There's fascinating science on parasocial relationships, or the one-sided relationships we form with famous people who don't know us. To learn how these asymmetric relationships can bias our judgment & in some cases alter our morality, check out my latest newsletter open.substack.com/pub/katymilk...

Could following celebrity gossip change your behavior?

A conversation with Princeton psychology Professor Anuj Shah about the behavioral science of our “parasocial relationships” with celebrities and beyond

open.substack.com

If you’ll be at #AOM2026 in Philly, here are two talks you won’t want to miss! Jose Cervantez & Sophia Pink are both rising 5th year PhD candidates at Wharton who will be on the management job market in the year ahead, and they are incredible. Both will be giving previews of their job talks at AOM.

Whose work most influenced you? Professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, @katymilkman.bsky.social answers this question on a special episode of the Social Science Bites podcast. Hear from leading social and behavioral scientists: www.socialsciencespace.com/2026/04/whos...

Are you familiar with the headwinds-tailwinds asymmetry? Learn about this important bias in decision making and how to make better choices from the extraordinary Cornell psychology Prof. Tom Gilovich. open.substack.com/pub/katymilk...

What we overlook when pursuing our goals and why it matters

A conversation with Cornell psychology Professor Tom Gilovich about the headwinds we notice and the tailwinds we don’t

open.substack.com

A few books I’m excited to have on my desk right now… what’s in your stack?

Congratulations to my brilliant friend Prof. Nick Epley on the publication of his terrific book A LITTLE MORE SOCIAL. This book will help you see the tremendous value of reaching out to have more conversations — on the subway or bus, at the coffee shop or in an uber: a.co/d/07CajkvT

Learn what research says about why a focus on time over money can boost your happiness: open.substack.com/pub/katymilk...

Tips for living a happier life

A conversation with UCLA Marketing Professor and happiness expert Cassie Holmes

open.substack.com

To everyone responding with vitriol: please come! Our goal in choosing speakers was to platform both popular and unpopular figures advocating for scientific reforms to spark productive conversations across divides! If this makes you angry, come engage in dialogue — that’s how we improve.

Katy Milkman@katymilkman.bsky.social · 4mo ago

I'm co-organizing a free, 2-day Zoom workshop from the NAS & hope you'll consider attending! 📅 April 23-24: Discuss how we can enhance scientific integrity in the social and behavioral sciences REGISTER: www.nationalacademies.org/projects/DBA... PROGRAM: www.nationalacademies.org/cdn/material...

I'm co-organizing a free, 2-day Zoom workshop from the NAS & hope you'll consider attending! 📅 April 23-24: Discuss how we can enhance scientific integrity in the social and behavioral sciences REGISTER: www.nationalacademies.org/projects/DBA... PROGRAM: www.nationalacademies.org/cdn/material...

How can you improve your decisions? In this Q&A with Duke Prof. Jack Soll, you’ll find a checklist you can use to boost the quality of important choices. open.substack.com/pub/katymilk...

A checklist for making better decisions

Duke University Professor Jack Soll explains how you can avoid bias and make better decisions.

open.substack.com

This is TODAY if you’re in Philly 🎉

Katy Milkman@katymilkman.bsky.social · 5mo ago

On 3/16, the Behavior Change for Good Initiative (@bcfginitiative.bsky.social) will co-host superstar @uofchicago.bsky.social Econ Prof. John List at Wharton for a talk called "Field Experiments on Trial: Bringing Causal Evidence to the Courtroom." Join us at 12PM on the 8th floor of Huntsman Hall!

On 3/16, the Behavior Change for Good Initiative (@bcfginitiative.bsky.social) will co-host superstar @uofchicago.bsky.social Econ Prof. John List at Wharton for a talk called "Field Experiments on Trial: Bringing Causal Evidence to the Courtroom." Join us at 12PM on the 8th floor of Huntsman Hall!

I am speaking at the SPSP 2026 Annual Convention. Please check out my panel on science communication if you're attending the event! #SPSP2026

If there's a habit you've been meaning to break (or make), today's episode is for you. We dive into the science of why habits are so tenacious, and the brilliant @katymilkman.bsky.social shares advice for making real change stick. (Hint: don't just "just do it.") omny.fm/shows/part-t...

What’s the Best Way to Break a Bad Habit? - Part-Time Genius

Why is it so hard to stop oversleeping and eating candy? Why is it equally hard to start going to the gym and preparing healthy snacks? If you’ve been struggling with New Year’s resolutions, you’re no...

omny.fm

Most of your favorite stories from Star Wars to Harry Potter follow a 7 step formula called a hero’s journey. What’s fascinating is that Kurt Gray & his collaborators showed recasting your own life story so it fits this formula can improve your resilience! Read on: open.substack.com/pub/katymilk...

The surprising benefits of asking what you have in common with Luke Skywalker

A conversation with Ohio State psychology Professor Kurt Gray about the power of recasting your life as a “hero’s journey”

open.substack.com

I’m so excited that REVEALING is out this week! My incredible friend and collaborator HBS Prof. Leslie John wrote this book to help you discover the science behind the underrated power of oversharing. I hope you'll love it as much as I did! Pick up a copy: www.amazon.com/Revealing-Un...)

What is naive realism + how could recognizing this bias help improve your relationships? I share a Q&A with @JuliaMinson on naive realism in my latest newsletter. Julia’s soon-to-be-released book, How to Disagree Better, is a must read for 2026: a.co/d/0ayF4p3V! 👉🏻 open.substack.com/pub/katymilk...

The bias that makes disagreement so hard

A conversation with Harvard Kennedy School Professor Julia Minson on naïve realism, plus New Year’s insights on behavior change

open.substack.com

It was a treat to kick off our Wharton Decision Processes speaker series with a talk by Duke Prof Rick Larrick about the perils of including your own best guess at a quantity when eliciting an outside estimate. We even managed to snap a photo of Rick on our bench with Ben Franklin. Snow be darned!

What is the best thing about being a behavioral scientist at Wharton? It's hard to pick, but it *might* be attending our extraordinary, star-studded Decision Processes seminar series. Check out the speakers we brought through this fall, each of whom agreed to pose on Penn's iconic Ben Franklin bench

Here’s a recording of yesterday’s Q&A on science communication with Emily Oster!

Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics@pennchibe.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Here's the link to the recording with Emily Oster if you missed it! @alison-buttenheim.bsky.social @katymilkman.bsky.social @bcfginitiative.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJf1...

Here’s a recording of yesterday’s Q&A on science communication with Emily Oster!

Center for Health Incentives and Behavioral Economics@pennchibe.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Here's the link to the recording with Emily Oster if you missed it! @alison-buttenheim.bsky.social @katymilkman.bsky.social @bcfginitiative.bsky.social www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJf1...

It was *such* a treat to co-host Emily Oster (w/ @alison-buttenheim.bsky.social) for a Zoom Q&A today on how to communicate about science with a broad audience. The highlight? Possibly the unexpected game of "Underrated/Overrated" Alison launched at the close. Here are Emily's hot takes...

Don’t miss the chance to join me for a Q&A with the incredible Prof. Emily Oster on Zoom next Wed 1/28 at 12PM ET. I’ll be co-hosting a conversation about best practices in science communication. Who better to answer questions on this topic than Emily Oster? Register to join here: bit.ly/4qqmF8l

I’m so proud of everything the team at the Behavior Change for Good Initiative accomplished in 2025! Check it out 👀

Behavior Change for Good Initiative@bcfginitiative.bsky.social · 7mo ago

BCFG’s annual report is available now! Check out our latest efforts in advancing positive behavior change at scale: whr.tn/45chIIb

Today, my brilliant friend Maya Shankar's first book - THE OTHER SIDE OF CHANGE - is officially available. This book is powerful and poignant. Sometimes we're forced to cope with a change we never anticipated and would never have chosen. What then?

I’m really looking forward to this and hope you’ll consider joining us!

Robert Metcalfe@rmetcalfe.bsky.social · 7mo ago

Excited to announce that this year's Advances with Field Experiments conference will take place at the University of Chicago on September 17-18, 2026. @johnlist.bsky.social and I will send out a call for abstracts early in the Spring. bfi.uchicago.edu/events/event... @katymilkman.bsky.social

Mark your calendar: BCFG, @katymilkman.bsky.social and @pennchibe.bsky.social will host a virtual keynote talk with Emily Oster on Wed 1/28 at 12 PM ET. Register here: bit.ly/4qqmF8l.

Kick off the new year with insights on how to reach your goals–featuring Co-Director @katymilkman.bsky.social in a recent @washingtonpost.com article by @gretchenxreynolds.bsky.social: wapo.st/4qHDDiL.

Here’s how to make resolutions stick, according to a behavior change scientist

Researcher Katy Milkman explains science-backed ways to commit to your goals, including a hack called “temptation bundling.”

wapo.st

When @melrobbins.bsky.social and I talked about the science of behavior change, I explained the importance of using friction to support your best intentions. That means making it as easy as possible to do things that are good for you and as hard as possible to do things that are bad for you.

Ever wondered why people are particularly open to change at New Year's? I did! As I explained to @melrobbins.bsky.social, that wondering led Hengchen Dai, Jason Riis and I to collect data, and we found that every New Year, every Monday, and every birthday all have something in common...