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PODCAST

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality

While religion and science often seem at odds, there’s one thing they can agree on: people who take part in spiritual practices tend to live longer, healthier, and happier lives. The big question is: Why? In How God Works, professor Dave DeSteno takes us on a journey to find out how spirituality impacts our minds and bodies, as well as the world in which we live.He speaks to leading scientists and philosophers, religious thinkers, and thought leaders to explore what we can learn from the

society & culture philosophy

All Episodes

36:07

Marriage, Monogamy and the Modern Mind

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2025/03/09

When it comes to finding happiness, many religions see marriage as the gold standard: a path to love, stability, and fulfillment. But is that really true? And if so, why are marriage rates plummeting in so many parts of the world?In this episode, we’ll talk to anthropologist Joseph Henrich about the surprising history of marriage and monogamy, including how these institutions helped lay the groundwork for much of our modern way of life. We’ll also speak with psychologist Geoff MacDonald

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01:49

Season 8 Trailer

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2025/03/02

Join us for Season 8 of How God Works, starting next week!

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39:23

Every Breath You Take (From the Archive)

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2025/02/23

We'll be back with a whole new season of How God Works on March 9th. But in the meantime, we wanted to share shows from our archives that speak to some of the most pressing challenges we're all facing today. It’s only February, and already this has been an intense year. So if you’re feeling stressed today, how about… a breather?It’s no accident that the Hebrew word for breath is the same as the word for spirit (ruach). Breath doesn’t just give us life: it helps regulate everything from

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38:37

Moving Beyond Us vs Them (From the Archive)

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2025/02/09

We'll be back with a whole new season of How God Works starting in early March. But in the meantime, we wanted to share a few shows from our archives that speak to some of the most pressing challenges we're all facing today.Hate and prejudice based on ethnicity, religion, gender and sexual orientation are all too common in our world. But are we doomed to be this way? Or is it possible to create a world where cooperation and peace are the norm?Join Dave as he talks to NYU professor Jay van

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36:08

Religion and Robots and AI … Oh My! (From the Archive)

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2025/01/26

Artificial Intelligence, and its possible applications to religion, have been in the news a lot lately, so while we're busy working on Season 8, we thought we'd share this episode from 2022 with you.Can you pray with a robot? Will people worship AI like a god? It’s not science fiction. It’s starting to happen now. But what does it mean if robots become priests, or AIs start offering ethical advice? And how do we know when to trust them?We’ll talk to MIT social roboticist Cynthia Breazeal

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39:46

Why Spirituality is Important in our Increasingly...

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2025/01/12

Faith has always been a strong force in human history – but in modern times, it may feel antiquated to have it. This is an episode of the How to Be a Better Human podcast in which Dave talks about his research exploring questions of faith, his findings, and why we shouldn’t leave spiritual wisdom behind, even in the age of science. Hosted by comedian Chris Duffy, How to Be a Better Human features conversations that uncover sharp insights and give clear takeaways on how you can improve your

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36:53

Finding Holiday Happiness

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/12/15

The holidays are supposed to be a time of joy. But all too often, the darker, colder days of winter, and even the stress of preparing for the holidays themselves, can lead people to feel something else: rushed, stressed, lonely, or even hopeless. How can you make sure this year is bright? Science shows that there's a wisdom to parts of traditional winter celebrations – a wisdom that's been honed over centuries to help us all find light, joy, and connection during the darkest and coldest

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36:04

Finding Hope in Dark Times (From the Archive)

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/12/08

This episode from 2023 is one of our all-time listener favorites. We're sharing it again for anyone who may have missed it, or could do with a refresher! Surveys show feelings of sadness and despair peaked in 2023. So as we look to the new year, it’s understandable why any of us might be feeling pessimistic, even hopeless. But these feelings aren’t written in stone. We always have a choice. It’s in these darkest of times, when all feels lost, that hope helps us find our way … not just to

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38:54

The Bad Place

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/11/24

Lots of religions embrace the idea of hell – a place of eternal punishment for wrong doers. But where did that idea come from? How has it changed through time? And how does a belief in it (or not) affect us while we’re alive? We’ll talk with Bart Ehrman about the history of beliefs in hell from ancient Mesopotamia through modern Christianity. And with Shadi Hamid about why he thinks it can be a good thing for people to believe in hell, and how that belief shapes our political and social

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35:30

Near Death Experiences

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/11/10

People have been having Near-Death Experiences (NDEs) all over the world for as long as we can look back into history. And the strange thing is… these experiences seem to have a lot in common. Why? Is it a look into the afterlife? Is it just our neurons firing in weird ways as the brain dies? We’ll talk to psychiatrist Bruce Greyson, one of the world’s leading experts on Near-Death Experiences, about the research that led him to rethink his understanding of the nature of life, death, and

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37:08

So You say You’re a Cynic

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/10/27

There’s no question we’re living in difficult times that lead many of us to adopt a cynical outlook. But while cynicism might feel smart, science shows it’s corrosive not only to our own wellbeing, but to society as a whole. We’ll talk to Stanford Professor of Psychology Jamil Zaki about the surprising benefits that a willingness to trust in the goodness of others can offer, and how to build this skill in a wise way through habits of mind and action.We’ll also speak with political writer

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36:01

Succeeding Without Trying

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/10/13

We spend a lot of time on How God Works talking about how spirituality can offer tools to become better versions of ourselves. And while learning to be happier, healthier and more resilient are all positive things to strive for, they can also lead us down a different path - an obsession with productivity and self-optimization… which can lead to a culture of trying to grind or life-hack our way through everything.But what if the secret to success lies in doing less, not more? On this

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31:16

Rethinking Regret

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/09/29

Regret can be a double-edged sword. It can be painful, and enduring, but we can also learn important lessons from it - IF we treat it right. Most religions speak of forgiveness and compassion, not only toward others but also toward oneself. Still, letting go can be difficult to do at times. So how do we learn from regret and start anew?Dave speaks with best selling author Daniel Pink, and renowned Buddhist teacher Sharon Salzberg to learn about the science of regret and how some spiritual

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37:14

Rethinking Sin

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/09/15

For many people, the word “sin” is associated with harsh judgment and shame. Or, it’s used to talk about guilty pleasures like consuming decadent desserts... But is this concept as harmful or outdated as it seems?Join Dave as he talks with Elizabeth Oldfield about Christianity’s Seven Deadly Sins, and how reconceptualizing them for modern life can offer a science-backed user’s manual of sorts to find joy and connection in this world, whatever your beliefs. Elizabeth Oldfield is host of The

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01:43

Season 7 Trailer

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/09/08

Join us for Season 7 of How God Works, starting next week!

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37:50

Making God Real (2022)

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/08/25

We've had a lot of new listeners join us of the past year, so while we're hard at work on our next season, we thought we'd share some favorites you might have missed from the archives.Have you ever heard a voice, seen an image, or felt a presence around you that you couldn’t explain? If you have, you’re not alone. More people than you might think report having these kinds of experiences. For some, it can be easy to write these off as tricks of the mind. But for others, especially the

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33:51

Death (2022)

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/08/11

We've had a lot of new listeners join us of the past year, so while we're hard at work on our next season, we thought we'd share some favorites you might have missed from the archives.As a society that fears death, we tend to avoid the subject. But the key to having a positive end-of-life experience might come in doing just the opposite. On this episode, we’ll hear from philosopher Simon Critchley, Boston-area chaplains Ruth Delfiner, Sarah Byrne-Martelli, and Maude Quinn, and Threshold

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26:38

Transcendence (2021)

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/07/28

We've had a lot of new listeners join us of the past year, so while we're hard at work on our next season, we thought we'd share some favorites you might have missed from the archives.For centuries, many cultures have used psychedelics to induce mystical states. And while in the US they’ve mostly been used as recreational drugs, interest in their power to offer a rapid route to transcendence has recently been growing. But in our haste to use these chemicals to alter, and perhaps even heal,

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39:15

A Holiday From Tech Addiction (2022)

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/07/14

We've had a lot of new listeners join us of the past year, so while we're hard at work on our next season, we thought we'd share some favorites you might have missed from the archives. Since this episode was first published, the Surgeon General has issued an advisory about the effects of social media on youth mental health, and, more recently, called for warning label on all social media platforms. Time with family, friends and loved ones is supposed to be at the center of the holiday

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0:32

How God Works Survey!

How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality ·

2024/06/24

Hey Listeners, as we plan future seasons, we'd love to know what you appreciate most about the show... and what you think we can improve or would like to see us cover. If you have five minutes to spare, please consider responding to our audience survey. Thanks!

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