How do you feel right now? Excited to listen to your favorite podcast? Anxious
about the state of American politics? Annoyed by my use of rhetorical
questions? These questions seem pretty straightforward. But as my guest today,
psychologist Lisa Feldman Barrett, points out there is a lot more to emotion
than meets the mind. Barrett is a superstar in her field. She’s a professor of
psychology at Northeastern University, holds appointments at Harvard Medical
School and Massachusetts General Hospital, and has received various
prestigious awards for her pioneering research on emotion. Her most recent
book How Emotions Are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain argues that emotions
are not biologically hardwired into our brains but constructed by our minds.
In other words, we don’t merely feel emotions — we actively create them.
Barrett’s work has potentially radical implications. If we take her theory
seriously, it follows that the ways we think about our daily emotional states,
diagnose illnesses, interact with friends, raise our children, and experience
reality all need some serious adjusting, if not complete rethinking. If you
enjoyed this episode, you should check out: A mind-expanding conversation with
Michael Pollan The cognitive cost of poverty (with Sendhil Mullainathan) Will
Storr on why you are not yourself  A mind-bending, reality-warping
conversation with John Higgs Book recommendations:  Naming the Mind by Kurt
Danzinger  The Island of Knowledge by Marcelo Gleiser  The Accidental Species
by Henry Gee Sense and Nonsense by Kevin L. Laland Want to contact the show?
Reach out at [email protected] News comes at you fast. Join us at the end
of your day to understand it. Subscribe to Today, Explained Credits: Producer
and Editor - Jeff Geld Researcher - Roge Karma Recording engineer - Cynthia
Gil Field engineer - Joseph Fridman The Ezra Klein Show is a production of the
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