Can the kindness of strangers help with the loneliness crisis? Whether you are a student, staff, or have gone alt-ac, you’ve likely had to move at least once recently for your education and career goals. It can get lonely when family and friends are far away or they just don’t understand what you are doing with your life, and you are left wondering who you c ... Show More
Feb 25
Mari Ruti and Gail N. Newman, "The Creative Self: Beyond Individualism" (Columbia UP, 2025)
In their book The Creative Self: Beyond Individualism (Columbia UP, 2025) Mari Ruti and Gail N. Newman offer our beleaguered souls a breather. Together they tackle the question of what makes life worth living, and before you recoil at the sound of that question, which intentiona ... Show More
1h 8m
Feb 6
Black Beryl: The Modern Remaking of Kundalini, with Marleen Thaler
Today host Pierce Salguero sits down with Marleen Thaler, a researcher at the University of Vienna and University of Graz. Together, we investigate the history of the transformation of Kundalini from a Hindu goddess resting at the base of the spine to her modern manifestation as ... Show More
1h 3m
Jan 31
Federico Alvarez Igarzábal and Emmanuel Guardiola, "Video Games and Mental Health: Perspectives of Psychology and Game Design" (Transcript Publishing, 2024)
How do video games and mental health intersect from the perspectives of psychology and game design? In recent years, the topic of mental health has gained tremendous importance for the games industry, affecting both the applied and entertainment games sectors. The former draws fr ... Show More
30m 15s
Jul 2021
Teaching First-Year and First-Generation Students: A Conversation with Lisa Nunn
Welcome to The Academic Life. You are smart and capable, but you aren’t an island, and neither are we. So we reached across our mentor network to bring you podcasts on everything from how to finish that project, to how to take care of your beautiful mind. Wish we’d bring in an ex ... Show More
52m 57s
Apr 2021
Why you should talk to strangers, with Gillian Sandstrom, PhD, and Jon Levy
Despite the fact that so many people profess to dislike making small talk, it turns out that talking to strangers and acquaintances can actually strengthen our mental health and enrich our lives. What do we gain from meeting new people? What have we been missing out on this past ... Show More
41m 46s
Jun 2023
Ep 34: How do you make friends as an adult?
This is Episode 34 of PsychCrunch, the podcast of the British Psychological Society's Research Digest, sponsored by Routledge Psychology. Despite it being easier than ever to communicate, so many of us find it challenging to make new friends – especially as we get older. Opening ... Show More
19m 11s
Jan 2021
How to Stop Chasing Happiness and Make a Meaningful Life Instead
Welcome to The Academic Life. You are smart and capable, but you aren’t an island, and neither are we. So we reached across our mentor network to bring you podcasts on everything from how to finish that project, to how to take care of your beautiful mind. Wish we’d bring in an ex ... Show More
49m 19s