About

I am a behavioral scientist, teacher, and writer. I am a contributing editor for Skeptical Inquirer magazine, for which I write the “Behavior & Belief” column, both online and in print. I have written personal and professional essays in a variety of places, including the ObserverMedium, The AtlanticThe Good Men ProjectTablet, and Time.

The first edition of my book Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition won the William James Book Award of the American Psychological Association and was translated into Japanese, German, and Romanian. An updated edition was published in 2014. My book Going Broke: Why Americans (Still) Can’t Hold On To Their Money is an analysis of the current epidemic of personal debt. The first edition was translated into Chinese, and the second edition was released in September of 2018 in both paperback and audiobook formats. In 2020, my book Superstition was published in the Oxford University Press Very Short Introduction series. The Spanish translation, Breve historian de la superstición, was published by Alianza editorial on January 13 (!), 2022. My latest book, The Uses of Delusion: Why It’s Not Always Rational to be Rational (Oxford, 2022), is out now in the US in hardcover, e-book, and audiobook. It will be published in the UK in August 2022.

As an expert on superstition and irrational behavior, I have been quoted in many news outlets, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, and have appeared on CBS Sunday Morning, CNN International, the PBS NewsHour, and NPR’s Science Friday. See the In the Media page for recent quotes and appearances.

I hold a PhD in psychology and BA and MA degrees in English Literature and am a Fellow of the Association for Psychological Science and the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. The majority of my teaching career was spent at Providence College, the University of Rhode Island, and Connecticut College. My academic interests are in decision-making, behavioral economics, philosophy, behavior analysis, and belief in the paranormal.

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Google Scholar Citations

Researchgate profile


Recent Posts

Late August: The End of Interim & The Best Minds

Sailboats in the harbor, Stonington, CT.

Where did the summer go? It is August in this little tourist village, and the swimmers and sailors are in peak form.


It has been quite some time since I last visited your inbox because until quite recently, I have been busy finishing up as interim editor of Skeptical Inquirer magazine in time for the new editor, Stephen Hupp, to take over. The last two issues produced under my editorship are now in the can. The July/August issue featured a wonderful cover story “The Ideological Subversion of Biology” by Jerry Coyne and Luana Maroja. Since its appearance, the article has been translated into four languages and has drawn worldwide attention.

The September/October issue, which will be out soon, features a cover story on pervasive bullshitters by psychologist John V. Petrocelli. Coincidently, the issue was just being finalized when we received word of the death of philosopher Harry Frankfurt, whose bestselling book, On Bullshit, was the inspiration for Petrocellli’s research on the subject. Frankfurt was a towering figure whose influence on philosophy will be felt for a long time

 


Norwich (CT) State Hospital

Now that I am back to just being a columnist at Skeptical Inquirer magazine, I will be writing my “Behavior & Belief” column on a more regular basis. My most recent article, “Mental Illness and the Tragedy of Good Intentions” came out on August 17th. It gives a brief history of deinstitutionalization and a review of the remarkable new book by Jonathan Rosen, The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions. Rosen tells the very moving story of a childhood friend stricken with schizophrenia, and in the process, he offers a clear-eyed view of the glaring problems faced by people with severe mental disorders and those who care about them.


I have been on quite a few podcasts and YouTube shows over the last few years, but few have been more enjoyable than an episode of the Eurotrash podcast with host Zaza earlier this month. We covered many topics and laughed a lot.


That’s all for now. I hope you have a few more sunny days of summer to enjoy before the realities of the fall set in.

SV

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