Short Wave — "The Neuroscience of Cracking Under Pressure"

Date: February 18, 2026
Host: Camila Domonoski (filling in for Emily Kwong and Regina Barber)
Guest: Dr. Vikram Chib, Biomedical Engineer & Neuroscientist, Johns Hopkins University

Episode Overview

In this episode, Camila Domonoski delves into the neuroscience of pressure, exploring why people—including Olympic athletes—sometimes excel and sometimes "crack" when the stakes are highest. With the Winter Olympics as a backdrop, Dr. Vikram Chib explains how our brains process rewards, experience pressure, and fall victim to choking under intense scrutiny. The episode also offers science-backed practical tips for performing better under pressure in everyday life.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Nature of Pressure & Subjectivity (00:23–01:39)

• Camila reflects on the universal nature of pressure, relating Olympic-level anxiety to the nerves of everyday tasks, like workplace performance.
• Dr. Chib emphasizes the subjective experience of pressure:

  “Doing an interview on the radio could feel as stressful as that person trying to get the gold medal for their figure skating competition... For me, it could be the same thing as an Olympian in their gold medal event.” (00:58 — Dr. Vikram Chib)

• Everything we do—in sports or daily life—involves the brain’s reward system.

Fatigue and Motivation in the Brain (03:13–05:20)

• Fatigue manifests cognitively (mental tasks) and physically; both involve brain regions that sense internal state and motivation.
• Dr. Chib’s research shows that motivation (“a bit of extra reward”) can help us push past perceived fatigue:

  “What we found is that...offering a little bit of reward can push you out of that fatigue state a little bit.” (04:39 — Chib)

The Olympics and the Power of Rewards (05:20–06:06)

• High stakes, like Olympic medals, can motivate athletes to surpass normal limits.

  “You see a lot of Olympic and world records broken in the Olympics...that little added reward pushes them beyond their limit.” (05:34 — Chib)

Choking Under Pressure—Neuroscience Explained (06:06–09:34)

• Dr. Chib describes “choking” (underperformance under high stakes) as a response to heightened incentives.
• In the lab, increasing rewards (monetary incentives) improves performance up to a point, but extremely high stakes cause a drop (“choking”) due to loss aversion.

  “When you give them $100, they tend to choke under pressure. Their performance goes down.” (06:26 — Chib)

• The ventral striatum plays a pivotal role—activated by high rewards, deactivated by potential losses.

  “They would view it as a loss...that worry about loss was related to how they choked under pressure.” (07:21 — Chib)

• The brain reframes big rewards as potential losses, impeding motor and cognitive skills.

Cognitive Reframing as a Solution (08:46–09:34)

• Training yourself to adopt a broader perspective (thinking about a series of events rather than the individual trial or event) reduces anxiety and improves performance.

  “If you train yourself to reframe the task...and think about the portfolio of all the trials...you don’t focus on that loss as much...you tend to do better under pressure.” (08:46 — Chib)

Brain Regions Involved in Pressure & Performance (09:34–10:40)

• Reward Pathways: Ventral striatum, nucleus accumbens, prefrontal cortex.
• Motor Areas: Motor cortex, cerebellum (especially for athletic tasks).
• Cognitive Regions: Prefrontal cortex, working memory areas (important for strategy-based sports like curling).

  “Those areas respond to reward...But you can also think about cognitive areas...prefrontal cortex...higher order cognitive function.” (09:44–10:40 — Chib)

The Effect of Social Attention (10:40–11:47)

• Being observed (social approval) acts as an additional incentive; moderate amounts can boost performance, while large audiences create pressure that may lead to choking.

  “A couple people watching you can get you to boost your performance...when crowds are really big...that social incentive...can get you to do poorly.” (10:57–11:47 — Chib)

• The effect mirrors the reward scenario, with social feedback acting as a powerful motivator or stressor.

Takeaways for Everyday Life (11:47–13:01)

• Practical advice: Use cognitive reframing—think big picture, not just about a single “make-or-break” event.

  “You have a big event happening...you could just think to yourself...I’ll have other chances to do well. So I think reframing is something that we can do to get us to do well when the stakes are high for us.” (12:23 — Chib)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Relativity of Pressure:

  “Doing an interview on the radio could feel as stressful as that person trying to get the gold medal...” (00:58 — Chib)

• Reward Offsetting Fatigue:

  “Offering a little bit of reward can push you out of that fatigue state a little bit.” (04:39 — Chib)

• Explanation of Choking:

  “Their performance goes down...they would view [the reward] as a loss...that worry about loss was related to how they choked under pressure.” (06:26, 07:21 — Chib)

• Reframing Helps:

  “If you train yourself to reframe the task...you tend to do better under pressure.” (08:46 — Chib)

• Social Pressure Mirrors High Stakes:

  “When crowds are really big...that social incentive...can get you to do poorly.” (11:26 — Chib)

• Advice for Listeners:

  “It’s okay if I don’t do as well on this, I’ll have other chances...reframing...can get us to do well when the stakes are high for us.” (12:23 — Chib)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:23–01:39 — Introduction to universal pressure and Dr. Chib’s perspective
• 03:13–05:20 — Discussion of fatigue and how rewards counteract it
• 06:06–09:34 — Choking under pressure: lab results and the ventral striatum
• 09:34–10:40 — Brain regions involved in reward, motor, and cognitive function
• 10:40–11:47 — Social attention as a double-edged sword
• 11:47–13:01 — Reframing and science-backed strategies to manage pressure

Overall Tone

The conversation is accessible, curious, and encouraging—mixing relatable humor (“showing up to work as our own gold medal event”) with clear, engaging explanations of neuroscience. Dr. Chib consistently grounds cutting-edge research in real-world situations, and Camila’s questions reflect the listener’s perspective, making the science personal.

Key Takeaways

• The brain’s reward system plays a critical role in both extraordinary and everyday performances under pressure.
• Fatigue can be influenced by boosting perceived rewards, motivating individuals to overcome tiredness.
• Extremely high incentives can cause anxiety about loss, triggering a neurological response that impairs performance (choking).
• Cognitive strategies—particularly reframing the situation and focusing on a broader perspective—can help mitigate choking and improve performance in high-pressure situations.
• Social incentives (like being watched) have similar effect patterns to rewards: moderate attention helps; excessive scrutiny can hurt.

For further learning, the guest recommends reframing nerve-wracking events in a broader context—a science-backed tip applicable from the Olympic arena to the meeting room.