Ouch! That Feels Great

In this episode of Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam interviews psychologist Paul Bloom about the human tendency to seek out discomfort and suffering. They discuss the concept of "benign masochism," where people voluntarily engage in activities that cause pain or embarrassment, such as eating spicy food, watching horror movies, or even streaking. Bloom explains that these experiences can be driven by a desire for social bonding, a need for contrast to enhance pleasure, or a way to prepare for worst-case scenarios. The conversation explores examples ranging from shared painful experiences like cold-water swimming to cultural rituals involving physical endurance, and delves into the psychological reasons behind why humans sometimes find pleasure in pain.