Episode 129
RE-RELEASE: Terrible Advice (with Paul Bloom)
April 7th, 2026
1 hr 8 mins 30 secs
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About this Episode
Instead of a new episode this month, we have one from the vaults that many newer listeners might not have heard (because it came out almost 7 years ago). But, especially since Paul has a new baby (see first link), re-releasing this one seemed fitting. And it's always been one of my favorites. We'll be back with new episodes in the coming months.
Original Episode Description
Yoel and Mickey welcome Paul Bloom to the podcast, who is not only a returning guest but also the Brooks and Suzanne Ragen Professor of Psychology at Yale University. We first give terrible advice on parenting. Does parenting affect happiness, relationship satisfaction, and meaning? Does parenting screw with prospective decision making because it leaves the decision maker utterly transformed? We next discuss perversity. Why do we enjoy doing transgressive things? Who is likely to be perverted? Is perversion ever a good strategy?
Bonus: How would Paul rate Yoel on a scale of 1 to 5?
Episode Links
- Small Potato - by Paul Bloom - Small Potatoes
- Parenthood and Marital Satisfaction: A Meta‐Analytic Review - Twenge - 2003 - Journal of Marriage and Family - Wiley Online Library
- Long-term effects of pregnancy and childbirth on sleep satisfaction and duration of first-time and experienced mothers and fathers - PubMed
- In Defense of Parenthood - S. Katherine Nelson, Kostadin Kushlev, Tammy English, Elizabeth W. Dunn, Sonja Lyubomirsky, 2013
- In Defense of Parenthood
- What You Can't Expect When You're Expecting
- Idealizing Parenthood to Rationalize Parental Investments - Richard P. Eibach, Steven E. Mock, 2011
- The Strange Appeal of Perverse Actions | The New Yorker
- St. Vincent - Smoking Section (Official Audio) - YouTube