On Paralanguage and Metamessage
Lawyers have to persuade but before they can they have to communicate; that is, they have to teach. Effective lawyering is not typically expressed as a form of teaching, but, in many respects, it is: the best lawyers can in some sense be looked at as simply the most effective teachers. They make the complex […]
On the Art of Small, Incremental Improvement
Simple tasks would at first glance seem to be resistant to dramatic improvement. They are routine, relatively uncomplicated, and the end result does not appear to be readily susceptible to noticeable change. After all, in how many different ways can a basic task be accomplished? Small libraries have actually been written about this: everything from […]
The Invisible Primacy of Privacy
Does the right to privacy explain many, perhaps most, constitutional guarantees? Is the First Amendment nothing more than a privacy right to freely express ideas? Is the Second Amendment nothing more than a privacy right to keep and bear arms? Is the Equal Protection Clause nothing more than a privacy right not to be subjected […]
Restorative Retelling as Grief Therapy
There are many techniques therapists and counselors use––from psychoanalysis to cognitive behavioral therapy––to assist those who have suffered the loss of a loved one. One such technique is known as Restorative Retelling. “Restorative retelling (RR; Rynearson, 1998, 2001; Rynearson & Correa, 2008) is a structured, 10-session intervention for adult survivors of violent deaths. The treatment mode underlying the […]
Rethinking Motorcycle Safety
It’s that time of year. The leaves on the trees are starting to come back, the flowers arrive fashionably late, and, yes, motorcycles and their riders are again seen along the crowded streets and highways. Time to once again begin keeping a close lookout––and to ask: Are motorcycles unavoidably unsafe? Do they carry inherent risks […]
Creativity and the Taking of Risks
As the years pass, do we tend to become more risk averse? Do we seek out the sure thing, preferring to avoid the doubtful and uncertain, the unusual or unsettled? Many come to view risk taking as something to be avoided, an unnecessary threat or hazard––after all, why take the chance? As the years pass, […]
Witness Questioning and the Framing Effect
How questions are phrased makes all the difference. The specific words used, the tone and undertone of the question, the subject matter emphasized––depending on how a question has been phrased, one can pretty much predict the answer. Psychologists have long understood this concept, referring to it as “the framing effect:” “The framing effect provides another […]
Mind-blindness and the Empathetic Response
Tapping into the empathy of others can at times seem elusive. We’ve all seen instances where one would expect empathy to arise spontaneously––for example, in response to another’s injury––but just the opposite occurs. Instead of empathy there’s a distinct closing off of emotion, a hardening and desensitization. Why? What is it that shuts down the […]
On Motivated Reasoning
Evidence persuades by instilling new beliefs as well as by confirming beliefs already held. Ideally, there should be no contradiction––newly acquired evidence should be consistent with longstanding convictions held by everyone. But what if the two conflict? What if the evidence seeks to establish a conclusion that runs contrary to widely-accepted norms? Psychologists have long […]
Intuition and Counterintuition
“The walls of rude minds are scrawled all over with facts, with thoughts. They shall one day bring a lantern and read the inscriptions.” Right thinking, we are told, must be rigorous, logical. Our arguments must avoid at all costs any sentimentality, any emotion. To use an imprecise term, to skip a step, to generalize––all […]
