Real Life Podcast Episode 86: Dr. Bill Hanson, Cornhuskers and the Psychology of Oilers Fans

A new week means a brand new episode of the Real Life Podcast and in this chapter, the boys were lucky to welcome Dr. Bill Hanson from the U of A psychology department as their guest and guide to help explain what it means to be a professional athlete and the pressures associated with the job.

After reading Dr. Hanson’s Op Ed piece in the Edmonton Journal about the importance of opportunity and the necessity of being able to fail from time to time, the guys knew they had to ask him about what’s going on with the Edmonton Oilers. With an actual doctor in the room, the first hurdle for the boys to get over was figuring out why Dr. Hanson would actually agree to spend his time on this podcast and whether or not he could teach us anything about the Oilers. As a former NCAA golfer that was only a hop and jump away from playing on the PGA tour, Dr. Hanson knows his share about the psychology of sports and the research he’s doing at the U of A is further proving the effects that this pressure can play on an athlete’s mind and performance. When it comes to the Oilers, the obvious question on the boys’ minds became, has the environment of playing in Edmonton become too toxic to succeed? What can we do as fans to ensure we don’t contribute to the problem? Is there any value at all in going through the struggles of last season? Can those hardships contribute to future success? Dr. Hanson answered these questions and much more in a very interesting episode of the Real Life Podcast.

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