Freakonomics Radio Network’s behavioral science podcast No Stupid Questions is beginning a special series exploring the seven deadly sins. In each weekly episode for the next two months, show co-hosts Stephen J. Dubner (co-author of the Freakonomics books) and psychologist Angela Duckworth (author of Grit) will choose one sin and discuss a related question. Like: “Is sloth actually a virtue?” And: “Is our society built on envy?”
In a recent episode, Duckworth announced that she’s working on a new book about self-control. The book is based on research she conducted with psychologist Eli Tsukayama on individuals who seem to exhibit incredible self-discipline in certain areas of life but “totally blow it” in others. To explore these different domains of self-control, Duckworth and Tsukayama created seven measures that reflect the seven deadly sins. In the No Stupid Questions series, Duckworth and Dubner use this new research as a launch pad to explore these behaviors.
“The seven deadly sins series is a fun way to dig deeper into how these ‘sins,’ which are hundreds of years old, affect our lives today,” Duckworth explains. “Everyone has different temptations. How can we change the way we think about them? What sort of situations get us into trouble? And what got left out of that list of seven?”
Despite there only being seven deadly sins, this is an eight-episode series. What’s the eighth sin? Duckworth and Dubner have invited listeners to nominate one extra deadly sin for them to explore in the series finale. Answers will be collected in a survey, a first for No Stupid Questions.
Listeners can click here to complete this anonymous questionnaire to see how they rank on each sin and how their answers compare to No Stupid Questions listeners as a whole. The overall survey data will be discussed in the show, but it will not be used for academic research purposes.
“Seven Deadly Sins” Episode Release Dates:
March 5: Sloth
March 12: Gluttony
March 19: Lust
March 26: Wrath
April 2: Envy
April 9: Greed
April 16: Pride
April 23: Sin #8 – By Listener Nomination
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