What should workers do when they get laid off? In 1998 a bleak, asinine bestseller told them to find another whey.  Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Bright-Sided: How Positive Thinking Is Undermining AmericaDownsizing in AmericaTemp:  How American Work, American Business, and the American Dream Became TemporaryThe Disposable AmericanSpencer Johnson, ‘Who Moved My Cheese?’ Author, Dies at 78What was the New Economy?Boss, Employees Share Large Cheese PlatterTarpon's big cheese has aides readingWhy doesn’t downsizing deliver?On the Battlefields of Business, Millions of CasualtiesShareholder Value and Workforce Downsizing, 1981-2006Long-Term Earnings Losses Due to Job Separation During the 1982 RecessionDoes Employee Downsizing Really Work?Layoffs, Top Executive Pay, and Firm PerformanceEmerging Conceptions of Work, Management and the Labor MarketA Conceptual Framework for Analyzing Why Organizations DownsizeOrganizational Downsizing: Constraining, Cloning, LearningThe Decline and Fall of the Conglomerate Firm in the 1980s Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

New York’s favorite criminal is in the news, so here is our episode about his ridiculous life.To hear all of our bonus episodes, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

Is fact-checking a legitimate enterprise? Is America's most famous fact-checker nothing more than a dweeb? Michael and Peter discuss.To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

A memoir about parenting very badly and then getting weirdly defensive when anyone asks you about it.Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Effects of Authoritative Parental Control on Child Behavior, Child DevelopmentTypes of Parenting Styles and Effects On ChildrenDoes “Tiger Parenting” Exist? Parenting Profiles of Chinese Americans and Adolescent Developmental OutcomesAssociations of parenting dimensions and styles with externalizing problems of children and adolescents: An updated meta-analysisDo the associations of parenting styles with behavior problems and academic achievement vary by culture? Results from a meta-analysisParenting Styles: A Closer Look at a Well-Known ConceptImpact of Behavioral Inhibition and Parenting Style on Internalizing and Externalizing Problems from Early Childhood through AdolescenceThe One Weird Trait That Predicts Whether You’re a Trump SupporterInvestigating Correlates of Self-Regulation in Early Childhood with a Representative Sample of English-Speaking American FamiliesAmy Chua thinks identity politics on both sides are to blame.How the 'Tiger Mom' Convinced the Author of Hillbilly Elegy to Write His Story Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

Is social media to blame for the teen mental health crisis? It's complicated!Thanks to Emily Weinstein, Amy Orben, Andrew Przybylski, Dean Burnett, Michael Mullarkey and Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz for help researching and fact-checking this episode! Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Emily Weinstein's book, "Behind Their Screens"Positive and negative uses of social media among adolescents hospitalized for suicidal behaviorThe Sisyphean Cycle of Technology PanicsThe Relationship Between Online Social Networking and Depression: A Systematic Review of Quantitative StudiesOnline "predators" and their victimsThe Coddling of the American ParentNo More FOMO: Limiting Social Media Decreases Loneliness and DepressionHow technology is transforming the ways in which children playBanning mobile phones in schools in SpainNo One Knows Exactly What Social Media Is Doing To TeensWindows of developmental sensitivity to social mediaSmartphones are bad for some teens, not allHow Smartphones Affect the Social-Emotional Development of AdolescentsSocial media use and its impactTime Spent on Social Network Sites and Psychological Well-BeingA School-Level Analysis of Adolescent Extracurricular Activity Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

To celebrate ("celebrate") Donald Trump choosing JD Vance as his running mate we are re-releasing our "Hillbilly Elegy" episode. Enjoy!

Peter and Michael discuss "The Origins of Woke," a glimpse into the dark aspirations of the Republican Party and the mind of a very unusual man.Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:What Speech Does "Hostile Work Environment" Harassment Law Restrict? Tunis v. Corning Glass Works, 698 F. Supp. 452 (S.D.N.Y. 1988)Pakizegi v. First Nat. Bank of Boston, 831 F. Supp. 901 Tesla Settles Discrimination Suit With Former Factory Worker - The New York TimesMenial Tasks, Slurs and Swastikas: Many Black Workers at Tesla Say They Faced Racism - The New York Times Diaz v. Tesla, Inc.Making Hispanics: How Activists, Bureaucrats, and Media Constructed a New AmericanAre Emily and Greg More Employable than Lakisha and Jamal? A Field Experiment on Labor Market Discrimination Meta-analysis of field experiments shows no change in racial discrimination in hiring over time | PNASSystemic Discrimination Among Large U.S. Employers  Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

Peter and Michael discuss the media coverage of the protests at Columbia — from the crazed, bloodthirsty ravings of right-wing media to the more muted, respectful bloodthirst of centrist media.To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

Peter and Michael discuss Michael Lewis’s bestselling book about the rise and fall of Sam Bankman-Fried, a young prodigy whose only flaw was that he dreamed too big.Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Michael Lewis Is Buying What Sam Bankman-Fried Is Selling Michael Lewis Likens Critics of His New Book on Sam Bankman-Fried to a 'Mob'The SBF trial is a reminder that crypto is a rotten businessReview: Michael Lewis's Going InfiniteThe Curious Case of FTX’s ‘Company Therapist’ (vice.com)FTX’s Collapse Was a Crime, Not an AccidentGoing Infinite by Michael Lewis review – falling for the antiheroThe Second FTX Asset Recovery Report Is Packed With BombshellsTakeaways From a New Book on Sam Bankman-FriedCaroline Ellison Testifies Against Sam Bankman-Fried, Blaming Him for Crimes  Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

2 Better 2 AngelsSupport us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Jeffrey Epstein’s Science of SleazePinker’s response to Epstein allegationsHow Jeffrey Epstein Captivated HarvardJeffrey Epstein Hoped to Seed Human Race With His DNAIt’s Official — Steven Pinker Is Full of ShitPinker, Epstein, Soldier, SpyA century of sexual abuse victimisation: A birth cohort analysisThe prevalence of child sexual abuse with online sexual abuse addedHave Sexual Abuse and Physical Abuse Declined Since the 1990s?Explanations for the Decline in Child Sexual Abuse CasesThe Decline in Child Sexual Abuse CasesWhy Have Child Maltreatment and Child Victimization Declined?Spanking and Other Corporal Punishment of Children by Parents: Undervaluing Children, Overvaluing PainWere There Really More Hate Crimes Last Year?Hate Crime Reported by Victims and PoliceThe Sexual Victimization of College WomenThe "Discovery" of Child AbuseA Short History of Child Protection in America Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

We're finally discussing a good book! Naomi Klein's "Doppelgänger" chronicles the long, steady descent of another Naomi — Wolf (buddy oof) — from feminist icon to crank conspiracist. To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

In 2013, Sheryl Sandberg became an icon for women who wanted to move from middle management at a tech company into upper management at a tech company. Today, Peter and Michael examine the contents of her bestselling book, survey the wreckage of corporate feminism and ask whether women will finally find liberation in the Metaverse.Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Facebook Feminism, Like It or NotFeminism's Tipping Point: Who Wins from Leaning in?One Cheer for Lean InIs there an implicit quota on women in top management? A large‐sample statistical analysisFemale tokens in high-prestige work groups: Catalysts or inhibitors of group diversification?Want Equal Pay? Get a Union.The Gender Wage Gap: Extent, Trends, and ExplanationsWhat Was the Girlboss?New Research: Women Who Don’t Negotiate Might Have a Good ReasonNow, Women Do Ask: A Call to Update Beliefs about the Gender Pay GapWhat’s It Like Inside the Hive? Managerial Discretion Drives TMT Gender Diversity of Women-Led FirmsI asked Facebook if I could work part-time from home after I had my baby. They said no—so I quitWomen in the Workplace 2023Stop Telling Women They Have Imposter SyndromeDig Deep: Beyond Lean In Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

This week we're tackling Steven Pinker's 900 page dissection of the reasons why violence, torture and war have declined over the last 10,000 years. Was it an indeterminate mixture of politics, economics, technology and serendipity?  Or did some European guys write some books that said murder was bad?Special thanks to Philip Dwyer, Eleanor Janega, David M. Perry and Doug Thompson for help researching and fact-checking this episode!Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:The Darker Angels of Our NatureGetting Medieval On Steven PinkerThe Decline of Violence in the West: From Cultural to Post-Cultural HistoryPinker’s (Mis)Representation of the Enlightenment and ViolenceHerding and Homicide: An Examination of the Nisbett-Reaves HypothesisPeace in Our TimeJohn Gray: Steven Pinker is wrong about violence and warThe business class doesn't understand the EnlightenmentDelusions Of PeacePinker And ProgressNorbert Elias and the History of ViolenceModernization, Self-Control And Lethal ViolenceExplaining Long Term Trends in Violent CrimeThe Enlightenment’s Dark Side Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

Before Donald Trump became America's most prominent politician and birth certificate inspector, he spent his days making everyone in New York City slightly uncomfortable. Michael and Peter discuss "The Art of the Deal," Trump’s 1987 bestseller chronicling his exploits as a celebrity slumlord. Where to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:When Donald Trump Took Down Holiday Inns The Lost City of Trump Who Runs New York Now? How Donald Trump Bankrupted His Atlantic City Casinos, but Still Earned Millions Doer and Slumlord Both Donald Trump Gets What He WantsDonald Trump was a nightmare landlord in the 1980s Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

"There are two kinds of political scientists: The types who deal with noisy data and post on Twitter with a bunch of caveats. And then there are the types who write books about identity politics." Where to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Sam  Huneke's "Yascha Mounk’s Woke Straw Man"Jacob T. Levy's "The Defense of Liberty Can’t Do Without Identity Politics"Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò's "Elite Capture"Aaron Huertas's "We Need to Talk About Reactionary Centrists"Mary Lin Elementary under federal investigationParents refute claims of segregation at Mary Lin Elementary SchoolSchool Segregation in Metropolitan Regions, 1970–200060 Years After BrownSchool choice and racial segregation in US schoolsStudent Population Has Significantly Diversified, But Many Schools Remain Divided Along Racial, Ethnic, and Economic LinesU.S. public school students often go to schools where at least half of their peers are the same race or ethnicityThe Return of Old-Fashioned Racism to White Americans’ Partisan PreferencesWhy The Democrats Have Shifted Left Over The Last 30 YearsWidespread misperceptions of long-term attitude changeTrump, the 2016 Election, and Expressions of SexismChanging Norms Following the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election: The Trump Effect on PrejudiceChanges in Americans’ prejudices during the presidency of Donald TrumpThe CDC slide presentationModel-informed COVID-19 vaccine prioritization strategies Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

You stare, mouth agape, at the bookstore display. It’s a self-help book, but with curse words in the title?! This must be a revolutionary new framework, not simply the same dull, reactionary ideas repackaged as hip and new.Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck (Blog Post)Where A is Ordinary: The Evolution of American College and University Grading, 1940-2009We’ve Been Handing Out Participation Trophies for 100 YearsPositive Disintegration‘The Subtle Art of Not Giving a #@%!’ Review: A Blunt Philosophy Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

In 1996, a frustrated screenwriter got a fellowship in Italy. Twenty years later, Beyoncé released "Lemonade." Content warning: This episode includes a mention of suicide.Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Rebecca Solnit’s “A Paradise Built in Hell”The Half-Century in Bullshit: On Peter Bogdanovich’s “Paper Moon” and Robert Greene’s “The 48 Laws of Power”A Book of Anecdotes, 1957The Little Brown Book Of AnecdotesFear Nothing: Self-Fashioning and Social Mobility in 50 Cent’s The 50th LawThe fear of conflict leads people to systematically avoid potentially valuable zero-sum situationsThe Immigration DilemmaYou Can Win But I Can't LoseIf you rise, I fall: Equality is prevented by the misperception that it harms advantaged groupsZero-Sum Thinking and the Roots of U.S. Political DividesA Genesis of Conflict: The Zero-Sum MindsetForbes Winslow’s Physic and PhysiciansThe role of masculinity in men's help-seeking for depression: A systematic review The Strange, Sad Story of Joe Orton, His Lover, and 72 Stolen Library Books A Failure Of InitiativeNew Orleans reaches settlements for police shootings after Hurricane KatrinaPost-Katrina, White Vigilantes Shot African-Americans With Impunity Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

Retailers have been sounding the alarm about a shoplifting epidemic driven by organized criminal syndicates. In a shocking twist, it turns out that their story is mostly made up. Join us as Peter tries to figure out where this panic originated and as Mike finally comes clean about his criminal past.To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

This week we're tackling "San Fransicko: Why Progressives Ruin Cities," a book that dares to ask: What if everything that experts think about homelessness is wrong, and everything that one crank on Twitter thinks about homelessness is right?Thanks to Ned Resnikoff for helping us with the research for this episode!Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Inflection Points in Community-level Homeless RatesHow Housing Costs Drive Levels of HomelessnessThe 2022 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report To CongressThe California Statewide Study of People Experiencing HomelessnessSan Francisco Homelessness Benchmarking ReportHomelessness is a Housing ProblemA randomized trial of permanent supportive housing for chronically homeless persons with high use of publicly funded servicesSan Francisco Department of Public Health Update Report on Mental Health ReformCivil Commitment in the United States Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

Have you ever wanted to escape the grind and follow your dreams? This week we're discussing "The 4-Hour Workweek," which reveals that all you need is a plan, a willingness to take risks and a modestly sized fraud operation built on Third World labor.Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:The Fraud and the Four-Hour WorkweekRevisiting "The 4-Hour Workweek"New! Improved! Shape Up Your Life!From Productivity to Psychedelics: Tim Ferriss Has Changed His Mind About Success Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

But her e-mails! Michael explains the non-scandal that captivated the mainstream media in 2016 while Peter attempts to sow the podcast with anti-Hillary sentiment.To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

Oops all grievance.Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:No Ivory Tower : Mccarthyism And The UniversitiesThe Fire Is Upon UsThe Conservative Intellectual Movement in America Since 1945The Passion of William F. Buckley: Academic Freedom, Conspiratorial Conservatism, and the Rise of the Postwar RightWhy Are Professors Liberal and Why Do Conservatives Care?Compromised Campus: The Collaboration of Universities with the Intelligence Community, 1945-1955Debunking a Longstanding Myth About William F. BuckleyHow William F. Buckley Jr.’s Right-Wing College Crusade Paved the Way for Ron DeSantisThe Right v. Higher Education: Change and ContinuityThe Buckleys: A Family ExaminedThe Academic Elite Goes to Washington, and to WarWhat About “God and Man”?The Attack on YaleThe academy on the firing line: William F. Buckley, Jr.'s God and Man at Yale and the modern conservative critique of higher educationConservatives charge that universities are hotbeds of liberalism. They’re wrong.  Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

For this month's bonus episode we dissected Harry Frankfurt's gloriously brief bestseller and applied the concept to our favorite op-ed page.  To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

Who poses the greatest threat to democracy? Is it the movement that openly identifies with the symbols, goals and policies of fascist governments? Or is it the median bureaucrat at the Department of Health and Human Services? In 2008, a National Review nepo-baby attempted to answer this vexing question.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:History News Network: A Symposium on Jonah Goldberg’s Liberal FascismThe Nature of FascismHow Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and ThemThe Anatomy of FascismMussolini and Fascism: The View From AmericaThe Return of Old-Fashioned Racism to White Americans’ Partisan Preferences in the Early Obama EraIdentity Crisis: The 2016 Presidential Campaign and the Battle for the Meaning of AmericaWhat Hillary Rodham Clinton Really Said About Children’s Rights and Child PolicyThe Ku Klux Klan in the City, 1915-1930A campus takeover that symbolized an era of change Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

In our "Rules" and "Game" episodes we didn't get a chance to dissect the phenomenon of online dating (i.e. describe our worst dates and read cringe profiles out loud to each other), so that is what we are doing on today's bonus episode.  To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

Lots of subscribers asked us to release last month's bonus episode in full so here it is! Share it with the conservatives, the boomers and the Satanists in your life.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod Where to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseThanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

In 1995 a bestselling book proposed a simple dating strategy for women: Lose weight, wear bright colors and become a completely different person for the rest of your life.Thanks to Moira Donegan for helping us with this episode! Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:From Front Porch to Back Seat: Courtship in Twentieth-Century America Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s essay, “Stuff Your ‘Rules’” The More Things Change: The Rules And Late Eighteenth‐Century Conduct Books For Women Shrinking Violets and Caspar Milquetoasts: Shyness and Heterosexuality from the Roles of the Fifties to "The Rules" of the Nineties From Mountain Peak to Total Woman: An Evolutionary History of Pre-feminist Dating Advice The Mating Game: How Gender Still Shapes How We Date by Ellen Lamont So Many Rules, So Little Time Abiding by The Rules: Instructing Women in Relationships What leads to romantic attraction: similarity, reciprocity, security, or beauty? Evidence from a speed-dating study "Playing Hard To Get": Understanding An Elusive Phenomenon Egalitarian Daters, Traditionalist Dates Aspirational pursuit of mates in online dating markets Disintermediating your friends: How online dating in the United States displaces other ways of meeting Playing Hard To Get  Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

This week we're discussing "Atomic Habits," a book about how to use science (and also some stuff that’s definitely not science) to train yourself to be a more functional person.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:How 1% Performance Improvements Led to Olympic GoldFrom paupers to kings: The lottery-funded revolution Habit FormationImplementation Intentions to Reduce Smoking: A Systematic Review of the LiteratureEffectiveness of the use of implementation intentions on reduction of substance use: A meta-analysisWhen Intentions Go PublicEffect of Intensive Handwashing Promotion on Childhood Diarrhea in High-Risk Communities in Pakistan Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

To celebrate Pride Month we recorded the most depressing bonus episode we've ever done.To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

Much has been said about globalization, but perhaps no one has said it worse than Thomas Friedman.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Why The World Isn't FlatThe World Is Still Not FlatDHL Global Connectedness Index 2022The Fallacies of FlatnessThe Sociopathy of Thomas Friedman: A CompendiumThomas Friedman sums up the Iraq War (YouTube) Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

The Nudgening.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:David Gal's "Behavioral Winter"The i-frame and the s-frame: How focusing on individual-level solutions has led behavioral public policy astrayWhy Is Behavioral Economics So Popular?Applying Behavioral Insights To Intimate Partner ViolenceWhat Counts as a Nudge?The Power of Nudges, for Good and BadAllowing Patients to Waive the Right to Sue for Medical Malpractice: A Response to Thaler and SunsteinObama’s ObamaBehavioural Insights Applied to Policy - Country Overviews 2016The opioid crisis and nudge theoryOn the Supposed Evidence for Libertarian PaternalismThe effect of charter schools on charter students and public schoolsRe-election Strategy Is Tied to a Shift on SmogIs the White House delaying too many health and safety rules?Down the Regulatory Rabbit HoleWhy regulations are good — againCass Sunstein: The Obama Administration's Ambivalent Regulator Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

In 2021, scrappy young investors from across the world joined forces to buy GameStop stock, aiming to take down greedy hedge funds. What came next was tragedy, injustice, and a conspiratorial internet cult so stupid we had to do an episode about it.To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

In 2008, an economist and a law professor proposed a radical new approach to politics: Telling people not to do bad stuff.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Mike's Maintenance Phase episode on the godfather of the "cafeteria nudge"Nudge: Concept, Effectiveness, and EthicsFrom mechanism to virtue: Evaluating Nudge theoryThe effectiveness of nudging: A meta-analysis of choice architecture interventions across behavioral domainsWhy the Most Important Idea in Behavioral Decision-Making Is a FallacyBehavioral WinterWhy Is Behavioral Economics So Popular?The Origins of Anti-Litter CampaignsDo Normative Appeals Affect Tax Compliance? Evidence from a Controlled Experiment in MinnesotaOpt-out legislations: the mysterious viability of the falseOpt-out policies capacity to increase organ donors is limitedAssessing Global Organ Donation Policies: Opt-In vs Opt-OutWhat Counts as a Nudge?Preventing Secondary Pregnancy In Adolescents: A Model ProgramThe Effect of Monetary Incentives and Peer Support Groups on Repeat Adolescent Pregnancies A Randomized Trial of the Dollar-a-Day ProgramThe i-frame and the s-frame: How focusing on individual-level solutions has led behavioral public policy astrayCan behavioural economics make us healthier?On the Supposed Evidence for Libertarian PaternalismThanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

What’s your love language? Is it gifts? Words of affirmation? Or is it podcasts about books with extremely weird, reactionary gender dynamics?Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Can Gary Chapman Save Your Marriage?The Sixth Love Language Does Not ExistHow ‘The Five Love Languages’ Gets Misinterpreted The 5 Love Languages Don’t Matter as Much as You ThinkThe Creator Of The 5 Love Languages Is A Homophobe And This Is Why We Can't Have Nice ThingsFamed Author Gary Chapman Talks Love, Marriage, Sex Evangelicals IncorporatedThanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

Is it bootstraps? It's bootstraps.To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

In 1997, Robert Kiyosaki revealed the secret to lifelong success: Deliver grifty seminars and hire child slaves.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Pound Foolish: Exposing the Dark Side of the Personal Finance Industry‘Rich Dad Poor Dad' Robert Kiyosaki ExposedStupid Investment of the WeekRobert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad Education on Real Estate Investing ReviewThe Ticket to Easy Street? The Financial Consequences of Winning the LotteryWhy the Myth of the Miserable Lottery Winner Just Won’t DieWork Centrality and Post-Award Work Behavior of Lottery Winners"The best way to get even with A-grade students was to make them employees of mine"Ohio real estate investor’s warning statement on Robert Kiyosaki and Bill Gatten’s complex PACtrust for real estate investingAcademic Discipline and Personal Finance Instruction in High SchoolThanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

Get in loser, we're going to Oberlin.To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

In 2016, J.D. Vance informally launched his political career with "Hillbilly Elegy," a memoir that blames the relative poverty of Appalachian and Rust Belt populations on their own culture. Despite its reactionary premise, mainstream and liberal press outlets were so enamored by the book that they accidentally made Vance a senator.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Appalachian Reckoning America’s Divided Recovery What Did Hillbilly Elegy Get Wrong? J.D. Vance, the False Prophet of Blue America Hillbilly ElitismWelfare Queens and White Trash Consumer Expenditures in 2016 Household Expenditures and Income CFPB Data Point: Payday Lending Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

TRIGGER WARNING: if you're a SNOWFLAKE college professor afraid of how your students are expressing themselves, you might need a SAFE SPACE, because Michael and Peter are discussing "The Coddling of The American Mind," a book about campus culture that's light on facts and heavy on cherry-picked anecdotes.CORRECTION: The Socrates quote mentioned at the end of this episode is apocryphal. We thank the listeners who pointed this out for refusing to coddle our American minds.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:The Miseducation of Free Speech (https://www.virginialawreview.org/articles/miseducation-free-speech/)College and the “Culture War”: Assessing Higher Education’s Influence on Moral Attitudes (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/00031224211041094)The Myth of the Campus Coddle Crisis (https://academeblog.org/2018/12/28/the-myth-of-the-campus-coddle-crisis-the-coddling-of-the-american-mind/)What ‘Safe Spaces’ Really Look Like on College Campuses (https://www.chronicle.com/article/what-safe-spaces-really-look-like-on-college-campuses/?bc_nonce=peduocnzcslb08jxmt1dlb&cid=reg_wall_signup)Are College Campuses Really in the Thrall of Leftist Censors? (https://slate.com/human-interest/2015/03/hypersensitive-campus-progressives-judith-shulevitz-is-half-right-but-takes-her-criticisms-too-far.html) Speaking Freely: What Students Think about Expression at American Colleges (https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/student-attitudes-free-speech-survey) ‘Not all cultures are created equal’ says Penn Law professor in op-ed (https://www.thedp.com/article/2017/08/amy-wax-penn-law-cultural-values) How Right Wing Media Has Tried to Stifle Student Speech at Evergreen State College (https://psmag.com/education/the-real-free-speech-story-at-evergreen-college)I'm a liberal professor, and my liberal students terrify me (https://www.vox.com/2015/6/3/8706323/college-professor-afraid)In College and Hiding From Scary Ideas (https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/22/opinion/sunday/judith-shulevitz-hiding-from-scary-ideas.html)Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

The nation's most prestigious newspaper insists on asking a very stupid question. So for this month's bonus episode, we decided to answer it. To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodAs we mentioned at the top of the episode, we're donating this month's support to three of our trans journo-friends! They've been unbelievably patient with Mike as he's navigated the science and politics of this issue over the last year. Here's where to find and support their work:Parker Molloy (readtpa.com) Katelyn Burns (patreon.com/katelynburns)Evan Urquhart  (assignedmedia.org) 

"If your thesis doesn't hold up to obvious criticisms, there's a chance that your thesis sucks." Thanks to Paul Musgrave and Alex Cruikshanks for helping us fact-check this episode!Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseLinks!Huntington’s 1993 articleStatistics on deaths in state-based conflicts The Clash of Civilizations: An Islamicist’s CritiquePaul Musgrave’s Roundtable on  Clash of Civilizations  “The Hispanic Challenge” The “Arab Street”? Public Opinion In The Arab World The Clash of Ignorance Can Civilizations Clash? 

Francis Fukuyama's "The End of History and the Last Man" changed political discourse forever. Peter and Michael peel back his muddled history and fluffy rhetoric, revealing several more layers of muddled history and fluffy rhetoric.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Reflections on the End of History, Five Years Later (https://www.jstor.org/stable/2505433)More Proof That This Really Is the End of History (https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/10/francis-fukuyama-still-end-history/671761/)Francis Fukuyama Postpones the End of History (https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/09/03/francis-fukuyama-postpones-the-end-of-history)Endism: why 1989 was not the 'end of history' (https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/endism/)The End of the End of History (https://www.bostonreview.net/articles/maximillian-alvarez-end-end-history/)It's Still Not the End of History (https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2014/09/its-still-not-the-end-of-history-francis-fukuyama/379394/)Bring back ideology: Fukuyama's 'end of history' 25 years on (https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/mar/21/bring-back-ideology-fukuyama-end-history-25-years-on)Francis Fukuyama's Shrinking Idea (https://newrepublic.com/article/152668/francis-fukuyama-identity-review-collapse-theory-liberal-democracy)

In December 2019, the coronavirus pandemic began in Wuhan, China. In May 2021, America experienced one of the most cursed weeks of punditry we've ever seen. This is a condensed version of the full episode. To hear the rest go to patreon.com/IfBooksPod. See you next week! 

In 1992 a yoga instructor with a distance-learning PhD had the courage to ask: "Are women not getting help around the house because they're using the wrong modal verb?" Support us on PatreonWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:The Myth of Mars and Venus: Do Men and Women Really Speak Different Languages?A critical response to John Gray's Mars and Venus portrayals of men and women The Gender Similarities HypothesisThe Rebuttal from UranusComing home upset: Gender, marital satisfaction and the daily spillover of workday experience into couple interactionsFDA warning letter Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus: An Analysis of a Potential MemeWomen, Men and Language Women, Men, and Gender: Ongoing DebatesWomen and Men Talking: Are They World’s Apart?

Rhonda Byrne's "The Secret" sold millions of copies based on a simple premise: All of science is fake and the only reason anything ever happens is because people manifest it by communicating with the universe.Support us on PatreonWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Power Lines Oprah's Ugly Secret The Staggering Bullshit of The SecretDeath by “alternative” medicine: Who’s to blame?  For Some Seeking Rebirth, Sweat Lodge Was End A Little Secret About The Secret Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

How a Stanford lepidopterist convinced the world to fear the breeding habits of the poor. Again. Support us on PatreonWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Sonia Shah’s “The Next Great Migration” Barbarian Hordes: The overpopulation scapegoat in international development discourseOptimism and OverpopulationThe Population Bomb RevisitedThe Strange History of Birth ControlBirth Control for OthersHow the World Survived the Population Bomb: Lessons From 50 Years of Extraordinary Demographic HistoryWhy the Population Bomb is a Rockefeller Baby

Our first premium episode is a deep dive into the blog of the infamously (and  dubiously) "canceled" Bari Weiss. To hear the full episode, subscribe on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodMore free episodes are on their way! 

Neil Strauss's "The Game" aimed to teach any man how to hook up with beautiful women. All he needed was a little bit of sociopathy, a lot of misogyny and a fanny pack full of props.Support us on PatreonWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:He's Simply Resistable  Pickup Artists Are Still A Thing. And They Want You To Know They’ve Evolved.Misogynist Incels and Male Supremacism Would the Pickup Artist Stand a Chance in the #MeToo Era?  Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

David Brooks became liberals' famous conservative by telling them what they wanted to hear. But ... why did they want to hear something that was lazy and wrong?Support us on PatreonWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:A Reasonable ManDavid Brooks: Boo-Boos in ParadiseA Cartoon EliteDavid Brooks’s Conversion StoryDavid Brooks and the Endless Grift of the Conservative CommentariatHow The Bobos Broke AmericaDeath Of A Yuppie Dream: The Rise And Fall Of The Professional-Managerial ClassStuff the Professional-Managerial Class Likes: "Distinction" for an Egalitarian EliteDavid Brooks’s Search for MeaningThe facts vs. David Brooks: Startling inaccuracies raise questions about his latest bookDavid Brooks Is Not Buying Your Excuses, Poor PeopleThanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

In "Outliers," Malcolm Gladwell posited that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to become an expert in something. Mike and Peter prove him wrong by mastering his dumb book over the span of about 50 minutes.Support us on PatreonLinks:Malcolm Gladwell talks about responding to critics, and the perils of ‘Talking to Strangers’Gladwell for Dummies Malcolm Gladwell interview The Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance The Dangers of Delegating Education To Journalists Good intuition takes years of practice Blinkered How Malcolm Gladwell Tricks You Into Believing Complexity and the Ten-Thousand-Hour Rule Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study

In 2005, two men named Steven and Stephen published the quintessential airport book. In 2022, two men named Mike and Peter started a whole podcast just to make fun of it. Thanks to Ted Joyce and Ames Grawert for helping with the research for this episode!Support us on PatreonWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:The 2003 NYT articleFreakonomics: What Went Wrong?A Review of FreakonomicsDismal ScienceFreak-FreakonomicsThe Impact of Legalized Abortion on Crime: CommentThe Abortion–Crime Link: Evidence from England and WalesThe Impact of an Abortion Ban on Socioeconomic Outcomes of Children: Evidence from RomaniaDid Legalized Abortion Lower Crime?On the Choice of Control Variables in the Crime EquationSteven Levitt on Abortion and Crime: Old Economics in New BottlesThe Impact Of Legalized Abortion On CrimeThe Great American Mystery Story: Why Did Crime Decline?Is There an iCrime Wave?The Great Crime DeclineThe Crime Drop in America10 (Not Entirely Crazy) Theories Explaining the Great Crime DeclineWhat Caused the Crime Decline?Freaks and Geeks: How Freakonomics is ruining the dismal science.Interesting Questions in FreakonomicsIncentives And The Economic Point Of View: The Case Of Popular EconomicsAbortion and Crime in AustraliaThanks to Mindseye for our theme song!