Sean Carroll's Mindscape: Science, Society, Philosophy, Culture, Arts, and Ideas · Sean Carroll

Rebecca Newberger Goldstein on What Matters and Why It Matters

January 12, 2026·1 hr 18 min·5 clips

Rebecca Goldstein reveals how the human need to matter drives our deepest personal and political divisions.

Sean Carroll interviews philosopher and novelist Rebecca Newberger Goldstein about her book 'The Mattering Instinct,' exploring how the human need to matter drives personal meaning, social divisions, and ethical behavior. They discuss the philosophical and psychological underpinnings of mattering, its connection to entropy and natural selection, and the diversity of ways people seek to fulfill this instinct.

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