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Podcast: Mind & Life
Episode:

Tania Singer – The Power of Two
Category: Science & Medicine
Duration: 01:17:23
Publish Date: 2025-05-15 08:17:00
Description:

In this episode, Wendy speaks with social neuroscientist and contemplative researcher Tania Singer. Tania is a world leader in studying empathy and compassion, and her pioneering work explores the interpersonal aspects of the brain and contemplative practice. This conversation covers many topics, including:

  • her lifelong fascination with social interactions;
  • foundational studies on empathy in the brain;
  • distinguishing the physical vs. emotional aspects of pain;
  • a chance meeting with Mind & Life and critical insights from a Buddhism-science collaboration;
  • the difference between emotion contagion, empathy, and compassion;
  • exploring the trainability of empathy and compassion;
  • schadenfreude in the brain;
  • empathy burnout and compassion as an antidote;
  • the importance of correlating subjective reports with brain scans;
  • a landmark longitudinal study of training different aspects of meditation;
  • why what you practice really matters;
  • contemplative dyads and the power of practicing with another person;
  • the benefits of dyads for the negative effects of COVID lockdown;
  • moving dyad work into schools and hospitals;
  • shifting from studying individual change to systems change;
  • and the role of contemplative science amidst current societal challenges.

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