The Curiosity Shop with Brené Brown and Adam Grant

Does conflict really have the power to bring us closer together? In this episode of The Curiosity Shop, facilitator and author Priya Parker joins Brené Brown and Adam Grant to rethink how we approach conflict. Drawing from her new book, The Art of Fighting, Priya explores why avoiding conflict can create distance in our relationships, how “healthy heat” differs from destructive conflict, and why practicing disagreement when the stakes are low can prepare us for the conversations that matter most. Together, they unpack toxic politeness and why meaningful relationships require us to embrace discomfort instead of avoiding it. They also explore how preparation and collective humanity can be powerful tools to de-escalate conflict. The conversation leads Brené and Adam to reflect on their own history and how some of their hardest conversations have ultimately deepened their friendship. About Priya Parker | Her Story – Priya Parker,  priyaparker.com (web page) The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters – Priya Parker, 2018, Riverhead Books (book) Brené with Priya Parker on The Art of Gathering – Brené Brown and Priya Parker, 2020, Unlocking Us (podcast episode) Brené with Priya Parker on How We Return and Why It Matters, Part 1 of 2 – Brené Brown and Priya Parker, 2021, Dare to Lead (podcast episode) Brené and Adam on What They Will Never Agree On – Brené Brown and Adam Grant, 2026, The Curiosity Shop (video/podcast episode, YouTube) Task versus relationship conflict, team performance, and team member satisfaction: A meta-analysis – Carsten K. W. De Dreu and Laurie R. Weingart, 2003, Journal of Applied Psychology (journal article) The Science of Productive Conflict – Adam Grant, 2021, WorkLife with Adam Grant (video episode, YouTube) Heat is relevance (and other things I've learned about healthy heat) – Priya Parker, 2026, Group Life (newsletter post, Substack) Group Life – Priya Parker, n.d., Substack (newsletter) Prentis Hemphill – Prentis Hemphill, n.d., prentishemphill.com (personal website) Clear Is Kind. Unclear Is Unkind. – Brené Brown, 2018, brenebrown.com (article) Working at Canlis – Canlis, n.d., canlis.com (careers page) Do I stay or do I go? – Priya Parker, 2026, Group Life (newsletter post, Substack) Why Avoiding Conflict Is Actually Hurting Your Relationships | Priya Parker on 'The Interview' – The New York Times, 2026, YouTube (video) Festivus: The Airing of Grievances – Seinfeld, “The Strike,” 1997, YouTube (video clip) The Rituals Of Reality TV Reunions: An In-Depth Examination – Gibson Johns, 2024, Betches (article) Resources – Conscious Leadership Group,  conscious.is (resource library) Fairy Tales and Script Drama Analysis – Stephen B. Karpman, 1968, Transactional Analysis Bulletin (journal article) How to Use the Drama Triangle at Work – Conscious Leadership Group, n.d., conscious.is (blog post) Martin B. Copenhaver – The Christian Century,  christiancentury.org (contributor page) The Rev. Martin  B. Copenhaver: "Divided We Stand" – Martin B. Copenhaver, 2007, Washington National Cathedral (sermon) Open and Affirming – UCC Open and Affirming Coalition, openandaffirming.org (organisation page) Open and Affirming – United Church of Christ, n.d., ucc.org (denomination page) Robert's Rules of Order – Henry M. Robert, 1876, Project Gutenberg (book) Zohran Mamdani Campaign Rally, United Palace, Washington Heights – uploader not confirmed, 2025, YouTube (video, deep link at 7:41) The Persuaders: At the Front Lines of the Fight for Hearts, Minds, and Democracy – Anand Giridharadas, 2022, Knopf (book) Remembering Hal Saunders, Founder and Mentor – Sustained Dialogue Institute, 2016, sustaineddialogue.org (memorial notice) Man in the Mirror: Hope, Struggle, and Belonging in an American City – Anand Giridharadas, 2026, Knopf / Penguin Random House (book) The 12 New Books to Spice Up Your Fall – Adam Grant, 2026, Granted (newsletter post, Substack) The Story Rumble Process: A Guide for Groups and Teams – Brené Brown, 2018, brenebrown.com (downloadable resource) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What happens to integrity when cheating becomes easier and the world seems to reward people for cutting corners? In this episode of The Curiosity Shop, Adam shares what happened when he discovered that students were planning to use AI to cheat on an exam. Brené and Adam move into a much larger conversation about honesty, character, and moral identity. Together, they explore when using AI is inherently cheating, why monitoring people isn’t enough to make them trustworthy, the difference between shame and adaptive guilt, and what research reveals about building a stronger moral compass. They also unpack why honor codes can sometimes backfire, how inconsistent accountability undermines trust, and what dimension of character we often overlook. Ultimately, Brené and Adam explore the difference between wanting to be seen as a good person and choosing to become the kind of person who does the right thing even when no one else is watching. There’s Really Only One Way to Stop Students From Cheating – Adam Grant, August 26, 2026, The New York Times Cheating: Why Students Do It and How We Can Help Them Stop – Donald McCabe, 2001, American Educator Brené Brown: The Rage Bucket Theory – Trevor Noah, June 4, 2026, What Now? with Trevor Noah Adam Grant Gives Trevor an Intellectual Wedgie – Trevor Noah, August 2024, What Now? with Trevor Noah Pickleball Line Rules: Calling the Ball “In” or “Out” – PlayPickleball.com, July 31, 2024, YouTube Cheating in the Age of Generative AI: A High School Survey Study of Cheating Behaviors Before and After the Release of ChatGPT – Lee et al., 2024, Computers and Education: Artificial Intelligence Addressing Academic Dishonesty in Higher Education: A Systematic Review of Generative AI’s Impact – Sharma & Panja, 2025, Open Praxis As Schools Reconsider Cursive, Research Homes in on Handwriting’s Brain Benefits – Jonathan Lambert, May 11, 2024, NPR How Learning Handwriting Trains the Brain: The Science Behind the Cursive Wars – Mariana Lenharo, February 2, 2026, Nature The Importance of Cursive Handwriting Over Typewriting for Learning in the Classroom – Ose Askvik et al., 2020, Frontiers in Psychology Why Cursive Handwriting Is Good for Your Brain – Christopher Bergland, October 2, 2020, Psychology Today The Effects of Handwriting Experience on Functional Brain Development in Pre-Literate Children – James & Engelhardt, 2012, Trends in Neuroscience and Education How Handwriting Trains the Brain – Gwendolyn Bounds, October 5, 2010, The Wall Street Journal The Self-Importance of Moral Identity – Aquino & Reed, 2002, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology Does Moral Identity Effectively Predict Moral Behavior? A Meta-Analysis – Hertz & Krettenauer, 2016, Review of General Psychology Competition and Cheating: Investigating the Role of Moral Awareness, Moral Identity, and Moral Elevation – Vadera & Pathki, 2021, Journal of Organizational Behavior Moral Emotions and Moral Behavior – Tangney et al., 2007, Annual Review of Psychology Shame and Guilt – Tangney & Dearing, 2002, Guilford Press Shame, Guilt, and Depressive Symptoms: A Meta-Analytic Review – Kim et al., 2011, Psychological Bulletin Shame v. Guilt – Brené Brown, January 14, 2013, brenebrown.com Protecting Our Attention, Time and Humanity in a World That Won’t Slow Down – Brené Brown, August 20, 2026, The Curiosity Shop with Brené Brown and Adam Grant Effectiveness of Ex Ante Honesty Oaths in Reducing Dishonesty Depends on Content – Zickfeld et al., 2025, Nature Human Behaviour Committed Dishonesty: A Systematic Meta-Analysis of the Effect of Social Commitment on Dishonest Behavior – Zickfeld et al., 2024, Psychological Bulletin Detecting and Preventing Cheating in Exams: Evidence From a Field Experiment – Cagala et al., 2024, Journal of Human Resources The Honor Committee – University of Virginia, honor.virginia.edu Effects of Honor Code Reminders on University Students’ Cheating in Unproctored Exams – Zhao et al., 2023, Contemporary Educational Psychology Honor Codes and Other Contextual Influences on Academic Integrity: A Replication and Extension to Modified Honor Code Settings – McCabe et al., 2002, Research in Higher Education Academic Dishonesty: Honor Codes and Other Contextual Influences – McCabe & Treviño, 1993, Journal of Higher Education Bicentennial Analysis – UVA Honor Committee, 2019, University of Virginia Culture Is Not the Problem. Tolerated Behaviour Is. – John Amaechi, February 15, 2026, Giant! with John Amaechi Making a Pledge Can Encourage Honest Behavior—If the Wording Is Right – Simon Makin, Scientific American, February 26, 2025, Scientific American "Do or do not. There is no try” - Yoda, The Empire Strikes Back, Screenplay by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan, 1980,  [Video] YouTube  I Solemnly Swear I’m Up to Good: A Megastudy Investigating the Effectiveness of Honesty Oaths on Curbing Dishonesty – Zickfeld et al., 2024, HAL Preprint Trump Reports Over $1 Billion in Income From Crypto Ventures – TIME, June 30, 2026, TIME Now Available: The President’s and Vice President’s Public Financial Disclosure Reports – U.S. Office of Government Ethics, 2026, U.S. Office of Government Ethics Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012 – U.S. Congress, 2012, Pub. L. No. 112-105 This Is Your Brain on Drugs – Partnership for a Drug-Free America, 1987, YouTube Project D.A.R.E. Outcome Effectiveness Revisited – West & O’Neal, 2004, American Journal of Public Health New Approaches to Youth Substance Misuse – American Psychological Association, March 2024, Monitor on Psychology Beyond Pleasure and Pain – Higgins, 1997, American Psychologist Self-Discrepancy: A Theory Relating Self and Affect – Higgins, 1987, Psychological Review Possible Selves – Markus & Nurius, 1986, American Psychologist Unwanted Identities: A Key Variable in Shame–Anger Links and Gender Differences in Shame – Ferguson et al., 2000, Sex Roles Shame Resilience Theory: A Grounded Theory Study on Women and Shame – Brown, 2006, Families in Society The BRAVING Inventory – Brené Brown, brenebrown.com An Integrative Model of Organizational Trust – Mayer et al., 1995, Academy of Management Review The Halo Effect: Evidence for Unconscious Alteration of Judgments – Nisbett & Wilson, 1977, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology Integrity Is Choosing Courage Over Comfort – Brené Brown, brenebrown.com The Self-Importance of Moral Identity – Aquino & Reed, 2002, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology The Optics of Lying: How Pursuing an Honest Social Image Shapes Dishonest Behavior – Guzikevits & Choshen-Hillel, 2022, Current Opinion in Psychology Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones – James Clear, 2018, Avery Learn more about your ad choices. 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Is it possible to build a community without a 'them'? Author, YouTuber, and podcaster John Green joins Brené Brown and Adam Grant for a wide-ranging conversation on belonging, friendship, and the systems that shape our lives. Together, they explore why sports can create such powerful communities, whether it’s possible to build an “us” without needing a “them,” and why shared projects can help relationships last for decades. John reflects on the challenges of young adulthood, what he learned from working as a hospital chaplain, and why supporting someone in pain sometimes means resisting the urge to fix it. The conversation also moves through why frictionless access, not just awareness, is essential to helping people get the care they need, the role coaches can play in athletes’ well-being, and John’s upcoming novel Hollywood, Ending. Hollywood, Ending - John Green, September, 2026, hollywoodendingbook.com CrashCourse - Hank Green & John Green, YouTube  Demonic males: Apes and the origins of human violence - Wrangham & Peterson, 1996, Houghton Mifflin. The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex - Charles Darwin, 1871/1999, Project Gutenberg Not Like Me = Bad: Infants Prefer Those Who Harm Dissimilar Others - J. Kiley Hamlin, 2013, Psychological Science The Social Self: On Being the Same and Different at the Same Time - Marilynn B. Brewer, 1991, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin The Away End - Episode 1: John Green & Daniel Alarcon Dissect the 2026 World Cup Draw - The Away End, 2026, YouTube Roger Bennett – Men in Blazers Media Network Developmental Sequence in Small Groups - Bruce W. Tuckman, 1965, Psychological Bulletin The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times - Pema Chodron, 2002, Shambhala The Framework for Leading With Both Care and Accountability - Brené Brown, 2026, The Curiosity Shop with Brené Brown and Adam Grant "The Fault in Our Stars" Author John Green on Reaching Young Adults and Dealing With Mental Illness - CBS News, 2020, 60 Minutes (CBS News) The Social Determinants of Mental Health and Disorder: Evidence, Prevention and Recommendations - James B. Kirkbride, 2024, World Psychiatry Single-Session Interventions for Mental Health Problems and Service Engagement: Umbrella Review of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses - Jessica Schleider et al., 2025, Annual Review of Clinical PsychologyAdministrative Burdens in the Social Safety Net - Herd and Moynihan, 2024, Journal of Economic Perspectives Perceived Barriers and Facilitators to Mental Health Help-Seeking in Young People: A Systematic Review - Gulliver, Griffiths & Christensen, 2010, BMC Psychiatry The Inverse Care Law - Julian Tudor Hart, 1971, The Lancet Rebooting Psychotherapy Research and Practice to Reduce the Burden of Mental Illness - Alan E. Kazdin & Stacey L. Blase, 2011, Perspectives on Psychological ScienceAre Mental Health Awareness Efforts Contributing to the Rise in Reported Mental Health Problems? A Call to Test the Prevalence Inflation Hypothesis - Lucy Foulkes & Jack L. Andrews, 2023, New Ideas in Psychology  How Coaches Can Be a Source of Mental Health Support for Student-Athletes - Madeline Will, 2024, Education Week Meet the Genius Behind America’s Best Roadside Attraction - Show and Tell, Atlas Obscura, YouTube Kate Bowler - Kate Bowler, katebowler.com How the Intention to Share Can Undermine Enjoyment: Photo-Taking Goals and Evaluation of Experiences - Alixandra Barasch, 2018, Journal of Consumer Research Optimal Distinctiveness Theory: A Framework for Social Identity, Social Cognition, and Intergroup Relations - Geoffrey J. Leonardelli, 2010, Advances in Experimental Social Psychology Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why do sports make us cry, unite strangers, and create memories that last a lifetime? In this episode, Men in Blazers founder and CEO Roger Bennett joins Brené Brown and Adam Grant fresh off a 39-day World Cup marathon to explore what the tournament revealed about identity, belonging, and the power of collective effervescence. Together, they unpack the difference between hero players and hero teams, what it means to be a true fan, the political complexities surrounding the World Cup, and how sports create shared experiences that shape our lives. Along the way, Roger shares stories from the road, reflects on the strange grief of “World Cup withdrawal,” and revisits some of the tournament’s most memorable stories, including Erling Haaland’s taxidermy shop detour, the Cape Verde goalkeeper who became a global icon overnight, the controversial red card reversal, and more. Roger Bennett – Men in Blazers Media Network The Englishman Who Became America’s No. 1 Soccer Fan – David Waldstein, July 16, 2026, The New York Times Men in Blazers’ Roger Bennett Eats Two Dinners During the World Cup “Chicken-tinga burros are the Messi of burros.” –  Ben Widdicombe, July 17, 2026, New York Magazine  Brené Brown on Surrounding Yourself With People Who Take Pleasure in Your Joy (Schadenfreude vs. Freudenfreude) – Ellen DeGeneres, April 1, 2022, TheEllenShow Premier League to bring all 20 clubs to U.S. in activation after 2026 World Cup – Victoria Hernandez, July 23, 2026, Yahoo Sports The Kansas City fanwalk had us all like… – OnsOranje, Royal Dutch Football Association The Numbers Game: Why Everything You Know About Football Is Wrong – Anderson & Sally, 2013, Penguin  Men in Blazers - “The Women’s Game” and “Vamos” (Platform links) – The Men in Blazers Media Network New Volume Edited by Phil Smith and Sébastien Tutenges: Collective Effervescence – 2026, Yale Center for Cultural Sociology ROG’s Heartbreaking Farewell and Stunning Comeback at Goodison Park (Everton) – Roger Bennett, 2026, YouTube Brené Brown: The Power of Vulnerability & Joy in Liverpool! – Roger Bennett, April, 2025, Men in Blazers (Interview) Anfield sings 'You'll Never Walk Alone' to kick off new season – NBC Sports, August 15, 2025, YouTube We Are the World (Cup): A Personal History of the World's Greatest Sporting Event – Roger Bennett, 2026, HarperCollins Who Belongs? Football and the Reinvention of the Modern Nation – Josh Wilson, 2026, TIME The definition of a true fan – Adam Grant, Instagram Folarin Balogun's lifted suspension – Roger Bennett, CBS Morning News, Instagram This is so awkward: Modern puberty explained – Cara Natterson & Vanessa Kroll Bennett, 2023, Rodale Books Human challenges in polar and space environments – Sandal et al., 2006, Springer Strong Ground: The Lessons of Daring Leadership, the Tenacity of Paradox, and the Wisdom of the Human Spirit – Brené Brown, 2025, Random House Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices