The Secret Games Women Play - Dr Tracy Vaillancourt

Dr Tracy Vaillancourt is a professor at the University of Ottawa, a researcher and an author with a focus on the link between violence and mental health. Intrasexual competition is present in all animals, however the sophistication of this rivalry amongst human females is unbelievably impressive. The "fairer sex" wield their competition in some very weird, wonderful and ruthless ways. Expect to learn why women use indirect aggression as a competition strategy, how resource scarcity influences competition, whether children actually developed just fine with no consequences during the pandemic, the relationship between bullying and social status, the impact of bullying on a developing brain and much more... Sponsors: Get the Whoop 4.0 for free and get your first month for free at https://join.whoop.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied) Get a Free Sample Pack of all LMNT Flavours with your first box at https://www.drinklmnt.com/modernwisdom (automatically applied at checkout) Get 20% discount on House Of Macadamias’ nuts at https://houseofmacadamias.com/modernwisdom (use code MW20) Extra Stuff: Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/ Buy my own productivity energy drink Neutonic: https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom #psychology #women #evolution - 00:00 Why Women Hate Their Sexy Friends 07:08 The Psychology of Slut-Shaming 14:34 Do Men Use Indirect Aggression Too? 19:35 Intra-Sex Dynamics of Female Sports 27:51 Why Women Attack to Cure Jealousy 33:04 Hairdressers Are Sabotaging Attractive Women 36:34 Declining Mental Health in Young Girls 41:35 The Problem with Social Media 45:25 Relationship Between Bullying & Status 51:40 How is Adult Bullying Different? 59:50 How Our Bodies React to Bullying 1:13:30 Reversing the Harm of Past Bullying 1:20:52 Interventions to Reduce Bullying 1:25:51 Where to Find Tracy - Get access to every episode 10 hours before YouTube by subscribing for free on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2LSimPn or Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/2MNqIgw Get my free Reading List of 100 life-changing books here - https://chriswillx.com/books/ Try my productivity energy drink Neutonic here - https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom - Get in touch in the comments below or head to... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/

Chris WilliamsonhostDr Tracy Vaillancourtguest

Nov 25, 20231h 26mWatch on YouTube ↗

EPISODE INFO

Released: November 25, 2023
Duration: 1h 26m
Channel: Modern Wisdom
Watch on YouTube: ▶ Open ↗

EPISODE DESCRIPTION

Dr Tracy Vaillancourt is a professor at the University of Ottawa, a researcher and an author with a focus on the link between violence and mental health. Intrasexual competition is present in all animals, however the sophistication of this rivalry amongst human females is unbelievably impressive. The "fairer sex" wield their competition in some very weird, wonderful and ruthless ways. Expect to learn why women use indirect aggression as a competition strategy, how resource scarcity influences competition, whether children actually developed just fine with no consequences during the pandemic, the relationship between bullying and social status, the impact of bullying on a developing brain and much more... Sponsors: Get the Whoop 4.0 for free and get your first month for free at https://join.whoop.com/modernwisdom (discount automatically applied) Get a Free Sample Pack of all LMNT Flavours with your first box at https://www.drinklmnt.com/modernwisdom (automatically applied at checkout) Get 20% discount on House Of Macadamias’ nuts at https://houseofmacadamias.com/modernwisdom (use code MW20) Extra Stuff: Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/ Buy my own productivity energy drink Neutonic: https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom #psychology #women #evolution - 00:00 Why Women Hate Their Sexy Friends 07:08 The Psychology of Slut-Shaming 14:34 Do Men Use Indirect Aggression Too? 19:35 Intra-Sex Dynamics of Female Sports 27:51 Why Women Attack to Cure Jealousy 33:04 Hairdressers Are Sabotaging Attractive Women 36:34 Declining Mental Health in Young Girls 41:35 The Problem with Social Media 45:25 Relationship Between Bullying & Status 51:40 How is Adult Bullying Different? 59:50 How Our Bodies React to Bullying 1:13:30 Reversing the Harm of Past Bullying 1:20:52 Interventions to Reduce Bullying 1:25:51 Where to Find Tracy - Get access to every episode 10 hours before YouTube by subscribing for free on Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2LSimPn or Apple Podcasts - https://apple.co/2MNqIgw Get my free Reading List of 100 life-changing books here - https://chriswillx.com/books/ Try my productivity energy drink Neutonic here - https://neutonic.com/modernwisdom - Get in touch in the comments below or head to... Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chriswillx Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/chriswillx Email: https://chriswillx.com/contact/

SPEAKERS

Chris Williamson
host
Dr Tracy Vaillancourt
guest
Narrator
other

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Modern Wisdom, featuring Chris Williamson and Dr Tracy Vaillancourt, The Secret Games Women Play - Dr Tracy Vaillancourt explores female Friendships, Sexy Peers, And The Hidden Economy Of Slut-Shaming Dr. Tracy Vaillancourt explains how women's intrasexual competition often manifests as indirect aggression—gossip, exclusion, subtle nonverbal slights—rather than overt conflict. Drawing on her research, she shows that women are especially intolerant of sexually provocative or highly attractive peers because such women threaten a shared “sexual cartel” that maintains the value of sex as a resource. She connects these dynamics to bullying, status hierarchies, and the mental health crisis in girls, including how social media amplifies jealousy, social comparison, and exclusion. The conversation also covers why anti-bullying programs largely fail, how bullying biologically embeds itself in developing brains, and what might help individuals and systems respond more effectively.

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