Behavioral Grooves Podcast

Have we misunderstood two of psychology’s most famous experiments? We revisit the Stanford Prison Experiment and the Robbers Cave experiment with science historians Thibault Le Texier and Gina Perry, who uncovered a much messier story behind the research we learned about in school. What can these experiments actually tell us about human behavior, and what happens when researchers become more invested in a specific conclusion than challenging their own assumptions?

Topics
[0:00] Two Famous Experiments, One Bigger Problem
[6:47] Part One: The Stanford Prison Experiment
[12:26] Were the Guards Coached to Be Cruel?
[18:14] Is the Real Lesson About Leadership?
[19:22] Part Two: The Robbers Cave Experiment
[24:04] The Forgotten Middle Grove Experiment
[28:38] Engineering the Robbers Cave Experiment
[32:38] What Can We Actually Learn From These Experiments?
[36:09] When the Story Gets in the Way of the Science
[41:36] What Happens When a Story Sounds Too Tidy?

©2026 Behavioral Grooves

Links
Investigating the Stanford Prison Experiment: History of a Lie by Thibault Le Texier

About Gina Perry

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Why do we do what we do? Behavioral Grooves explores the science of human behavior with researchers, authors, and thinkers who help us make sense of ourselves, each other, and the world around us.

Horse meat, kidneys, prostitution. What happens when the things people want to buy, sell, and trade collide with what society has deemed “off-limits”? Nobel Prize-winning economist Alvin “Al” Roth joins us to explore the behavioral science behind controversial markets, from repugnance and social norms to black markets, incentives, and informed consent. We also dig into his work redesigning the kidney exchange market and how asking a different question can open up new possibilities for solving seemingly impossible problems.

Topics
[0:00] Intro and Speed Round with Alvin “Al” Roth

[9:21] What Is a Market?

[13:10] Repugnance vs. Disgust

[20:00] How Social Norms Shape Markets and Morality

[24:12] Do Laws Change Morality, or Does Morality Change Laws?

[28:25] Drugs, Hitmen, and the Social Support Behind a Ban

[34:23] Rethinking the Market for Prostitution

[38:12] Can Money Be Coercive?

[46:12] Redesigning Kidney Donation With Incentives

[50:42] What Do We Do When the Data Can't Change Minds?

[52:47] “Ought Implies Can” and the Limits of Moral Rules

[1:03:05] Grooving Session: What We Learned From Al Roth

©2026 Behavioral Grooves

Links
About Alvin E. Roth

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Music Links
Paul Simon - You Can Call Me Al

Leonard Cohen - I’m Your Man

What happens when behavioral science leaves the classroom and enters the real world? In this special episode, we explore the past and future of the Behavioral Science & Policy Association with founders Sim Sitkin and Craig Fox and incoming leader Crystal Hall. We talk about bridging the gap between research and practice, the growing importance of interdisciplinary behavioral science, and why understanding the human side of AI may be one of the field's biggest opportunities.

Topics
[0:00] What Is the Behavioral Science & Policy Association?

[7:45] BSPA's First Big Breakthroughs

[12:12] How BSPA Helped Legitimize Applied Behavioral Science

[17:14] What AI Gets Wrong About Behavioral Science

[25:06] The Next Frontier for Behavioral Science

[32:34] Why Behavioral Science Is at a Critical Moment

[42:19] What AI Means for Behavioral Science

[46:20] A New Vision for BSPA

[49:10] How to Get Involved With BSPA

©2026 Behavioral Grooves

Links
BSPA

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What if work didn’t have to be something we simply “get through” five days a week? This week, we sit down with Bree Groff, author of Today Was Fun, to explore how small changes in the way we interact, communicate, and lead can make work more human and mostly fun, most days. We talk about work-life balance, chronic overwork, psychological safety, AI, and the importance of protecting the relationships, health, creativity, and small moments of joy that make our lives meaningful.

Topics
[0:00] Intro and Speed Round with Bree Groff

[9:45] Treat your brain like a Stradivarius

[13:18] Why this isn't a typical business book

[19:52] The five-minute check-in

[27:41] The benefits of psychological safety and cognitive offloading

[30:55] The hidden cost of chronic overwork

[36:16] Why “love what you do” is an exhausting goal

[43:09] Why work should be mostly fun, most days

[49:07] The truth about AI at work

[53:45] What happens when we outsource thinking?

[54:37] Bree's writing soundtrack

[59:45] Grooving Session: Making work fun

©2026 Behavioral Grooves

Links
About Bree

Today was Fun by Bree Groff

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Musical Links
Vulfpeck - Back Pocket

Qveen Herby - The Fool