In this season finale of Mind of State, hosts Jonathan Kopp and Betty Teng, along with their co-founder, Tom Singer, look back at season 2 as a time of extraordinary intensity, when the country wrestled with its demons and angels. The months le

Our Collective Trauma

Feb 17th, 2021 38m 31s

We typically think of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as afflicting an individual who has experienced a terrifying event, such as combat, sexual assault or the death of a child. In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Judith Herman, whose t

Cultural Complexes and the Soul of America REVISITED

Feb 10th, 2021 40m 51s

[Replay of Episode 1 (09/02/2020), with new introduction] What underlying preoccupations – or “cultural complexes” – shape our country’s politics and collective psyche? On this premiere episode of season 2, we welcome Mind of State co-founder,

Living Unarmed

Feb 3rd, 2021 45m 6s

What’s the lesson plan for first day back in class after a school shooting? Our guest, Megan Doney, is an English professor at New River Community College in Virginia, where she lived through the nightmare scenario students and teachers across

Restoring Faith In Democracy REVISITED

Jan 27th, 2021 35m 19s

[Replay of Episode 9 (11/25/2020), with new introduction] Long after the news outlets called the election for Biden, Trump still refuses to concede his loss. This reminds us that our democracy relies on not only the rule of law, but also a shar

When Myth Becomes History

Jan 20th, 2021 41m 10s

Is the freedom not to wear a mask what America’s Founders had in mind with the phrase, "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?" Is Donald Trump a modern day mad King George III? Join us in a discussion with British psychoanalyst and mytho

The Politics of Care REVISITED

Jan 13th, 2021 48m 45s

[Replay of Episode 5 (10/14/2020), with new introduction] Across America, some people are marching for progress, while others are text- and phone-banking to get others to register and vote. The former seek change from outside the system; the la

Perfect Storm: Climate, Race and COVID

Jan 6th, 2021 44m 4s

For too long, the adverse impacts of climate change have disproportionately burdened poor and underserved communities of color in the US. When COVID-19 hit, we were beset with not only a pandemic, but also an economic downturn, an historic upri

America's Economic Myth REVISITED

Dec 30th, 2020 38m 11s

[Replay of Episode 4 (10/07/2020), with new introduction] A debate rages in the US over protecting our health versus preserving our wealth. Can our faith in the almighty dollar withstand a deadly pandemic and climate change? Join us, as we expl

Conspiracy Without Theory

Dec 23rd, 2020 46m 25s

Alien life? JFK’s murder? The Moon landing? These are classic topics for conspiracy theorists, who gather data, connect dots, and see where the evidence leads. But with more recent controversies, such as Birtherism, Pizzagate, QAnon, evidence i

Ambiguous Loss and the 2020 Pandemic REVISITED

Dec 16th, 2020 41m 5s

[Replay of Episode 2 (9/16/2020), with new introduction] How can we make sense of the tumult and tragedy of this moment – the loss of lives and jobs from the COVID-19 pandemic, the societal tensions borne of systemic racial injustice, the worse

Justice, Rage and Peace

Dec 9th, 2020 46m 24s

Post election, we are exhausted. Joe Biden won, yet Trump and his Trumpists refuse to concede, and authoritarianism remains a significant threat to democracy. How do we combat the rising tide of fascism and defuse the racism and anti-Semitism t

Restoring Faith In Democracy

Nov 25th, 2020 34m 26s

Long after the news outlets called the election for Biden, Trump still refuses to concede his loss. This reminds us that our democracy relies on not only the rule of law, but also a shared set of beliefs about how we choose to govern ourselves.

Analyzing the Election

Nov 11th, 2020 46m 12s

As the dust settles and the votes get sorted in the 2020 presidential election, Mind of State welcomes Boston Globe columnist, Michael A. Cohen, to help us process the results. With Michael, we discuss the politics, the polls, Trump, Trumpism,

The Case for Radical Openness

Oct 28th, 2020 47m 43s

What if we listened more intently, instead of merely waiting for the chance to state our case? What if we engaged in dialogue, instead of debate, and allowed ourselves to be moved by another person’s expression and context? Dr. Anton Hart joins

Sounding the Alarm

Oct 21st, 2020 36m 36s

At a time when democratic institutions and norms are under siege, authoritarianism and white nationalism are on the rise, the COVID-19 pandemic is killing hundreds of thousands of Americans, and climate change is ravaging our planet, Dr. Robert

The Politics of Care

Oct 14th, 2020 46m 41s

Across America, some people are marching for progress, while others are text- and phone-banking to get others to register and vote. The former seek change from outside the system; the latter work the inside game. Dr. Deva Woodly, New School pro

America's Economic Myth

Oct 7th, 2020 36m 48s

A debate rages in the US over protecting our health versus preserving our wealth. Can our faith in the almighty dollar withstand a deadly pandemic and climate change? Join us, as we explore the roots of America’s economic myth, the natural forc

Can Voting and Democracy Survive the Internet?

Sep 30th, 2020 40m 17s

How do we maintain balance during a volatile election season? Does social media foster debate or threaten democracy? Election law expert Nate Persily joins us to discuss the Internet’s impact on democracy, healthy elections during a pandemic, a

Ambiguous Loss and the 2020 Pandemic

Sep 16th, 2020 39m 46s

How can we make sense of the tumult and tragedy of this moment – the loss of lives and jobs from the COVID-19 pandemic, the societal tensions borne of systemic racial injustice, the worsening climate crisis, and the final stretch of a volatile

Cultural Complexes and the Soul of America

Sep 2nd, 2020 39m 48s

What underlying preoccupations – or “cultural complexes” – shape our country’s politics and collective psyche? On this premiere episode of season 2, we welcome Mind of State co-founder, Dr. Thomas Singer, who is the editor of Cultural Complexes

Trailer

Season 2 Trailer

Aug 4th, 2020 1m 30s

Get ready for season two of Mind of State, a podcast where politics and psychology meet. Tune in, as co-hosts Betty Teng and Jonathan Kopp welcome an exciting lineup of fascinating guests to discuss how mind impacts state and vice versa in the

Politics and the Teenage Mind

Apr 16th, 2019 1h 6m

New York Times bestseller Dr. Lisa Damour lends her expertise in child and adolescent psychology to discuss how current events impact the teenage mind. Join us as Lisa shares her wisdom about how to engage our teens on politics, immigration, ra

The Trauma of Syria

Apr 9th, 2019 1h 3m

Veteran war correspondent Anne Barnard — Murrow Fellow at the Council on Foreign Affairs and NY Times Beirut Bureau Chief from 2012-2018 — discusses the complex trauma of Syria's ongoing civil war, its impact on politics in Europe and the US, a

Anger and Racial Politics

Apr 2nd, 2019 39m 25s

University of Maryland professor Antoine Banks joins us to talk about how anger — specifically white anger — impacts everything from opinions on Obamacare to how black candidates are perceived and talked about. We also discuss how race and ange