What do technology, behaviour and data have in common? My guest, Paul Armstrong, runs a conference called TBD and is a thought leader in how the three topics interconnect. As technology becomes smarter and more pervasive, what does that mean for human decision-making and human risk?

Paul runs HERE/FORTH, an emerging technology advisory firm that works with a number of high-profile clients. As well as working in the technology industry in both the US and the UK, he has also written a book called "Disruptive Technologies” — the new revised version is just about to be published — and created the TBD Conference, an annual showcase of subjects relevant to technology, behaviour and data. In our discussion, Paul talks about how the conference came about.

To find out more about Paul, visit his website: https://www.paularmstrong.co.uk/

For more on TBD Conference: https://www.thetbdconference.com/ and the 2023 speakers: https://www.thetbdconference.com/speakers

To get 50% off ticket prices, use this exclusive link: https://www.universe.com/embed2/events/633466daac39cb002e4cfbb0?state=%7B%22currentDiscountCode%22%3A%7B%22code%22%3A%22TBDCONFHUMANRISK%22%7D%7D

To order Paul’s new book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Disruptive-Technologies-Practical-Understand-Disruption/dp/139860920X

For more on Paul’s “What Did Amazon Do This Week” subscription newsletter: https://whatdidamazondothisweek.substack.com/

Some of the things we mention on the show:

Desire Paths, where humans chose routes other than the ones designers intended: https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/oct/05/desire-paths-the-illicit-trails-that-defy-the-urban-planners

The Welsh example I refer to: https://www.reddit.com/r/therewasanattempt/comments/nvgxef/to_stop_people_walking_on_the_grass/

Affordances: https://danewesolko.medium.com/the-theory-of-affordances-cb51fd138b3e

The book ‘Winning Not Fighting’: https://www.winningnotfighting.com/

Behavioural Science guru Rory Sutherland. Here’s his first appearance on the show: https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/rory-sutherland-on-compliance/

Miss Yankey, the slam poet Paul invites to do readings at TBD: https://www.missyankey.com/

Sedition, digital art: https://www.seditionart.com/

Finally, to pre-order my new book, 'Humanized Rules: Bringing Behavioural Science to Ethics & Compliance', visit https://www.linktr.ee/humanizingrules. Keep your receipt, and you’ll get access to exclusive content and events.

How can stereotypes — particularly those relating to gender and ethnicity — drive us to draw the wrong conclusions? If I say the word American, you’re more likely to think of a white person. If I say the word Doctor, you’re more likely to think of a man. There’s a famous riddle involving a surgeon (link below) that you may have heard, which has an obvious answer that we often struggle to find. Obviously, that is, if you look beyond stereotypes.

It’s something that my guest Kirsten Morehouse has researched. Kirsten is a PhD candidate in the Department of Psychology at Harvard University, with a secondary field in Data Science, where she works under the supervision of Professor Mahzarin Banaji .

Kirsten is also the co-president of Harvard’s Women in Psychology (WiP). She uses behavioural and computational methods to study humans’ attitudes and beliefs about social groups, especially beliefs that conflict with consciously held values or ground-truth data.

I’m interested in this subject because although stereotypes — like other forms of bias — can serve a useful purpose, or at least did for our ancestors — they can also drive very poor decision-making. If we want to mitigate human risk and get the best out of people, we need to recognise where inaccurate stereotypes cloud our judgement.

To learn more about Kirsten and her research, visit her website: https://kirstenmorehouse.wordpress.com/

To read the surgeon riddle research we referred to on the show:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cresp.2022.100044

For more on her colleague Tessa Charlesworth: https://tessaescharlesworth.wordpress.com/

To learn more about Caroline Criado Perez and her book ‘Invisible Women’ - https://carolinecriadoperez.com/


To pre-order my book ‘Humanizing Rules: Bringing BeSci to Ethics & Compliance’ visit:

Direct from the publisher US: https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Humanizing+Rules%3A+Bringing+Behavioural+Science+to+Ethics+and+Compliance-p-9781394177400

Direct from the publisher DE/CH/AU: https://www.wiley-vch.de/de?option=com_eshop&view=product&isbn=9781394177400&title=Humanizing%20Rules

Direct from the publisher UK: https://www.wiley.com/en-gb/Humanizing+Rules%3A+Bringing+Behavioural+Science+to+Ethics+and+Compliance-p-9781394177400

Amazon US : https://www.amazon.com/Humanizing-Rules-Bringing-Behavioural-Compliance/dp/1394177402/ref=sr_1_1?

Amazon Germany : https://www.amazon.de/Humanizing-Rules-Bringing-Behavioural-Compliance/dp/1394177402/ref=sr_1_1?

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Humanizing-Rules-Bringing-Behavioural-Compliance/dp/1394177402/ref=sr_1_1?

What is Rail Activism? My guest, Jon Worth, is a proponent of Cross Border Rail within Europe. On this episode, I’m exploring why Jon thinks this is important and how he’s getting his message across.

As you’ll hear, Cross Border Rail is full of Human Risk In Action. I'm also fascinated by how Jon approaches his mission with passion, commitment, and a healthy dose of humour.

On the episode, you’ll learn why I think this subject is so fascinating and how human decision-making by politicians and train operators is filled with Human Risk.

To find out more about Jon and his work, visit: https://jonworth.eu/

To read an article that Jon wrote about our discussion:
https://jonworth.eu/european-railways-and-the-implementation-gap/

To hear the episode featuring Pete Dyson, the co-author of ’Transport for Humans’ that covers related themes:
https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/pete-dyson-on-making-transport-more-human/

What do we mean when we say we trust a person or an organisation? It’s a word we use a lot that we intuitively understand. Trust plays a vital part in how we interact with others. If we trust someone, we’re more likely to engage with them. If we don’t, we might avoid engaging them or expend extra effort in keeping an eye on what they’re up to.

But what makes a person or organisation trustworthy? Does it matter as much as we might think, and what does the presence or absence of trust do to us?

My guest Hilary Sutcliffe has been exploring trust for several years, so she’s ideally placed to answer these questions and a whole lot more. Hillary is the director of Society Inside, a not-for-profit that supports responsible innovation. She’s also the founder of TIG Tech - a group that promotes the idea of trust in governance for tech companies.

In our discussion, we look at what trust is, why it matters, what the seven key drivers of Trust are, how trust plays out when it comes to technology and innovation and a whole lot more.

You can learn more about Hilary and her work at Society Inside here: https://www.societyinside.com/
Hilary’s LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hilary-sutcliffe-01235220/

For more on TIGTech and Hilary’s work on trust in technology - https://www.tigtech.org/about

Hilary's YouTube channel is here: https://www.youtube.com/@SocietyInside/videos

On the show, we discuss:
Rutger Bregman’s book Humankind - https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/humankind-9781408898956/

The Inter-American Development Bank Report on Trust: https://www.iadb.org/en/news/more-trust-will-power-stronger-recovery-latin-america-and-caribbean-idb-report

The Edelman Trust Barometer: https://www.iadb.org/en/news/more-trust-will-power-stronger-recovery-latin-america-and-caribbean-idb-report

Baroness Onora O'Neill: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onora_O%27Neill

Doctor Roger Miles: https://www.drrmiles.com/about

Roger previously appeared on the show: https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/dr-roger-miles-on-conduct/

Pierre Benoit Jamie - https://ifris.org/en/membre/joly-pierre-benoit/

Matthew Syed’s Book Rebel Ideas - https://www.matthewsyed.co.uk/book/rebel-ideas-the-power-of-diverse-thinking/

To pre-order my book ‘Humanizing Rules: Bringing BeSci to Ethics & Compliance’ visit:

Direct from the publisher US: https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Humanizing+Rules%3A+Bringing+Behavioural+Science+to+Ethics+and+Compliance-p-9781394177400

Direct from the publisher DE/CH/AU: https://www.wiley-vch.de/de?option=com_eshop&view=product&isbn=9781394177400&title=Humanizing%20Rules

Direct from the publisher UK: https://www.wiley.com/en-gb/Humanizing+Rules%3A+Bringing+Behavioural+Science+to+Ethics+and+Compliance-p-9781394177400

Amazon US : https://www.amazon.com/Humanizing-Rules-Bringing-Behavioural-Compliance/dp/1394177402/ref=sr_1_1?

Amazon Germany : https://www.amazon.de/Humanizing-Rules-Bringing-Behavioural-Compliance/dp/1394177402/ref=sr_1_1?

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Humanizing-Rules-Bringing-Behavioural-Compliance/dp/1394177402/ref=sr_1_1?

Why is it that when we really like an object, brand or activity, we say that we ‘love’ it? How can we fall in love with brands, things and experiences?

I’m an Apple fanboy, I love my Peloton bike, and given the time of year, it would be remiss of me not to mention how much I really like Christmas markets in Germany.

What’s happening when I feel that way? On the face of it, this doesn’t exactly make much sense. Fortunately, it’s something my guest can help us with. Based at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, Aaron Ahuvia is a Consumer psychologist & marketing professor who studies how we come to love things that aren't people.

Aaron’s book “The Things We Love: How our Passions Connect Us and Make us who we are” shows that we are far less “rational” than we think when it comes to our possessions and hobbies. In fact, we have passionate relationships with the things we love, and these relationships are driven by influences deep within our culture and biology. Some of our passions are sudden, obsessive, and fleeting; others are devoted and lifelong affairs. Some turn dark: we become hoarders or would prefer to destroy certain objects rather than let anyone else own them. And as technology improves, becoming increasingly addictive, one wonders: might our lives become so dominated by our emotional ties to things that we lose interest in other people?

You’re going to — pun fully intended — love this episode.

To find out more about Aaron and his book, visit: https://thethingswelove.com
You can see his faculty page here: https://umdearborn.edu/aaron-ahuvia

To pre-order my book ‘Humanizing Rules: Bringing BeSci to Ethics & Compliance’ visit:

Direct from the publisher US: https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Humanizing+Rules%3A+Bringing+Behavioural+Science+to+Ethics+and+Compliance-p-9781394177400

Direct from the publisher DE/CH/AU: https://www.wiley-vch.de/de?option=com_eshop&view=product&isbn=9781394177400&title=Humanizing%20Rules

Direct from the publisher UK: https://www.wiley.com/en-gb/Humanizing+Rules%3A+Bringing+Behavioural+Science+to+Ethics+and+Compliance-p-9781394177400

Amazon US : https://www.amazon.com/Humanizing-Rules-Bringing-Behavioural-Compliance/dp/1394177402/ref=sr_1_1?

Amazon Germany : https://www.amazon.de/Humanizing-Rules-Bringing-Behavioural-Compliance/dp/1394177402/ref=sr_1_1?

Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Humanizing-Rules-Bringing-Behavioural-Compliance/dp/1394177402/ref=sr_1_1?

How do our expectations impact our experiences? More than you might think. On this very special episode of the Human Risk podcast, I’m speaking with David Robson, author of ‘The Expectation Effect’.

Joining me in that are two of my favourite podcasters, Kurt Nelson and Tim Houlihan of the Behavioral Grooves podcast. They, like me, were in London for a gathering od Behavioural Science practitioners and so we thought we should mark the occasion by recording a few shows together at an iconic location. And were better to do that, than the Abbey Road studios where artists — most famously the Beatles — recorded some classic albums.

All three of us were intrigued by David’s writings about Expectation. In The Expectation Effect, he takes us on a tour of the cutting-edge research that reveals the many profound ways that our expectations shape our experience. Bringing together fascinating case studies and evidence-based science, The Expectation Effect uncovers new techniques that we can all use to improve our fitness, productivity, intelligence, health and happines


For more on David and his book The Expectation Effect: https://davidrobson.me/books/the-expectation-effect/

To find out more about the Behavioral Grooves podcast visit https://behavioralgrooves.com/

I first appeared on Tim & Kurt’s show here: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/christian-hunt-mitigating-human-risk-and-the-algorithmic-mind/

They also invited me back to talk about Human Risk under COVID: https://behavioralgrooves.com/episode/c-19-dont-outsource-your-critical-thinking-with-christian-hunt/

Tim & Kurt appeared on this show here: https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/tim-houlihan-and-dr-kurt/

How do charities and not-for-profits manage human risk? Given the risks they face and the limited budgets they have available to them, they’re often incredibly innovative when it comes to risk management and compliance. This means there are lessons for all of us in a resource-constrained environment.

On this episode, I’m speaking to Sabrina Segal. She began her career as a lawyer before recognising that working in the third sector — bodies that aren’t public or private sector, in other words, organizations undertaking social activities, like charities or NGOs — was what stimulated her.

In our discussion, we explore the challenges the sector faces and how they go about mitigating the broad range of risks they face. Whether that’s humanitarian charities deploying aid workers into disaster or war zones or even running a charity in a developed country that relies heavily on volunteers. All pose huge challenges from a human risk perspective.

To find out more about Sabrina, connect with her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/smsegal/

For her Tolerable Risk podcast: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9iZWVuZXJzNzY3LnBvZG9tYXRpYy5jb20vcnNzMi54bWw

The Human Risk podcast is a Human Risk production: www.human-risk.com

When we are successful, is it down to skill or luck? All too often, we’re inclined to believe the former of ourselves and other people with extremely negative consequences. On this episode, I’m speaking to Odessa Hamilton. She’s a doctoral researcher at University College London and a behavioural science researcher in the Inclusion Initiative of the London School of Economics that explores how we can make workplaces more inclusive using Behavioural Science

To find out more about Odessa: https://www.lse.ac.uk/tii/people/odessa-hamilton

For more on the Inclusion Initiative: https://www.lse.ac.uk/PBS/archive/tii

To hear the episode featuring her Inclusion Initiative colleague Cécily Josten: https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/cecily-josten-on-the-future-of-work/

To hear the episodes featuring Inclusion Initiative Director Dr Grace Lordan:
https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/dr-grace-lordan-on-inclusion/
https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/dr-grace-lordan-on-privilege/
https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/dr-grace-lordan-on-thinking/

What skills do people need to succeed in the 21st century? On this episode, I’m speaking to Cecily Josten. I’m speaking to Cecily Josten. She’s a Fellow at the Inclusion Initiative from the London School of Economics that explores how we can use Behavioural Science to make workplaces more inclusive.

Cecily’s areas of interest include the skills of the future and the future of work — how can we measure inclusion? — what determines success?

To find out more about Cecily: https://www.lse.ac.uk/PBS/People/Cecily-Josten

For more on the Inclusion Initiative: https://www.lse.ac.uk/PBS/archive/tii

To hear the episodes featuring Inclusion Initiative Director Dr Grace Lordan:
https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/dr-grace-lordan-on-inclusion/
https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/dr-grace-lordan-on-privilege/
https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/dr-grace-lordan-on-thinking/

Why does success not always bring happiness?

On this episode, I speak with Laura Gassing Otting, who, in her own words, helps leaders get unstuck.

She is a best-selling author who has previously set up a recruitment agency, helping many leaders to manage their careers on their terms and to carve their own paths. As you'll hear, that means removing some limiting factors like impostor syndrome or having your success defined by others. And she's helped people to get the best out of themselves.

If you're a regular listener to the show, you'll know that I like having people who bring a fresh perspective and help us think differently about the world. As someone who's moved from a corporate career to being self-employed and branching out into a career path that I've defined for myself, I spent a lot of time thinking about what success means when there's no longer a well-trodden path to follow.

You have to start working these things out for yourself. What Laura has to share is fascinating. We often have a view of what success means and how we will get there. Though, when we do reach those pinnacles, it can often be quite disappointing. So if we want to get the best out of ourselves and others, we should listen to people like Laura, who can show us where the traditional models might have flaws.

To find out more about Laura, visit https://www.lauragassnerotting.com/

For more on the 1980s TV series Dynasty https://dynastytv.fandom.com/wiki/Dynasty_(1981)

You can see Laura’s TED Talks:

‘Stop Asking How I Can Help’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYMM9joekdE
‘Why Doesn’t Success Bring Happiness’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=be_DhgIVqoI

For more on Laura’s books: https://www.lauragassnerotting.com/books