Thomas Talhelm
@thomastalhelm.bsky.social
I'm an associate professor of behavioral science at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. I also founded Smart Air, a social enterprise dedicated to making low-cost air purifiers and teaching people how to build their own.
Pinned
Thomas Talhelm
@thomastalhelm.bsky.social
· Oct 13
<em>British Journal of Psychology</em> | Wiley Online Library
Does moving to a new environment change people's cultural thought style? We tracked the cultural thought style of 1462 university students at 18 sites over time after they moved across China for coll....
bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Ambitious new study finally out! 🚨 Here’s the lightning version. bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Proud of PhD student Nicholas DiMaggio presenting our joint project on whether talking to random strangers makes people happy in China! 🇨🇳 At the Society for Judgement and Decision-Making Conference in Denver. SJDM @sjdm-tweets.bsky.social
November 24, 2025 at 4:01 PM
Proud of PhD student Nicholas DiMaggio presenting our joint project on whether talking to random strangers makes people happy in China! 🇨🇳 At the Society for Judgement and Decision-Making Conference in Denver. SJDM @sjdm-tweets.bsky.social
Helpful thing to know if you have an air purifier! Don't change the HEPA unless it's very black.
They should be pretty dark before you replace them. In our tests, even when the filters looked black, the CADR stayed high for quite a while. So if yours aren’t black yet, that’s actually good news. More: www.quora.com/How-long-doe...
November 24, 2025 at 3:43 PM
Helpful thing to know if you have an air purifier! Don't change the HEPA unless it's very black.
📢 Post-doc opportunity in language and brain development at the University of Michigan/University of Texas Dallas. 📢 @utdallas.bsky.social @umich.edu
November 20, 2025 at 2:34 PM
📢 Post-doc opportunity in language and brain development at the University of Michigan/University of Texas Dallas. 📢 @utdallas.bsky.social @umich.edu
U Chicago Booth is hiring two post-docs! 📢 Apply by January 5th. uchicago.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Extern...
November 19, 2025 at 4:12 PM
U Chicago Booth is hiring two post-docs! 📢 Apply by January 5th. uchicago.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Extern...
< 2 weeks left to submit nominations for Outstanding Contributions to Cultural Psychology. ⏳ sites.google.com/view/culture...
November 18, 2025 at 3:06 PM
< 2 weeks left to submit nominations for Outstanding Contributions to Cultural Psychology. ⏳ sites.google.com/view/culture...
Any enterprising young researchers in Texas? Here's a project idea! Apparently the green and brown parts of Texas here were settled by people from Appalachia. That should lead to a different psychology from eastern Texas, which is more of a deep south culture. It'd be neat to test this!
November 15, 2025 at 9:55 PM
Any enterprising young researchers in Texas? Here's a project idea! Apparently the green and brown parts of Texas here were settled by people from Appalachia. That should lead to a different psychology from eastern Texas, which is more of a deep south culture. It'd be neat to test this!
Fascinating graphic on the causes of death across the lifespan.
November 13, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Fascinating graphic on the causes of death across the lifespan.
Chicago sunset 🌇
November 9, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Chicago sunset 🌇
“My graduate training never prepared me for the IRB question about the risk of being eaten by alligators.” Erin Westgate on her study on the psychological effects of taking novices scuba diving. 🤿
November 4, 2025 at 9:53 PM
“My graduate training never prepared me for the IRB question about the risk of being eaten by alligators.” Erin Westgate on her study on the psychological effects of taking novices scuba diving. 🤿
Small nerd milestone: Our new paper made the top ten list at SSRN! 🥳 I think this is a fun, ambitious project, so it's great to see people downloading the paper. @ssrn.bsky.social bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
November 2, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Small nerd milestone: Our new paper made the top ten list at SSRN! 🥳 I think this is a fun, ambitious project, so it's great to see people downloading the paper. @ssrn.bsky.social bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....
In my neighborhood near the Chicago Bears’ stadium, the creepy crawlies are Packers. 🏈
November 1, 2025 at 1:44 PM
In my neighborhood near the Chicago Bears’ stadium, the creepy crawlies are Packers. 🏈
New podcast episode out! 🎧 Why having the freedom to end relationships makes people happier.
Why do friendships endure more in Japan than in the US? Who’s happier?
Chicago Booth’s @thomastalhelm.bsky.social discusses his research.
www.chicagobooth.edu/review/podca...
Chicago Booth’s @thomastalhelm.bsky.social discusses his research.
www.chicagobooth.edu/review/podca...
Does Choosing Your Friends Make You Happier?
Thomas Talhelm describes his research on social circles and happiness.
www.chicagobooth.edu
October 30, 2025 at 1:48 PM
New podcast episode out! 🎧 Why having the freedom to end relationships makes people happier.
I donated to support the Corsi-Rosenthal Foundation’s Build a Box campaign to make clean air widely accessible.
The goal is to raise $25,000 to get clean air into more classrooms and communities across the country. Check it out!
givebutter.com/buildabox2025
The goal is to raise $25,000 to get clean air into more classrooms and communities across the country. Check it out!
givebutter.com/buildabox2025
Build a Box Campaign
Help Us Bring Clean Air to More Classrooms
givebutter.com
October 28, 2025 at 6:27 PM
I donated to support the Corsi-Rosenthal Foundation’s Build a Box campaign to make clean air widely accessible.
The goal is to raise $25,000 to get clean air into more classrooms and communities across the country. Check it out!
givebutter.com/buildabox2025
The goal is to raise $25,000 to get clean air into more classrooms and communities across the country. Check it out!
givebutter.com/buildabox2025
Our new three-year study in a short blog post: How young people in China are still learning how to think like rice farmers, despite not actually farming! 🚜https://communities.springernature.com/posts/is-rice-farming-still-shaping-the-way-people-think @springernature.com @springer.springernature.com
Is Rice Farming Still Shaping The Way People Think?
Past research found that China has different northern and southern cultures that stem from histories of farming rice versus wheat. But fewer and fewer people are farming these days in China. Does that...
communities.springernature.com
October 28, 2025 at 2:37 PM
Our new three-year study in a short blog post: How young people in China are still learning how to think like rice farmers, despite not actually farming! 🚜https://communities.springernature.com/posts/is-rice-farming-still-shaping-the-way-people-think @springernature.com @springer.springernature.com
The Culture Pre-Conference is accepting nominations for the Outstanding Contributions to Cultural Psychology. Submit by December 1st. sites.google.com/view/culture...
October 25, 2025 at 2:21 PM
The Culture Pre-Conference is accepting nominations for the Outstanding Contributions to Cultural Psychology. Submit by December 1st. sites.google.com/view/culture...
Why do Americans think their country's future is not their own future? 🧐 That's what we found in our study in the US, but not China.
🔍 Behind the Paper: 'Self-Positivity Bias Strong in US, Absent in China'. New research finds Americans showed positivity bias about their own future, but not for their collective future. The story in China was different.🔗Read more here: bit.ly/495D8Jy. <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:l2e7xiqwdazt7fdehjkicx6m" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-link="bsky-mention">@thomastalhelm.bsky.social #SocSky
October 23, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Why do Americans think their country's future is not their own future? 🧐 That's what we found in our study in the US, but not China.
Interested in culture? Submit to the Culture Pre-Conference! Yogurt-themed proposals will be fast-tracked. sites.google.com/view/culture...
October 19, 2025 at 2:19 PM
Interested in culture? Submit to the Culture Pre-Conference! Yogurt-themed proposals will be fast-tracked. sites.google.com/view/culture...
One week left to submit research to the Culture Pre-Conference! ⏰ Open to students, post-docs, and untenured faculty. sites.google.com/view/culture... @iaccp.bsky.social
October 16, 2025 at 5:54 PM
One week left to submit research to the Culture Pre-Conference! ⏰ Open to students, post-docs, and untenured faculty. sites.google.com/view/culture... @iaccp.bsky.social
I did a short podcast interview about why money is more powerful in WEIRD cultures (and in English versus Hindi). Check it out! 😀
Would you work if you weren’t being paid for it?
Is your answer universal, or does it reflect Western values and attitudes that aren’t replicated elsewhere in the world?
via Booth’s @thomastalhelm.bsky.social
www.chicagobooth.edu/review/podca... #econsky
Is your answer universal, or does it reflect Western values and attitudes that aren’t replicated elsewhere in the world?
via Booth’s @thomastalhelm.bsky.social
www.chicagobooth.edu/review/podca... #econsky
Apart from the Paycheck, Why Do We Work?
Chicago Booth’s Thomas Talhelm talks about his research on what motivates people around the world to work.
www.chicagobooth.edu
October 16, 2025 at 5:52 PM
I did a short podcast interview about why money is more powerful in WEIRD cultures (and in English versus Hindi). Check it out! 😀
Ambitious new study finally out! 🚨 Here’s the lightning version. bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
<em>British Journal of Psychology</em> | Wiley Online Library
Does moving to a new environment change people's cultural thought style? We tracked the cultural thought style of 1462 university students at 18 sites over time after they moved across China for coll....
bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
October 13, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Ambitious new study finally out! 🚨 Here’s the lightning version. bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Congrats to all the runners (and walkers!) in the Chicago marathon today. Now it’s time to eat an entire deep dish pizza! 😆
October 12, 2025 at 6:47 PM
Congrats to all the runners (and walkers!) in the Chicago marathon today. Now it’s time to eat an entire deep dish pizza! 😆
I had fun chatting with CGTN about rice farming, happiness, and standardized tests. @cgtn.bsky.social
October 9, 2025 at 9:59 PM
I had fun chatting with CGTN about rice farming, happiness, and standardized tests. @cgtn.bsky.social
We had the pleasure of hearing about Oliver Sng’s research on seeing human psychology through the lens of ecology at U Chicago.
October 7, 2025 at 8:44 PM
We had the pleasure of hearing about Oliver Sng’s research on seeing human psychology through the lens of ecology at U Chicago.
Post-doc opportunity at Northwestern: facultyrecruiting.northwestern.edu/apply/MjQzNw==
October 6, 2025 at 9:13 PM
Post-doc opportunity at Northwestern: facultyrecruiting.northwestern.edu/apply/MjQzNw==
Homo economicus is a female trait in some non-Western cultures. Why??
🔍 Behind the Paper: Is Economic "Man" Really Male? What does people's actual behavior reveal? Data suggests men are more like homo economicus--but only in Western cultures. 🔗 bit.ly/46TlAic @thomastalhelm.bsky.social #gendersky
October 2, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Homo economicus is a female trait in some non-Western cultures. Why??