Episode 4: Pursuing Happiness: Daniel Gilbert on Human Imagination and Subjectivity

Psychologist and author Daniel Gilbert (APS 2024) joins host Patrick Spero to discuss how humans imagine new possibilities and the subjective way we think about the future and the past. Inspired by the United States’ upcoming 250th birthday, Gilbert and Spero discuss what America’s Founders meant by the “Pursuit of Happiness” and what it might mean for Americans today. 

Daniel Gilbert is the Edgar Pierce Professor of Psychology at Harvard University. He has won numerous awards for his research and teaching. His popular book, Stumbling on Happiness, spent 6 months on the New York Times bestseller list and has been translated into more than 40 languages. Gilbert is the host and co-writer of the award-winning NOVA television series This Emotional Life which was seen by more than 10 million viewers in its first airing. He is a contributor to Time, The New York Times, and NPR's All Things Considered, and has been a guest on numerous television programs including The Today Show, The Colbert Report, and The Late Show. Gilbert’s three TED talks have more than 30 million views, and his first TED talk remains one of the most popular of all time.