We often treat extremely wealthy individuals as if they have a deeper understanding of how the world works.

But there is a structural reason to question that assumption.

As wealth increases, people become less exposed to many of the constraints and trade-offs that shape everyday life.

Research in behavioural science suggests that people rely heavily on their own experience when forming judgments.

At the same time, studies on power indicate that increased influence can change how people interpret others and the world around them.

This episode looks at the neuroscience of power, the psychology of wealth, and why the people we treat as authoritative voices may be working from a very different version of reality.

I’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review for future videos!Sign-up to mailing list: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first – his channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/

Everyone has a take on the manosphere.This isn't one of them.Because the debate you've been watching - the one about men, women, masculinity, feminism, Andrew Tate, Jordan Peterson - isn't actually about any of those things.It's about something else entirely. Something far more boring and far more profitable.The science on this is extraordinary. And nobody is talking about it.Research and sources in this video:Naomi Eisenberger, UCLA, social exclusion and physical painHenri Tajfel, group identity, tribalism and prejudiceNYU Center for Social Media and Politic, algorithmic radicalisation on YouTubeMolly Crockett, Nature Human Behaviour (2017), moral outrage and social media amplificationDaniel Kahneman, System 1 and System 2 thinkingAnne Case and Angus Deaton, Princeton, Deaths of DespairLink 1 - Henri Tajfelhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciSx1EG4V0sLink 2 - Molly Crockethttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRAfcpPpXrgLink 3 - Anne Case and Angus Deatonhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IX9k4s_UWiU&t=320sLink 4 - Daniel Kahnemannhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PirFrDVRBo4&t=195sI’m Barry Ferns, a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review for future episodes!Mailing List: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first! His channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/

You live in the wealthiest civilisation in human history. And yet - it's not enough, right?That's not a character flaw. It's the system working exactly as designed.This video is about what happens when the right answer becomes the wrong one. And why the neuroscience, the psychology, and the data all say the same thing: beyond a certain point, growth stops converting into wellbeing. That's not a side effect. It's the whole business model.Covering: dopamine and the wanting brain (Robert Sapolsky), the Easterlin Paradox, Maslows hierarchy, Tim Kasser on materialist values, Csikszentmihalyi's research, and Seligman's PERMA model. All peer-reviewed. All explained without the jargon.This isn't an argument against ambition. It's an argument for a better kind of it.I’m Barry Ferns, a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.How to Support Barry’s EconomicsHelp us stay independent and keep making videos like this.https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomicshttps://ko-fi.com/barryseconomicshttps://www.patreon.com/barryseconomicsFollow and leave a review for episodes! Join my mailing list: https://barryferns.co.uk/You can also follow me on Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomicsInstagram: instagram.com/barryseconomicsTwitter: twitter.com/barryseconomicsSubstack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomicsReddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/If you’re new to this, check out Gary's Economics first as his channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00Want to see the stand-up side of all this?Find my live comedy and storytelling here:https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryfernsTo learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/