Hello Friend.
Over the past 16 years, I have read hundreds of books on human psychology.
And while I enjoyed many of those books, and learned a lot, there is only one book I can say genuinely had a career-changing impact on me.
The book?
The Social Leap by William Von Hippel.
William Von Hippel, an Australian social psychologist, explores the evolution of human social behaviour and skills.
Now, this isn’t your typical psychology book. Von Hippel looks at our evolutionary history to explain the origins of our 'quirks' that help and harm us to this day.
When I first leafed through it, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to learn about John the Caveman… But Von Hippel opened my eyes to how the primitive parts of our brains still influence us now in weird ways… And how we can become better people as a result.
This book fired up my interest in practical psychology and changed the way I taught classroom leadership
Here are five of my biggest takeaways:
#1: Humans Are Social by Nature
Human psychology and brain development are deeply influenced by our social nature. Evolutionary scientists believe that our ancestors' survival depended heavily on the ability to form social bonds and cooperate within groups.
Our brains evolved to bond through oxytocin, the "bonding hormone," which boosts trust and connection.
This ‘social wiring’ makes us highly attuned to social cues, relationships and whether we are part of the group.
In ancient times, being excluded from the social group meant certain death. This is why we get so anxious when we are alone too long and are more willing to ‘go with the crowd.’
People may hesitate to act alone but follow the group due to 'groupthink'—the pressure to conform and avoid conflict.
This creates 'cognitive dissonance,' where a person's values clash with their external actions. Humans have an amazing talent to lie to themselves to ease that internal pressure.
And this applies even more to young people as they haven't mastered their critical thinking skills.
People convince themselves that this 'group behaviour' is acceptable by adjusting their thinking. This helps them feel consistent and fit in, even if they have reservations about the group's actions.
George Orwell was right. You can make almost anyone do anything if you have a large enough crowd doing it. As history has shown us, the power of crowds has permanently changed society for good and ill.
Takeaway for educators:
Educators, you have got to make sure you create an environment where your students feel:
· Safe
· Happy
· Have clear boundaries and routines
You don’t have to be Barney the Purple Dinosaur or Mary Poppins. However, if you create conditions where your young people feel seen and heard, dysregulation and flashpoints reduce significantly.
From there, you can earn 'buy-in', which is trust in your ideas and leadership. If most of your class believes you are taking care of them, even the doubters will be more likely to follow you.
#2: Emotions Drive Behaviour
It's not just the prefrontal cortex that makes decisions but also our limbic system – the brain’s emotion processing centre- which plays a big part.
Emotions like fear, anger and pleasure helped our ancestors escape threats, fight enemies and seek resources.
But our modern world is 100 times more complicated than the grassy plains we once lived on.
Our limbic system was great at fighting sabretooth tigers but not at dealing with passive-aggressive emails from our line managers.
When we become ‘emotionally dysregulated’, it lowers our ability to think. This might work well when in a life-or-death battle with the neighbouring tribe, but it is terrible for the body and soul in ‘civilised’ environments like work and school.
Takeaway for Educators: Emotional states often influence our students’ behaviours. If a student is acting out, it could be a sign of unmet emotional needs.
If the student is stressed, they aren’t learning diddly-squat. To get them thinking again, we need to help them soothe their limbic system to get their prefrontal cortex (the thinking part of the brain) back online.
#3: Humans Evolved to Cooperate
Humans are wired to be together. What happens to prisoners who act out in jail? They get placed in solitary confinement.
Early humans had to collaborate to hunt, gather food, and protect one another, and over time, the brain’s reward systems became linked to cooperative behaviour.
Working together in groups:
· Reinforces positive feelings
· Strengthens social bonds
· Made everyone more likely to survive
When we work together, our brains release dopamine, making teamwork feel good. Dopamine is the 'happiness' chemical that makes us feel happy and relaxed.
This helps us enjoy cooperating and want to do it again.
This social wiring is still within our brains today. Working, playing and staying together harmoniously makes us healthier, happier and even more likely to live longer!
Takeaway for Educators: This is why you must put Maslow before Bloom. Relationships are everything, especially when you are dealing with young people who have been traumatised.
By establishing rapport, empathy, and trust, those ‘feel-good’ chemicals kick in and supercharge your young people's brains to learn and thrive.
#4: Our Brains Are Super-Predictors
Until AI rocks up and steals our crown, the human brain is the world's most complex and mysterious structure. And one of its superpowers is adaptability.
Based on present evidence, our brains can forecast several possibilities of what can happen. No other animal can do that on our level.
When faced with a challenge, the brain adapts to find new solutions, and humans can teach others to do the same.
Each human generation becomes smarter by building on the knowledge of the previous one. AI machine learning follows this same process.
Takeaway for Educators: In our fast-changing world, we must teach kids to embrace experimentation and failure.
The traditional elements of society like:
• Democracy
• 'Traditional' careers
• Human identity
Are being changed, morphed and stress-tested beyond what we thought imaginable even 10 years ago.
Young people with a growth mindset and entrepreneurial spirit will be better ready for the AI-driven future.
And educators will have to do it, too.
#5: Storytelling Shapes Our Social Connections
Humans are suckers for stories.
Storytelling has been a part of human culture for as long as we have been around.
For good reason, too. Our brains are literally wired to respond to narrative.
Before the written word, stories were the chief means of information. They taught us how to be brave and work together and gave meaning to our existence.
When a story is told, the storyteller’s and listener’s brains sync up. Research shows their brainwaves align, creating a deep connection. This allows the listener to fully engage with the story and feel as if they are experiencing it themselves.
Storytelling is the closest thing to jumping into someone else’s head.
And this explains why Hollywood is a billion-dollar industry.
Takeaway for Educators: Storytelling has become even more critical than ever. In a world where the Internet is awash with AI-generated pictures and text, authenticity’s stock price is at an all-time high.
Your ability to tell stories and connect with your students will be absolutely necessary with Generation Z and Alpha.
This ability will make your students:
• Trust you
• Engage with you
• Follow you
All these things make you a damn fine teacher.
In Conclusion
These are just my favourite points, but you can take at least a dozen great ideas from this book.
So, if you are interested in student psychology, I highly suggest keeping a copy of 'The Social Leap' on your desk.
Von Hippel’s clarity, humour and enthusiasm will keep you hooked throughout. I can't recommend it enough.
But hey... As great as he is, Von Hippel still doesn't tell you how to teach students in the post-COVID era. 😎
This is where my book 'The Action Hero Teacher 2: Teachers of the Lost Class' comes in.
Von Hippel’s research appears there, as well as many other practical psychology strategies that will help you understand how the social media generation works.
With this information, you’ll be able to engage and motivate any learners that come your way.
Have a littl’ gander when you are ready. 😎👇🏾
https://tinyurl.com/yc7uzbrv
The next TOTR edition comes out on Thursday 20th March 2025.
See you then. 😎
Karl
