Two Guys on Your Head

Popular linguistic theories like, Sapir–Whorf hypothesis, give us the idea that language determines how and what we think. However, looking at the psychology behind how we use language points in another direction. In this edition of Two Guys on Your Head, Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke talk about how nouns can teach us […]

On average most policies are put in place to help people, protect people, or regulate dangerous behavior, so why don’t these policies work? In the most recent episode of Two Guys on Your Head, Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke talk about the unintended consequences of policy, and how psychology can help us discover […]

Struggle has a way of defining us. But while we often use struggles to teach lessons and build resilience, a struggle without a purpose doesn’t always yield positive results. In this edition of Two Guys on Your Head, Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke talk about the difference between struggling and suffering, and why […]

Most people feel in over their heads when they first enter a challenging situation or even a new job. And, while conventional wisdom suggests those with trepidations about trying new things should “fake it ’til they make it,” it may not always be the best course of action. In this edition of Two Guys on […]

Humiliation can make us feel small and insignificant, so why do humans humiliate one another? In this episode of Two Guys on Your Head, Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke talk about the psychology of humiliation and how you can make choices in your life to prevent you from feeling humiliated when the bullies […]

One of the reasons it’s so difficult to relate scientific findings to the general public is because the same words literally take on different meanings in those realms. In this episode of Two Guys on Your Head, Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke deconstruct two such terms–significance and theory– and talk about why knowing […]

In our last episode of Two Guys on Your Head, Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke talked about how to influence behavior using rewards first, then examples, and finally verbal direction. However, things aren’t that simple when it comes to building teams and motivating groups, especially in the workplace. In this follow-up edition, they […]

When thinking about what drives human behavior there is what we say, what we do, and then what we reward. However, as Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke talk about in this edition of Two Guys on Your Head, people tend to respond to these things in reverse order.

You’ve heard the saying, “walk a mile in someone else’s shoes.” But does that literally mean you have to put yourself in someone’s position in order to understand where they are coming from? According to a study published in The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, it just might. In this edition of Two Guys...

We may think that we prefer something brand-new to something we’ve seen before, but the truth is we are more likely to enjoy things we are familiar with. In this edition of Two Guys On Your Head, Dr. Art Markman and Dr. Bob Duke talk about the psychology behind why we like sequels.