Neuro Transmission Podcast Station

Season 3, Episode 13 

Tune in for a discussion on 10 psychological mysteries from nature/nurture to mental health stigma.

Season 3, Episode 12

On the Neuro Transmission, there’s never a shortage of new ideas. Join 10 professors featured in Season Three and learn how baseball, moral dilemmas, the human brain and other topics can help you create a dynamic way to engage students.

Season 3, Episode 11

Socially constructed gender roles and stereotypes are embedded into everyday facets of our lives. So how do you provide support to students who fit outside these rigid expectations? Dr. Spencer A. Rathus of the College of New Jersey discusses modern views of sexuality and gender, plus ideas for helping LGBTQ students.

Guest Biography

Dr. Spencer A. Rathus enjoyed his first professional position as a high-school English teacher. Because he enjoyed helping students with their personal issues, he went to graduate school for guidance counseling. Dr. Rathus’ professors guided him into a doctoral program in Psychology at the University at Albany, and he then engaged in clinical practice for a number of years while teaching.

Dr. Rathus’ love of English and writing merged with his new love of Psychology, and he wrote college textbooks in the field. He chose to write them in a way that would be of interest to everyone, not just students from affluent families—all while maintaining scientific integrity.      

Dr. Rathus has said, “Psychology is splendid because it reveals the human condition as it is. It shows us at our height, helping others and reaching for stars and for those things that are invisible and yet to be invented. Psychology is troublesome because it also shows us at our most tribal and suggestible, hurting and condemning others, including people we have never met. For those reasons, if my readers come away from my books with nothing else, I want them to know what science is and how crucial evidence is. I don’t want them to believe anything anyone says without evidence. Not even me.”

Season 3, Episode 10

On average, we only have 2.6 people with whom we can connect—so how do we ensure we’re building our best social selves? Learn how Dr. Stephanie Cacioppo uses her brain dynamics laboratory at the University of Chicago to advance scientific knowledge of the social brain, and how she identifies biomarkers of successful social relationships.

Guest Biography

Named a "Rising Star" by the Association for Psychological Science, Dr. Stephanie Cacioppo, Ph.D., is the Director of the Brain Dynamics Laboratory and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience in the Biological Sciences Division at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine.  She has won prizes for her research on neuroimaging of social connections, social self and women’s health. She has authored more than 120 scientific publications and given interviews to prestigious outlets, such as the New York Times, Scientific American, Washington Post, Discover Magazine and National Geographic. She is the first female President of the Society for Social Neuroscience. In addition, she has been selected as a Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science and of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology and is a member of several other non-profit associations. Her work is at the intersection between social neuroscience, cognitive psychology and medicine. She currently investigates how the human brain forms, maintains and repairs social relationships. According to Dr. Stephanie Cacioppo, human meaningful connectedness has a function—not only to bond with people emotionally but also to improve our cognition and behavior, and indirectly our mental, physical and brain health.

Season 3, Episode 9

Dr. Matthew Wintersteen brings a sobering—but essential—topic to The Neuro Transmission: suicide prevention among students on college campuses. Join us as we review data from the Center for Collegiate Mental Health, prevention strategies and offer help.

Guest Biography

Matthew B. Wintersteen, Ph.D., is Associate Professor and Director of Research in the Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. His grant-funded work supports his role as facilitator of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Suicide Prevention Coalition, a collaborative partnership among nearly 100 campuses across Pennsylvania. The Coalition is designed to support researchers in developing meaningful and effective methods of reducing suicide deaths on campus. Dr. Wintersteen has served on national and international task forces convened by the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, the American Association of Suicidology, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, Suicide Awareness and Voices of Education and the National Institute of Mental Health. He was a consultant to the National Center for the Prevention of Youth Suicide (NCPYS), and serves on the Executive Board of Prevent Suicide PA after spending nearly a decade as the Co-Chair of the Pennsylvania Youth Suicide Prevention Initiative.

Season 3, Episode 7

In a Neuro Transmission first, our host sits down with a non-Psychology expert who has lots to teach us about how keeping students engaged. Hear how one Sociology Professor leveraged his love of Hip Hop and cultivated an interdisciplinary specialization that is a hit with students. 

Guest Biography

Andrew McIntosh is a lifelong DJ who married his love for Hip Hop and scholarship first at Bard College, Annandale, NY. He has taught "Pass the Peas: The Sociology of Hip Hop" for 16 years at Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA, a class born from his graduate work there. A presentation from that course has been written as a chapter entitled “Bucktown vs. ‘G’ Thang: The Enduring East Coast/West Coast Dialectic in Hip Hop Music” and will be published in the upcoming Oxford Handbook of Hip Hop Music Studies. He currently holds an appointment of Assistant Professor of Sociology at the Monroe Campus of Northampton Community College.

Season 3, Episode 6

We’re often told that college is ideal for securing a job. Accordingly, instructors design assignments with skill development in mind—but students tend to see them simply as a means of understanding course content. Professor Tanya Martini of Brock University reveals how you can help students recognize—and eventually apply—the skills you want them to build, and what employers want to see.

Guest Biography

Tanya Martini obtained her Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from the University of Toronto, and is a professor in the Psychology Department at Brock University in St. Catharines, Canada. Her passion for Psychology was ignited in her first-year Psychology course—she even switched majors as a result! She's thrilled to now inspire students in that same course.

In addition to Introductory Psychology, Dr. Martini also teaches Human Learning and courses designed to facilitate students’ understanding of career-related skills. Her research explores skill-based learning outcomes in post-secondary education. Dr. Martini is particularly interested in students’ ability to articulate the competencies that underlie skills such as critical thinking and collaboration. She’s also interested in how university assignments foster transferable skills that are of interest to employers.

Season 3, Episode 5

Sleep: everyone does it and everyone needs it. But have you ever wondered about the psychology and science behind it? Join Dr. Micah Sadigh for an awakening conversation about various sleep-related topics, including new research on sleep stages, how sleep relates to hygiene and more. Plus, Dr. Sadigh will “grade” the quality of America’s sleep.

Guest Biography

Dr. Micah Sadigh is a Professor and Chair of Psychology at Cedar Crest College in Allentown, Pennsylvania. An accomplished composer and published poet, Dr. Sadigh was the recipient of the Cedar Crest College Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2009.

He’s also the author of five books, including an internationally recognized book on the treatment of chronic pain and stress-related disorders. Dr. Sadigh’s other publications include works on sleep disorders, personality disorders, the psychophysiological treatment of pain and treatment of post-traumatic disorder.

Season 3, Episode 4

Listen to Dr. Carmon Weaver Hicks discuss a tough yet inevitable topic: death and dying. Hicks—a professor of Psychology and Sociology at Ivy Tech Community College—blends theory and research with personal stories and anecdotes from her classroom. From the language we use to talk about death to bereavement theories, tune in to hear what Hicks has to say about this fascinating—though often-avoided—topic.

Guest Biography

Dr. Carmon Weaver Hicks teaches a variety of courses at Ivy Tech Community College in Indianapolis, IN. She is energized by changing lives, inspiring minds and learning from students. Her Psychology and Sociology courses require that she stay current and think critically about the issues that influence the behavior of individuals and society.

Season 3, Episode 3

Husband-and-wife Psychology team Drs. Phil and Barbara Newman discuss the topic of adolescents and present a variety of insightful questions: What makes parenting adolescents challenging? How are parenting practices related to peer group membership? Hear Phil and Barbara share what they’ve learned about the psychology of adolescents — including tips for bringing the topic to life in your own Psychology and Sociology courses.

Guest Biographies

Dr. Phil Newman became interested in psychology during his sophomore year at the University of Michigan. The following year, he became a research assistant to David Birch and John Atkinson who were working on a theory of action based on motivation. While participating in experimental research, working with graduate students, and reading the works of some of the major scholars in the field of motivation and personality, Phil became fully engaged in the world of psychology.

After transferring to the University of Michigan, Dr. Barbara Newman entered the honors program in psychology which included a seminar where students read and discussed the ideas of many founding theorists including William James, Sigmund Freud, Ivan Pavlov and more. She also worked as a research assistant with Richard Mann who was studying the nature of social interaction in the college classroom.

When Phil and Barbara met, a new and enduring collaboration was born. Barbara is a Professor Emeritus at the University of Rhode Island, while Phil is a social psychologist and researches group identity, among other subjects.