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Hidden Brain The Hidden Brain helps curious people understand the world – and themselves. Using science and storytelling, Hidden Brain's host Shankar Vedantam reveals the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, the biases that shape our choices, and the triggers that direct the course of our relationships.

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A conversation about life's unseen patterns
Bad-Mouthing Opponents Likely Spurs Them On To Win, Research Shows
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Bad-Mouthing Opponents Likely Spurs Them On To Win, Research Shows

Researchers say that trash-talking can motivate people to outperform their opponents. This happens for tasks that involve effort, but not creativity.

Bad-Mouthing Opponents Likely Spurs Them On To Win, Research Shows

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Nostalgia Isn't Just A Fixation On The Past - It Can Be About The Future, Too
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Nostalgia Isn't Just A Fixation On The Past - It Can Be About The Future, Too

Is nostalgia an emotion that's bitter, or sweet? Psychologist Clay Routledge explains what causes us to feel nostalgic and how nostalgia affects us.

Nostalgia Isn't Just A Fixation On The Past - It Can Be About The Future, Too

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Nature, Nurture, And Our Evolving Debates About Gender

How much does biology shape who we are, and how much is determined by culture and the environment in which we live? Renee Klahr/NPR hide caption

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Nature, Nurture, And Our Evolving Debates About Gender

What does it mean to be a boy and what does it mean to be a girl? We delve into debates over gender – and explore how some people are moving beyond labels and building gender identities of their own.

Nature, Nurture, And Our Evolving Debates About Gender

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Researchers Explore Pornography's Effect On Long-Term Relationships
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Researchers Explore Pornography's Effect On Long-Term Relationships

Married men and women who use pornography are more likely to get divorced than men and women who do not, researchers say. Porn is a driver in making relationships worse, increasing the divorce risk.

Researchers Explore Pornography's Effect On Long-Term Relationships

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Classifying Attacks: Mental Illness Or Terrorism?
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Classifying Attacks: Mental Illness Or Terrorism?

New research explores our tendency to label mass shooters as either mentally ill or as terrorists, based on whether they are Muslim or not.

Classifying Attacks: Mental Illness Or Terrorism?

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Can A Child Be Raised Free Of Gender Stereotypes? This Family Tried
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Can A Child Be Raised Free Of Gender Stereotypes? This Family Tried

When Jessica and Royce James learned that they were going to have a daughter, they decided to raise her in as gender-neutral a way as possible. It was harder than they could have imagined.

Can A Child Be Raised Free Of Gender Stereotypes? This Family Tried

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Hookup Culture: The Unspoken Rules Of Sex On College Campuses

Today's college students aren't necessarily having more sex than previous generations, but the culture that permeates hookups on campus has changed. Mark Peterson/Corbis via Getty Images hide caption

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Hookup Culture: The Unspoken Rules Of Sex On College Campuses

We all know casual sex isn't about love. But what if it's not even about lust?

Hookup Culture: The Unspoken Rules Of Sex On College Campuses

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Powerful Storms Make For Compelling Stories, But Can Cause Mental Health Stress
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Powerful Storms Make For Compelling Stories, But Can Cause Mental Health Stress

NPR's Kelly McEvers talks with Shankar Vedantam, host of NPR's Hidden Brain podcast about how witnessing traumatic events — even from a great distance — can affect mental health.

Powerful Storms Make For Compelling Stories, But Can Cause Mental Health Stress

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Examining Links Between Academic Performance And Food Stamps
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Examining Links Between Academic Performance And Food Stamps

South Carolina researchers have drawn a connection between low-income students' poor performance on math tests and the time of month when their families run low on food stamps.

Examining Links Between Academic Performance And Food Stamps

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How The Minimum Wage Affects Restaurant Hygiene
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How The Minimum Wage Affects Restaurant Hygiene

An analysis of Seattle restaurants shows that as the city dramatically raised the minimum wage for restaurant employees and other workers, restaurants responded by lowering hygiene standards.

How The Minimum Wage Affects Restaurant Hygiene

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Why We Can't Shake Life's 'Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda' Moments
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Why We Can't Shake Life's 'Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda' Moments

Amy Summerville runs the Regret Lab at Miami University in Ohio. She says regret is pervasive — but it doesn't always have to be a negative emotion.

Why We Can't Shake Life's 'Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda' Moments

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Study Looks At How People Think About Free Speech
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Study Looks At How People Think About Free Speech

Some new research says that many people use free speech arguments only when convenient, and as a cover for their own feelings.

Study Looks At How People Think About Free Speech

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How President Trump's Rhetoric Is Changing The Way Americans Talk
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How President Trump's Rhetoric Is Changing The Way Americans Talk

New research suggests Donald Trump's attacks on groups such as Muslims and Mexicans are changing our views of what's acceptable to say.

How President Trump's Rhetoric Is Changing The Way Americans Talk

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You 2.0: How Silicon Valley Can Help You Get Unstuck

Are you feeling stuck? Scroll down to take our quiz and find out whether you have a "gravity" problem. Renee Klahr/NPR hide caption

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You 2.0: How Silicon Valley Can Help You Get Unstuck

Many of us feel stuck at one point or another: in the wrong city, the wrong job, or the wrong relationship. Self-help gurus have offered lots of advice — but here's a new idea, from the tech world.

You 2.0: How Silicon Valley Can Help You Get Unstuck

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You 2.0: Why We're Bad At Predicting Our Own Happiness — And How We Can Get Better

Dan Gilbert says we're not great at predicting how much we will enjoy an experience in part because we fail to consider all of the details. We think a visit to the dentist will be terrible, but we're forgetting about the free toothbrush, the nice chat with the dental hygienist and the magazines in the waiting room. Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images hide caption

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You 2.0: Why We're Bad At Predicting Our Own Happiness — And How We Can Get Better

No matter how much time we spend thinking about the future, we don't get any better at predicting it. We talk to Dan Gilbert about how we can use this research to lead happier lives.

You 2.0: Why We're Bad At Predicting Our Own Happiness — And How We Can Get Better

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You 2.0: Why Disorder May Be Good For Us

A messy life can be a well-lived life, according to author and economist Tim Harford. PeopleImages/Getty Images hide caption

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You 2.0: Why Disorder May Be Good For Us

To many of us, the desire to bring order to chaos can be irresistible. But writer Tim Harford thinks many of us could use a bit more messiness in our lives.

You 2.0: Why Disorder May Be Good For Us

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You 2.0: The Value Of 'Deep Work' In An Age Of Distraction

Every time you give in to your phone or computer that's buzzing with notifications, you pay a price: little by little, you lose your ability to focus. Tom Merton/Getty Images/Caiaimage hide caption

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You 2.0: The Value Of 'Deep Work' In An Age Of Distraction

Every time you give in to the buzzing notifications of our phone or computer, you pay a price: little by little, you lose your ability to focus.

You 2.0: The Value Of 'Deep Work' In An Age Of Distraction

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Hidden Brain: How Cigarette Taxes Affect Food Buying
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Hidden Brain: How Cigarette Taxes Affect Food Buying

A new study shows a connection between cigarette taxes and food stamps. When cigarette taxes go up, smokers end up spending more of their income on cigarettes and that leaves less money for food.

Hidden Brain: How Cigarette Taxes Affect Food Buying

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