Serpopsychology (WHAT’S CREEPY?) with Frank McAndrew

Serpopsychology (WHAT’S CREEPY?) with Frank McAndrew

Are you creepy? How would you know? What’s “creepy” as opposed to scary or eerie? We talk to the pioneer of this research, Serpopsychologist, Dr. Frank McAndrew, a professor emeritus at Knox College. We chat: dates that give you the willies, Weary Willie the Clown, haunted dolls, college goths, dark alleyways, evolutionary neurobiology, what NOT to get Oprah, the line between horror and comedy, the phobia of balloons, dating tips, and why you should re-evaluate your bathmat. Welcome to Spooktober 2025. We have more waiting in the wings for you this month.

Visit Dr. McAndrew's website and follow him on Google Scholar, Facebook, and Bluesky

A donation went to WTVP, the PBS affiliate for Central Illinois

More episode sources and links

Other episodes you may enjoy: Spooktober: Topics to Startle and Love, Fearology (FEAR), Demonology (EVIL SPIRITS), Disability Sociology (DISABILITY PRIDE), Speleology (CAVES), Quasithanatology (NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES), Thanatology (DEATH & DYING), Attention-Deficit Neuropsychology (ADHD), Human Technomorphology (SWAPPING OUT BODY PARTS), Systems Biology (MEDICAL MATHEMATICS), Personality Psychology (PERSONALITIES), Obsessive-Compulsive Neurobiology (OCD), Cosmology (THE UNIVERSE)

400+ Ologies episodes sorted by topic

Smologies (short, classroom-safe) episodes

Sponsors of Ologies

Transcripts and bleeped episodes

Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month

OlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, hoodies, totes!

Follow Ologies on Instagram and Bluesky

Follow Alie Ward on Instagram and TikTok

Editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions and Jake Chaffee

Managing Director: Susan Hale

Scheduling Producer: Noel Dilworth

Transcripts by Aveline Malek

Website by Kelly R. Dwyer

Theme song by Nick Thorburn


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Avsnitt(502)

Myrmecology (ANTS) with Terry McGlynn

Myrmecology (ANTS) with Terry McGlynn

Cult-leader queens. Bullet ant stings. Kitchen pest hacks. The dynamics of a billion-sister megacolony. Dr. Terry McGlynn sits down to have a BIG discussion about itty-bitty creatures. Learn about tro...

25 Sep 20181h 23min

Egyptology (ANCIENT EGYPT) with Kara Cooney

Egyptology (ANCIENT EGYPT) with Kara Cooney

After a decade of fandom, Alie finally meets famed Egyptologist Dr. Kara Cooney -- and forgets her equipment. They meet again for a spirited history lesson on ancient Egypt: the pyramids, the monarchs...

18 Sep 20181h 21min

Conservation Technology (EARTH SAVING) with Shah Selbe

Conservation Technology (EARTH SAVING) with Shah Selbe

THIS IS UPLIFTING, I PROMISE. And it might just make you switch careers. As a bookend to last week's Oceanology episode, Conservation Technologist Shah Selbe chats about saving the planet with some we...

11 Sep 20181h 24min

Oceanology (OCEANS) with Ayana Johnson

Oceanology (OCEANS) with Ayana Johnson

Are plastic straws really that bad? What's the oldest message in a bottle? Any scuba vs. snorkel strategies? Does sunscreen kill coral? Can we reverse ocean warming in our lifetime? In a conversation ...

4 Sep 20181h 16min

Ferroequinology (TRAINS) with Matt Anderson

Ferroequinology (TRAINS) with Matt Anderson

Trains. Locomotives. Choochoos. Bullet trains. Hyperloops. Subways. How fast can they go? How did they change American history? Why do people love them? What should we do with all that abandoned track...

28 Aug 20181h 4min

Bonus Minisode: Kalology -- Your Letters

Bonus Minisode: Kalology -- Your Letters

As a companion to Kalology (BEAUTY STANDARDS) Alie reads your thoughts about appearance and beauty culture in this, a bonus minisode. You wrote in about how make-up is a creative outlet, how beauty st...

21 Aug 201843min

Kalology (BEAUTY STANDARDS) with Renee Engeln

Kalology (BEAUTY STANDARDS) with Renee Engeln

We love it. We hate it. BEAUTY CULTURE.Looking good can make us feel decorated, empowered and more confident -- but why?And why are certain groups subtly told to "make-up" for their appearance?What's ...

21 Aug 20181h 38min

Oology (EGGS) with John Bates

Oology (EGGS) with John Bates

The biggest eggs! The smallest eggs! The people arrested for stealing the most eggs! Oologist Dr. John Bates gave Alie a tour of the egg vault at the Field Museum of Chicago and it was a barrage of be...

14 Aug 201858min

Populärt inom Komedi

mellan-himmel-och-jord-med-jlc
ursakta
den-som-skrattar-forlorar-podcast-2
alex-sigges-podcast
filip-fredrik-svarar
jocke-jonna-sanningen-maste-fram
hogt-i-tak-2
gynning-berg
mardromsgasten
skaringer-nessvold
alla-goda-ting-ar-tre
rss-vafalls
fordomspodden
killradet
kafferepet
da-ar-vi-igang
filip-fredrik-podcast
rss-vastgotapodden
hor-har
flashback-forever