If/Then

“When people come to view attitudes and opinions towards, say, political policies or issues as relevant to their identities, they become more extreme in their attitudes,” says Christian Wheeler, the StrataCom Professor of Management and Professor of Marketing at Stanford Graduate School of Business. “I become more positive or negative towards an issue the moment it becomes relevant to who I view myself as being.”
Wheeler’s research offers insight into our increasingly polarized politics. However, his work has also yielded ideas for bridging divisions — beginning with how we listen to each other and how we see the people we disagree with.
The moment we see someone as an individual rather than a category, we become more likely to find common ground. “Instead of viewing you as a Democrat or a Republican, I can view you as an individual,” Wheeler recommends. “Anything that humanizes you and moves you away from this simple category will help me to view you as an individual and less as just an interchangeable member of a category.”
How much do your opinions define who you are? Tell us more at [email protected].

Related Content:
Christian Wheeler faculty profile
In a Polarized World, an Open Mind Can Hurt Your Reputation
You May Not Be Who You Think You Are
Class Takeaways — How to Build Connection Through Better Listening

Chapters:
00:00:02 Tattoos, identity, & personal evolution
00:03:26 Introduction
00:03:59 Why identity matters
00:04:56 Identity relevance & its implications
00:08:03 Why openness to the other side gets punished
00:10:57 Identities vs. opinions
00:13:53 The power of individuation
00:15:53 How to break the cycle of polarization
00:19:41 Organizational applications
00:23:26 Conclusion

If/Then, from Stanford GSB, features conversations with faculty that explore how their research deepens our understanding of business and leadership.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

“Masculinity is my new frontier,” says Ashley Martin, an associate professor of organizational behavior at Stanford Graduate School of Business. Martin, whose work examines why gender plays such a central role in how we perceive and make sense of others, has been looking at how traits associated with masculinity are simultaneously organizationally rewarded even as they’re personally harmful to men.
“We spend a lot of time talking about gender inequality through the lens of women’s disadvantage,” she says. “I think that many of the problems that we’re seeing today… are actually bound up in masculinity.”
What impact do you think masculinity and femininity have on our work and our world? Tell us more at [email protected].

Related Content:
Ashley Martin faculty profile
Is that Self-Driving Car a Boy or a Girl?
Why Taking Gender Out of the Equation Is So Difficult

Chapters:
00:00 How movies shape our ideas about masculinity
04:02 Introduction
05:15 How Ashley Martin got into studying gender
05:58 When gender is removed from hiring
07:10 The “pet rock” study
10:35 The universal use of gender
13:02 Gendering objects
15:12 How masculinity affects men
18:13 The current implications of Martin’s research
20:41 What healthier models of masculinity might look like
23:47 Ashley’s next frontier: masculinity, material culture, and social problems
25:07 Conclusion

If/Then, from Stanford GSB, features conversations with faculty that explore how their research deepens our understanding of business and leadership.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Steven Callander has spent years building a mathematical framework to answer the question of how people learn from experience. “Here in Silicon Valley, the expression that you learn from failure is very widespread and very intuitive. But the question is… what do you learn? How do you optimally learn from that experience?”
In this episode, Callander, the Herbert Hoover Professor of Public and Private Management and Professor of Political Economy at Stanford Graduate School of Business, explains the hidden, deceptively simple logic of correlated learning — and it may change how you think about finding the right job, the right market, or the right strategy.
“It fascinates me and I can't stop thinking about it,” he says.
Has theory made an impact on your life? Tell us more at [email protected].

Related Content:
Steven Callander faculty profile
How to Turn Old Ideas Into Creative Solutions to Modern Problems
What We’re Still Learning from Silicon Valley’s Bank Collapse

Chapters:
00:00 Ann Miura-Ko on learning and the search for patterns in Venture capital
02:51 Introduction
05:23 What is correlated learning?
06:40 Where does this research apply in the real world?
09:28 Brownian Motion
12:45 Steven Callander’s Framework
15:25 Examples of correlated learning when seeking expert advice
20:53 Applying correlated learning
23:57 Why correlated learning research?
24:51 Conclusion

If/Then, from Stanford GSB, features conversations with faculty that explore how their research deepens our understanding of business and leadership.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Seemingly unrelated activities — like taking a soccer penalty kick or crafting an online dating profile — involve an embedded economics.
“Understanding and applying economic logic can be valuable in pretty much any job or any other endeavor in your life,” says Paul Oyer, a professor of economics at Stanford Graduate School of Business.
On this episode, Oyer digs into the shared economic logic of online dating and the labor market, explains why pro athletes and sports fans think like economists, and explores how AI has reduced the beneficial friction that was once a part of job searches.
Got a question about the economics of dating, sports, or the job market? Ask us at [email protected].
Related Content:
Paul Oyer faculty profile
Utility Player: Paul Oyer Explains How Economics Can Make Sports More Fun

Chapters:
00:00 Strategic decision-making in air traffic control
03:06 Introduction
03:27 Why sports are a useful lens for understanding economics
09:53 Why economics matters far beyond money
10:54 Economics & online
14:36 Applications of game theory
16:54 How AI is reshaping hiring and the labor market
22:25 The labor market challenge economists still have not solved
24:18 Conclusion
If/Then, from Stanford GSB, features conversations with faculty that explore how their research deepens our understanding of business and leadership.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When should we leap instead of take the obvious next step? Why do we instinctively see gender everywhere? When do our opinions begin to feel less like ideas and more like our identity?
If/Then, from Stanford Graduate School of Business, is back with a new season of sharp, surprising conversations that deepen our understanding of business and leadership.
Each episode brings you into the room with a Stanford GSB faculty member as they discuss their research and how it challenges conventional wisdom, sharpens judgment, and reframes the way we approach complex decisions.
Join us on Wednesdays for a new season of If/Then.
What do you want to hear on If/Then? Email us at [email protected].
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.