Boredom: Is It Good For You?

Boredom: Is It Good For You?

From Science Vs by Spotify Studios

April 30, 2026 · 33 min

About this episode

This episode explores whether boredom is beneficial for creativity and mental health through discussions with experts.

We keep hearing that we need to be BORED more, with people online swearing that boredom can work magic — restoring your mind, and even supercharging your creativity. So, is boredom secretly good for us? We talk to cognitive neuroscientist Prof. James Danckert and organizational psychologist Prof. Guihyun Park to find out. Find our transcript here: https://tinyurl.com/ScienceVsBoredom In this episode, we cover: (00:00) They say we need more boredom (02:06) This is your brain on boredom (12:30) Does boredom push us into creativity? (22:08) Should you try to be more bored? (23:53) When you give your brain time to rest This episode was produced by Michelle Dang, with help from Meryl Horn, Rose Rimler and Ekedi Fausther-Keeys. Wendy Zukerman is our executive producer. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Fact checking by Erica Akiko Howard. Mix and sound design by Bobby Lord. Music written by Bobby Lord, Bumi Hidaka, So Wylie, Emma Munger and Peter Leonard. Science Vs is a Spotify Studios Original. Listen for free on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Follow us and tap the bell for episode notifications. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

People in this episode

Guests: Prof. James Danckert, Prof. Guihyun Park

Topics covered

  • boredom
  • creativity
  • cognitive neuroscience
  • psychology
  • mental health

Keywords

  • boredom
  • creativity
  • cognitive neuroscience
  • psychology
  • mental health
  • brain
  • rest

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Spotify Studios

Books & works: Science Vs

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