<p>This episode starts off a little differently than others — with a short quiz, something called the Brief Sensation-Seeking Scale, which will tell you whether you're what psychologists call a high sensation-seeker or a low sensation-seeker. Read the following eight statements, and then pick a number from 1 to 5 that corresponds to your level of agreement, where 1 is "Not at all like me," 2 is "Not like me," 3 is "Unsure or both like and not like me," 4 is "Like me," and 5 is "Very much like me."</p><ol><li>I would like to explore strange places.</li><li>I would like to take off on a trip with no pre-planned routes or timetables.</li><li>I get restless when I spend too much time alone.</li><li>I prefer friends who are excitingly unpredictable.</li><li>I like wild parties.</li><li>I would love to have new and exciting experiences, even if they are illegal.</li><li>I would like to try bungee jumping.</li><li>I would like to do frightening things.</li></ol><p>Now add up all the numbers together. If you scored between 8 and 16, you are a low sensation-seeker. If you scored between 16 and 28, you're about average for sensation-seeking. If you scored over 28, you're a high sensation-seeker.</p><p>Today on the show, I unpack what these categories of personality mean with Dr. Kenneth Carter, a clinical psychologist, a professor, and the author of <a href="https://amzn.to/3YiomYQ"><i>Buzz!: Inside the Minds of Thrill-Seekers, Daredevils, and Adrenaline Junkies</i></a>. Ken explains how sensation-seeking exists on a spectrum between chill seekers, who like safety and calm routine, and thrill seekers, who enjoy chaos, risk, and novelty. He shares how there are actually four components to high sensation-seeking, and which two tend to get people in trouble. And we talk about whether being high or low sensation-seeking is a matter of nature or nurture, how high sensation-seekers fare in romantic relationships and what they should consider in choosing a career, and what the world's chill seekers can learn from its thrill seekers.</p><h2>Resources Related to the Podcast</h2><ul><li><a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/mind/surveys/sensation/" target="_blank">40-Question Sensation-Seeking Scale Test</a></li></ul><h2>Connect with Ken Carter</h2><ul><li><a href="https://www.drkencarter.com/" target="_blank">Ken's website</a></li><li><a href="https://www.instagram.com/drkencarter/?hl=en" target="_blank">Ken on IG</a></li><li><a href="https://x.com/drkencarter" target="_blank">Ken on X</a></li><li><a href="https://app.oxford.emory.edu/WebApps/Directory/index.cfm/view/28" target="_blank">Ken's faculty page</a></li></ul>

This episode starts off a little differently than others — with a short quiz, something called the Brief Sensation-Seeking Scale, which will tell you whether you're what psychologists call a high sensation-seeker or a low sensation-seeker. Read the following eight statements, and then pick a number from 1 to 5 that corresponds to your level of agreement, where 1 is "Not at all like me," 2 is "Not like me," 3 is "Unsure or both like and not like me," 4 is "Like me," and 5 is "Very much like me."

I would like to explore strange places.
I would like to take off on a trip with no pre-planned routes or timetables.
I get restless when I spend too much time alone.
I prefer friends who are excitingly unpredictable.
I like wild parties.
I would love to have new and exciting experiences, even if they are illegal.
I would like to try bungee jumping.
I would like to do frightening things.

Now add up all the numbers together. If you scored between 8 and 16, you are a low sensation-seeker. If you scored between 16 and 28, you're about average for sensation-seeking. If you scored over 28, you're a high sensation-seeker.

Today on the show, I unpack what these categories of personality mean with Dr. Kenneth Carter, a clinical psychologist, a professor, and the author of Buzz!: Inside the Minds of Thrill-Seekers, Daredevils, and Adrenaline Junkies. Ken explains how sensation-seeking exists on a spectrum between chill seekers, who like safety and calm routine, and thrill seekers, who enjoy chaos, risk, and novelty. He shares how there are actually four components to high sensation-seeking, and which two tend to get people in trouble. And we talk about whether being high or low sensation-seeking is a matter of nature or nurture, how high sensation-seekers fare in romantic relationships and what they should consider in choosing a career, and what the world's chill seekers can learn from its thrill seekers.

Are You a Thrill Seeker or a Chill Seeker?