680. Can Universities Win Back Our Trust?

Dartmouth president Sian Beilock, a psychologist by training, made her name studying why people choke. Now she’s applying those insights to one of the most scrutinized jobs in America. No pressure!

• SOURCES:

• Sian Beilock (president.dartmouth.edu/about/people/sian-leah…), president of Dartmouth College.

• RESOURCES:

• "Growing share of Americans say the U.S. higher education system is headed in the wrong direction (pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/10/15/growing…)," by Kim Parker (Pew Research Center, 2025).

• "Standardized Test Scores and Academic Performance at Ivy-Plus Colleges, (nber.org/papers/w33570)" by John N. Friedman, Bruce Sacerdote, Douglas O. Staiger, and Michele Tine (NBER, 2025).

• "Americans’ Trust in One Another (pewresearch.org/2025/05/08/americans-trust-in-…)," by Laura Silver, Scott Keeter, Stephanie Kramer, Jordan Lippert, Sofia Hernandez Ramones, Alan Cooperman, Chris Baronavski, and Bill Webster (Pew Research Center, 2025).

• Choke: What the Secrets of the Brain Reveal About Getting It Right When You Have To (amzn.to/4vMqUya), by Sian Beilock (2011)

• EXTRAS:

• "Why Does Vanderbilt Keep Winning? (freakonomics.com/podcast/why-does-vanderbilt-k…)" by Freakonomics Radio (2026).

• "'A Low Moment in Higher Education (freakonomics.com/podcast/a-low-moment-in-highe…),'" by Freakonomics Radio (2024).

• "'If We’re All in It for Ourselves, Who Are We?' (freakonomics.com/podcast/if-were-all-in-it-for…)" by Freakonomics Radio (2024).

• "Why We Choke Under Pressure (and How Not To) (freakonomics.com/podcast/why-we-choke-under-pr…)," by Freakonomics Radio (2018).

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