good thing, cultural differences in experiencing shame, and how to effectively cope with feelings of guilt & shame.

For more on June, visit her faculty page at George Mason Universi...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with behavioral scientist Dr. Coltan Scrivner about morbid curiosity. They discuss the different domains of morbid curiosity, if morbidly curious people are less empathetic, what attracts us to horror & true crime content, and potential benefits of being curious about danger.

For more on Coltan, visit www.coltanscrivner.com or subscribe to his Substack, Morbidly Curious Thou...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with professor of psychology and co-author of "Moral Combat: Why the War on Violent Video Games Is Wrong", Dr. Chris Ferguson, about the relationship between video games and mental health.

They discuss whether or not violent video games cause violent behavior, the challenges in measuring the impacts of gaming, why violent video games are so enjoyable, if gaming is any different ...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with play expert, Dr. Peter Gray about his book, Free to Learn: Why Unleashing the Instinct to Play Will Make Our Children Happier, More Self-Reliant, and Better Students For Life.

They discuss the characteristics of an activity that allow it to be considered play, the developmental skills learned during play, why play has declined since the 1950's, and how parents & schools...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with social psychologist Dr. Kate Sweeny about the psychology of uncertainty.

They discuss the upside of worrying, how uncertainty compares to other life stressors, what types of people are better at worrying, and effective vs. ineffective coping strategies.

For more on Kate, visit www.katesweeny.com.

Why Do We Do That? is a psychology podcast that deconstructs human behavior fr...

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Ryan Moyer speaks with professor of psychology Dr. Ellen Langer about mindfulness and her new book, The Mindful Body: Thinking Our Way to Chronic Health.

They discuss the difference between mindfulness and mindlessness, how our thoughts & mindsets can limit our potential, why the mind should not be thought of as separate from the body, and how thinking differently can improve our physical hea...