Should we trust our intuition?

Sometimes an answer seems to arrive before we have consciously thought it through. But where does that feeling come from? Is intuition irrational, or can it reflect patterns and experience that the mind has learned over time?

In Episode 5 of Journey of Understanding, we explore intuition from the perspective of psychology and decision-making: why some intuitive judgments can be remarkably useful, why others can mislead us, and when it may be wiser to slow down, gather more information, and think again.

Perhaps the question is not simply whether we should trust our intuition, but when it deserves our trust.

Podcast: Journey of Understanding

Episode 5: Should We Trust Our Intuition?

Podcast by Heba Mahgoub

This podcast presents reflective and educational discussions informed by psychological and scientific literature. It is intended for general educational purposes and does not provide psychological or medical diagnosis or treatment.

© 2026 Heba Mahgoub. All rights reserved.

References

Dane, E., Rockmann, K. W., & Pratt, M. G. (2012). When should I trust my gut? Linking domain expertise to intuitive decision-making effectiveness. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 119(2), 187–194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.obhdp.2012.07.009

Evans, J. St. B. T., & Stanovich, K. E. (2013). Dual-process theories of higher cognition: Advancing the debate. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 8(3), 223–241. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691612460685

Kahneman, D., & Klein, G. (2009). Conditions for intuitive expertise: A failure to disagree. American Psychologist, 64(6), 515–526. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0016755

Melnikoff, D. E., & Bargh, J. A. (2018). The mythical number two. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 22(4), 280–293. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2018.02.001

Pennycook, G., De Neys, W., Evans, J. St. B. T., Stanovich, K. E., & Thompson, V. A. (2018). The mythical dual-process typology. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 22(8), 667–668. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2018.04.008

In this episode of Journey of Understanding, we explore a deeply human question:
Why don’t our actions always match what we believe?

Why do we sometimes know what feels right, yet still act differently?
Is it simply a matter of willpower, or are habit, emotion, stress, and self-protection part of the story?

This episode reflects on the gap between belief and behaviour, the idea of cognitive dissonance, and the way human actions are shaped by more than conscious conviction alone.

Podcast by Heba Mahgoub

This podcast presents reflective and educational discussions informed by psychological and scientific literature. It is intended for general educational purposes and does not provide psychological or medical diagnosis or treatment.

© 2026 Heba Mahgoub. All rights reserved.

References

These sources support the main scientific concepts discussed in the episode, including cognitive dissonance, the intention-behaviour gap, planned behaviour, and habit formation.

Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T

Festinger, L. (1957). A Theory of Cognitive Dissonance. Stanford University Press.

Webb, T. L., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Does changing behavioral intentions engender behavior change? A meta-analysis of the experimental evidence. Psychological Bulletin, 132(2), 249–268. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.132.2.249

Wood, W., & Rünger, D. (2016). Psychology of habit. Annual Review of Psychology, 67, 289–314. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-122414-033417

hat happens when we speak, but our words do not reach another person in quite the way we intended?

In Episode 3 of Journey of Understanding, we explore the difference between hearing, listening, and understanding; why two people can leave the same conversation with different interpretations; and whether what we do can sometimes communicate more convincingly than what we say.

Through attention, interpretation, observational learning, and the relationship between words and behaviour, we follow the evidence without turning an everyday human question into a complicated scientific lecture.

🎙️ Podcast: Journey of Understanding
🎧 Title
Episode 3: What Is the Value of Words If We Don’t Listen?

This podcast presents reflective and educational discussions informed by psychological and scientific literature. It is intended for general educational purposes and does not provide psychological or medical diagnosis or treatment.

© 2026 Heba Mahgoub. All rights reserved.

Scientific References

Wiradhany, W., & Nieuwenstein, M. R. (2017). Cognitive control in media multitaskers: Two replication studies and a meta-analysis. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 79, 2620–2641. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13414-017-1408-4

Cain, M. S., Leonard, J. A., Gabrieli, J. D. E., & Finn, A. S. (2016). Media multitasking in adolescence. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 23, 1932–1941. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13423-016-1036-3

van der Schuur, W. A., Baumgartner, S. E., Sumter, S. R., & Valkenburg, P. M. (2015). The consequences of media multitasking for youth: A review. Computers in Human Behavior, 53, 204–215. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.06.035

Bandura, A. (1986). Social Foundations of Thought and Action: A Social Cognitive Theory. Prentice-Hall.

American Psychological Association. APA Dictionary of Psychology: Social learning theory; Social-cognitive theory.

Doedens, W. J., & Meteyard, L. (2019). Measures of functional, real-world communication for aphasia: A critical review. Aphasiology, 34(4), 492–514.

Do the years shape who we become, or do they simply reveal parts of us that were already there?

In Episode 2 of Journey of Understanding, we explore how personality may change across the years through experience, relationships, challenges, adaptation, and self-reflection.

The episode moves from a familiar human question into a light, science-informed discussion of personality development across adulthood: what tends to remain relatively stable, what may change, and how our responses to life can gradually reshape the way we think, feel, and behave.

Rather than viewing personality as completely fixed or endlessly changeable, this episode looks at it as something that carries continuity while still allowing room for development.

🎙️ Podcast: Journey of Understanding
🎧 Episode 2: Do the Years Shape Us?

This podcast presents reflective and educational discussions informed by psychological and scientific literature. It is intended for general educational purposes and does not provide psychological or medical diagnosis or treatment.

© 2026 Heba Mahgoub. All rights reserved.

References:

[1] Bleidorn, W., Schwaba, T., Zheng, A., Hopwood, C. J., Sosa, S. S., Roberts, B. W., & Briley, D. A. (2022). Personality stability and change: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Psychological Bulletin, 148(7–8), 588–619. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000365

[2] Schwaba, T., et al. (2026). Individual differences in personality trait changes across the lifespan: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Psychological Bulletin. PubMed PMID: 42423713.

[3] Jackson, J. J., et al. (2023). Life events sometimes alter the trajectory of personality development: Effect sizes for 25 life events estimated using a large, frequently assessed sample. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. PubMed PMID: 37041673.

[4] Haehner, P., Wright, A. J., & Bleidorn, W. (2024). A systematic review of volitional personality change research. Communications Psychology, 2, 115. https://doi.org/10.1038/s44271-024-00167-5

Do we really know ourselves as well as we think we do?

In this first episode of Journey of Understanding, we explore self-knowledge from several angles: what we know from our inner experience, what our repeated behaviour may reveal, and what people who know us well may sometimes see more clearly than we do.

The episode also looks at the difference between having a clear story about ourselves and having an accurate understanding of ourselves, and considers how personality can remain relatively stable while still changing over time.

The aim is not to prove that we do not know ourselves, but to ask a more precise question: in which parts of ourselves are we reliable observers, and where might our view still be incomplete?

This podcast presents reflective and educational discussions informed by psychological and scientific literature. It is intended for general educational purposes and does not provide psychological or medical diagnosis or treatment.

© 2026 Heba Mahgoub. All rights reserved.

References

Wilson, T. D., & Dunn, E. W. (2004). Self-knowledge: Its limits, value, and potential for improvement. Annual Review of Psychology, 55, 493–518.

Vazire, S. (2010). Who knows what about a person? The self-other knowledge asymmetry model. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 98(2), 281–300.

Bleidorn, W., et al. (2022). Personality stability and change: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Psychological Bulletin, 148(7–8), 588–619.

Podcast: Journey of Understanding
Episode 1: Do We Really Know Ourselves?
By: Heba Mahgoub