Pokemon Go has been the runaway success of the summer but why is it that some games, hobbies and activities become crazes while others do not? Is there a secret formula? Johanna Basford, the illustrator behind the current adult colouring book craze and Cheong Choon Ng, who invented the Rainbow Loom, explain how they managed to get their ideas off the ground and loved by millions. 



We hear from psychologist Ben Michaelis that insecure people are more likely to engage with crazes than people who have a lot of self-confidence. Matthew Alt, co-founder of Alt Japan, a company which produces English versions of Japanese games, explains why so many childhood crazes of the last 30 years including Transformers, Power Rangers, Tamagotchi and Pokemon started in Japan. 



Presenter Aasmah Mir also takes a trip down memory lane, trying out hula-hooping at a class in London after enthusiastically abandoning the fad 30 years earlier. Is she any better now? Hula-Hoop teacher and performer Anna Byrne explains why the craze is making a comeback. 



But not all fads are harmless fun. Sometimes playground crazes can go wrong and have devastating consequences. Sabrina Lippell talks openly about the tragic death of her twelve-year-old son William Stanesby after he took part in the so-called ‘choking game’ that encourages participants to restrict their airways.  



(Photo: A hand holds a phone showing a Pokémon character on screen. Credit:JoeyPhoto/Shutterstock) Published on September 26, 2016.

Why do Crazes Take Off?

Anybody who watched the European Championships of football this summer in France would have seen shocking scenes of violence between fans. The vast majority, if not all, were men. Men also commit more than 90% of murders across the world and are more likely to join a gang. 



Why are men more violent than women? Caroline Bayley speaks to ex-football hooligan Cass Pennant about his experiences and motivation when violence became his way of life. Former British Army officer Jane Middleton explains the differences between men and women on the battlefield when she served in Afghanistan. And, Caroline also hears views from Sweden about how equal violence between men and women in relationships is.



(Photo: Group of football fans fighting in street. Credit: Carl Court/Getty Images) Published on July 22, 2016.

Violence

Why do we love driving? Mike Williams asks if we would miss driving, as auto-piloted cars are tested in cities around the world. He talks to Dr Lisa Dorn, psychologist and associate professor of driver behaviour,  Dr Zia Wadud an associate professor in transport studies, technology reporter Brian Fung, racing team owner Eddie Jordan and top gear presenter Sabine Schmitz.



(Photo: White driverless car on road.  Credit:Noah Berger/AFP/Getty Images) Published on July 29, 2016.

Driving

Why do we write farewell letters? Whether it is messages from the living to the dying or from the dead to the living, how can we find the words to say goodbye?   



A letter from a daughter to her dying father, a last letter from a soldier on the eve of battle, messages of love from a dying mother to her young daughter and a suicide note from a father to his teenage son.  Mike Williams explores the comfort and pain of goodbye letters.



Contributors: Susan Geer, Last Goodbye Letters; Joe Williams, The Enemy Within; Brendan McDonnell, Herman’s Hands; Laura Colclough; Julie Stokes, Founder, Winston’s Wish; Anthony Richards, Imperial War Museum.  



(Photo: Woman and child walking along woodland path. Credit: Shutterstock)



(Clip credit: The Mummy Diaries (2007), Ricochet/Channel 4 TV) Published on October 14, 2016.

Farewell Letters

It has become quite a common thing but when you think of it, it is remarkable that we can take a part of one human (dead or alive) and insert it into another to cure them.  



Last year across the planet, an estimated 119,000 people received transplants but many more are still waiting. In the United States alone more than 120,000 are on the waiting list for an organ transplant. For many people, that life-saving operation will have to wait until someone else dies.



Mike Williams talks to a surgeon in the United States, a doctor in Israel whose direct action led to an improvement in donation rates, a daughter who gave a kidney to her father and a man who altruistically donated a kidney 20 years after a family tragedy.



(Photo: Man and daughter smilling. Credit: Nicholas Evans) Published on October 21, 2016.

Organ Donation

Can you believe your own eyes? Can you trust your own memory? Why is it that so many social scientists and so many in the police and the judiciary are so very concerned about eye-witness testimony. Mike Williams talks to an attorney at the Innocence Project in New York, a retired judge, a professor of psychology and a memory expert in an attempt to find out why we try – and often fail – to accurately recall a face or an event.



(Photo: Black and White image of four men in a suspect line up. Credit: Shutterstock) Published on October 28, 2016.

Eye Witness Identification

Are you sexist, racist or ageist? Even if you think you are open-minded, the chances are, you will be judging people and situations without even realising.   These hidden biases – which are different from conscious prejudice – lurk within our minds.



Science clearly shows that almost all of us have at least one of these tendencies - an implicit preference for one race over another, for men over women, for young over old or vice versa. Our unconscious biases are influenced by our background, our personal experiences and the culture in which we live. And, they can affect the way we behave, the decisions we make - whether it is who we hire, who we promote or even – in the case of jurors – who we believe is guilty or not guilty.    



Mike Williams learns about an online assessment test that measures unconscious bias, explores the extent to which we can we limit these hidden biases, once we are aware of them.  And, hears how one orchestra, in particular, has a solution to the problem – by asking prospective players to remove their shoes. 

 

Contributors:  Mahzarin Banaji, Professor of Psychology, Havard University; 

Dr Pete Jones, Psychologist;  Nick Logie, Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment; 

Yassmin Abdel-Magied, mechanical engineer and founder, Mumtaza speakers bureau;  

Kayo Anosike, Music Director/Kayla Benjamin, Training Consultant;  

Margenett Moore-Roberts, Yahoo’s Global Head, Inclusive Diversity;

Patrick Brayer, criminal defence attorney, St Louis, Missouri.



(Photo: Man holding a baby whilst ironing and woman fixing car.  Credit: Volkovslava & Wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock) Published on November 4, 2016.

Unconscious Bias

Imagine your home is so filled with stuff that moving around it is almost impossible.  Every bit of space is piled high with books, pictures, DVDs and newspapers so you can’t even get into some rooms – not even the bathroom or kitchen.   There’s nowhere to sit and no room for visitors.

 

That’s what life is like for those with a hoarding disorder and their close family and friends.  It’s a recognised mental illness, an uncontrollable desire to acquire and keep an excessive number of objects and it’s thought to affect between 2-6% of the UK and US population.   So why do some people hoard?   And why is it so difficult for them to get rid of some of the many thousands of items that clutter their home?  



Mike Williams meets Stephen whose apartment is so swamped with possessions that his young children can’t stay.   He hears how the extreme hoarding habits of one American father led his teenage daughter to make a suicide bid.   And, on a positive note, there are lessons for compulsive hoarders on how to resist the urge to acquire more things.



Contributors:  

Bill Barry and Stephen, Tenants, Liverpool Housing Trust 

Randy Frost, Professor of Psychology at Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts

Heather Mattuozzo, Founder, Clouds End 

Fabio Gygi,  Anthropology lecturer at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London  University  

Kimberly Rae Miller, author, ‘Coming Clean’, a memoir



Presenter: Mike Williams

Producer: Sally Abrahams



(Photo: Lots of clutter in a front room.  Credit: BBC Copyright - taken in contributor's house by presenter with contributor's permission) Published on November 11, 2016.

Hoarding

Mike Williams asks why so many people are obsessed with discovering their family origins and also learns new things about his own ancestors along the way. Genealogy is a growing phenomenon driven by the digitisation of old paper records, websites offering to DNA test your saliva for $100 and TV shows like Who Do You Think You Are, which explore celebrities family histories.



But what does spending hours, weeks and – in some cases – years trying to discover names or dates that might reveal the identity of someone related to us hundreds of years ago say about us? And, what are we really looking for?



Mike talks to Else Churchill at the Society of Genealogists in London, Nathan Lents, professor of molecular biology at John Jay College in New York and Catherine Nash, professor of Human Geography at Queen Mary University of London.



(Photo: Paper cut of family symbol under tree on old book. Credit: jannoon028/Shutterstock) Published on November 18, 2016.

The Family Tree

Why don’t we understand how the female orgasm works? After years of scientific research, the male body is understood but when it comes to how women work, we are a long way behind. Why is there this gap in knowledge? 



It appears research has been hindered by the assumption that the female body works in the same way as the male body and that for women, arousal is all in the mind. There’s also a general attitude that studying sexual pleasure isn’t important and that female orgasms aren’t important to study as they serve no purpose for reproduction.



Researchers are slowly correcting these assumptions and making surprising discoveries.



We’ll take you behind the scenes to two orgasm labs to bring you the latest research on how orgasms work for women. We’ll also hear from Callista, who struggled with excruciating pain during sex for many years but was told the problem was all in her mind. Her journey to diagnosis shows how little is known, even amongst gynaecologists and doctors, about female sexual pleasure.  





Presenter: Aasmah Mir

Producer: Phoebe Keane



(Image: Woman's hand grasping a bed sheet. Credit: Shutterstock) Published on December 2, 2016.

The Female Orgasm

Everyday millions of us across the world get into our cars and drive. For many of us this will be an unpleasant experience because of the behavior of other drivers or even because of our own bad behavior. Even the calmest person can become a raging demon while driving, screaming and swearing at the other road users. What is it about driving that makes some people so angry? What can we do to stop it?



We speak with professional racing driver Nathalie McGloin about keeping control. Dr Mark Sullman tells us what happens in our heads when we get into the driver seat. Comedian Rhod Gilbert gives us a passionate description of what gives him road rage. Monica Chadha describes driving in Delhi. And, Glenn Scherer gives us a lesson in ‘car yoga’ to try and keep the rage away.



(Photo: Man shouting at woman sitting in car.  Credit: Shutterstock) Published on December 16, 2016.

Why do we Get Road Rage?

Why do we do the things we do? Mike Williams searches for the extraordinary and hidden histories behind everyday objects and actions to inform us about the way we live in the 21st Century. Broadcast and podcast every Friday.

WSTheWhyFactor

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