The Ideological Brain with Dr Leor Zmigrod

What happens to the human mind under pressure, uncertainty, and rapid technological change?

In this episode of The Mindset Economy, hosts Jean Gomes and Scott Allender are joined by neuroscientist and author Dr Leor Zmigrod to explore the psychology and neuroscience of ideological thinking.

Leor’s research examines how rigid belief systems shape our brains, narrow our thinking, and quietly undermine empathy, judgment, and freedom, often without us realising it. During this conversation, she unpacks the crucial difference between values and ideologies, why cognitive rigidity is not the same as low intelligence, and how uncertainty makes all of us more vulnerable to dogmatic thinking. The conversation also looks ahead to the role of AI, how human-AI relationships, algorithmic echo chambers, and people-pleasing systems could accelerate ideological rigidity, and what leaders, parents, and organisations can do to counter it.

Reading from Dr Leor Zmigrod:
The Ideological Brain: How Rigid Beliefs Harm Our Minds & Bodies – And Why It Matters (L Zmigrod, Penguin, 2026)

Reading from Jean Gomes and Scott Allender:
Leading In A Non-Linear World (J Gomes, Wiley, 2023)
The Enneagram of Emotional Intelligence (S Allender, Baker Books, 2023)

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The Mindset Economy Podcast is researched, written and presented by Jean Gomes and Scott Allender with production by Phil Kerby. It is an Outside Consulting Ltd production.