Schadenfreude, with Aaron Balick Artwork

Your Brain On Climate

Psychology vs climate change: what we think, why we think it, and how it all adds up to a planet-sized emergency. Each episode host Dave Powell interviews experts in how our brains work - from PhDs in psychology to writers, activists and beyond. They'll talk about how their brains and our brains do (and don't) work, and how all of that might help make sense of the climate crisis - and possibly what to do about it.

All Episodes

Your Brain On Climate

Schadenfreude, with Aaron Balick

August 11, 2022 • Episode 11

We love it when someone gets what's coming to them - whether it's an individual we know personally and dislike, someone from a group we hate, or someone we just generally think is a wrong'un. That's schadenfreude - literally, "joy damage". Grubby, wonderful feeling.

But what does schadenfreude do for us, psychologically? Is it a good and useful thing or a harmful thing? And can it be harnessed - or should it be feared - when trying to do something about the climate crisis?

Joining Dave this episode is Dr Aaron Balick - pyschotherapist, author, academic and all round nice chap. He specialises in applying psychological phenomena to everyday life. You can follow him on twitter @DrAaronB.

Extra reading as highlighted by the owl noises:
-- 06:03: A YouTube explainer, involving icebergs, of Freud's ideas about the ego, id, and super-ego.
-- 19:41: More on Freud's ideas about projection and transference.

Your Brain on Climate is a podcast about human psychology vs the climate crisis: what we think, why we think it, and how it all adds up to a planet-sized emergency. Contact the show: @brainclimate on Twitter, or hello@yourbrainonclimate.com.

The show is hosted by Dave Powell, who you can find @powellds on Twitter. All original music throughout the show and audio production is by Dave, because he's far too much of a control freak to let anyone else loose on it.

Show logo by Arthur Stovell at www.designbymondial.com.