311 posts · 194,834 views
Social science research, current events & jury news all viewed through the lens of litigation advocacy with an emphasis on persuasion, bias, communication, and all phases of case preparation.
Rita Handrich
3 posts
Doug Keene
154 posts
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- June 19, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 16 views
When in-group rebels have a cause…
by Rita Handrich in The Jury Room
Despite the admiration we often have for whistle-blowers and the generous adjectives we might use to describe them (e.g., courageous, principled, moral) they almost uniformly have a very tough time. They are also seen as disloyal and mean-spirited by members of their former group and typically not revered as having the best interests of the [...]
Related posts:
“It was ‘a man’s work’ and I just didn’t like working with those incompetent women….”
Politics and prejudice? Nope. I........ Read more »
Packer, D., Fujita, K., & Herman, S. (2013) Rebels with a cause: A goal conflict approach to understanding when conscientious people dissent. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. DOI: 10.1016/j.jesp.2013.05.001
- June 7, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 35 views
Rapport building: A waste of time with eyewitnesses?
by Rita Handrich in The Jury Room
Most of us likely think taking the time to build rapport in an interview setting makes sense. You want the interviewee to trust you and feel comfortable sharing information. But what about in a crime interview? Is it worth it? Specifically, does it accomplish anything other than making the eyewitness feel good? If even that? [...]
Related posts:
Helping jurors ‘see’ what eye witnesses said they saw
The Jury Expert: Umami, your financial bottom line & your iPad
Eyewitness testimony: It........ Read more »
Vallano, J., & Compo, N. (2011) A comfortable witness is a good witness: rapport-building and susceptibility to misinformation in an investigative mock-crime interview. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 25(6), 960-970. DOI: 10.1002/acp.1789
- June 3, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 45 views
Want that job? Just recall a time you felt powerful!
by Rita Handrich in The Jury Room
We’ve written about striking a ‘power pose’ in the past here. It was in relation to how to manage your appearance in court but now we have new research that says something much more odd and maybe even a little bit spooky. You don’t even have to be present for an interviewer to see you more [...]
Related posts:
“Ethnic-sounding first names” and getting the job
Can you really sort out the liars from the truth tellers?
Should you meet with that prospective client first or last?
... Read more »
Lammers, J., Dubois, D., Rucker, D., & Galinsky, A. (2013) Power gets the job: Priming power improves interview outcomes. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 49(4), 776-779. DOI: 10.1016/j.jesp.2013.02.008
- May 27, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 43 views
Ask the judge for an autobiographical narrative from jurors?
by Doug Keene in The Jury Room
Some judges (in our experience, mostly in Federal Court) ask jurors to orally provide autobiographical information to the court. Typically the judge has a list of questions on a board, and asks the jurors to stand and answer the questions that are listed, and sometimes “any additional information you think the Court should know.” Do [...]
Related posts:
Which jurors most “feel” your client’s pain?
The Jury Room: A new blawg
Pretrial publicity & bias: Take a look at the age of you........ Read more »
Lammers, J., & Proulx, T. (2013) Writing autobiographical narratives increases political conservatism. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 49(4), 684-691. DOI: 10.1016/j.jesp.2013.03.008
- May 24, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 60 views
Simple Jury Persuasion: Pictures, Words or Pictures Words?
by Rita Handrich in The Jury Room
“A picture is worth a thousand words”. Most of us think pictures are more persuasive than words. Recently I ran across a sentence in an article saying “it’s commonly believed that we remember 20% of what we hear and 80% of what we see”. Or something to that effect. I don’t know about you but [...]
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Simple Jury Persuasion: How pictures infer “truthiness”
Simple Jury Persuasion: Building Trust (but not) in Ten Easy Words
Simple Jury Persuasion: When to hand exhibits ........ Read more »
Richard E. Mayer. (2009) Multimedia Learning, 2nd Edition. New York: Cambridge University Press. . DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511811678
- May 22, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 53 views
“Ethnic-sounding first names” and getting the job
by Doug Keene in The Jury Room
Shuki. Soukias. Raheem. Samir. Jamal. Lakisha. Atholl. Tyronne. Magestic. Did you know that something as simple as a first name makes the difference between whether you even get the interview? Last weekend we were doing a focus group and one of the mock jurors had a very unique first name. One of a kind. She [...]
Related posts:
Is there a relationship between age and ethnic prejudice?
Attractiveness and being fired for poor performance
Everyday racism: A comparison of African American and Asia........ Read more »
Cotton, J., O'Neill, B., & Griffin, A. (2008) The “name game”: affective and hiring reactions to first names. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 23(1), 18-39. DOI: 10.1108/02683940810849648
- May 20, 2013
- 07:01 AM
- 63 views
“I guess what he said wasn’t that bad”
by Rita Handrich in The Jury Room
A while ago we did a focus group on a shockingly unethical healthcare provider targeting lower income zip codes for insurance fraud and the phrase “those Mexicans” came up in the deliberations. “That’s a good business model”, an older Caucasian woman said, “because those Mexicans will do whatever you tell them to do”. She seemed oblivious [...]
Related posts:
Everyday racism: A comparison of African American and Asian American Women
Life lessons from mock jurors: “Money don’t........ Read more »
Rasinski, H., Geers, A., & Czopp, A. (2013) "I Guess What He Said Wasn't That Bad": Dissonance in Nonconfronting Targets of Prejudice. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. DOI: 10.1177/0146167213484769
- May 17, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 72 views
Is there a relationship between age and ethnic prejudice?
by Doug Keene in The Jury Room
As you have probably noticed, we read a lot of research here at The Jury Room. We are looking for nuggets of knowledge or pearls of wisdom we can apply to our day-to-day practice of litigation advocacy. If you’ve read our work on generations you likely already know there is a relationship between age and [...]
Related posts:
Pretrial publicity & bias: Take a look at the age of your jurors!
Politics and prejudice? Nope. It’s about ideology!
Polls and Prejudice
... Read more »
Franssen, V., Dhont, K., & Hiel, A. (2013) Age-Related Differences in Ethnic Prejudice: Evidence of the Mediating Effect of Right-Wing Attitudes. Journal of Community , 23(3), 252-257. DOI: 10.1002/casp.2109
- May 15, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 48 views
Shooting the messenger: The intergroup sensitivity effect
by Rita Handrich in The Jury Room
We have likely all heard the saying “Don’t shoot the messenger”. According to new research, we are more likely to shoot that unlucky messenger when they are an outgroup rather than ingroup member. While that makes sense (sort of) it’s an intriguing article. And likely a depressing article for those who would like to promote [...]
Related posts:
The “hoodie effect”: A domestic variant of the turban effect
The hypercorrection effect: Correcting misinformation and false belie........ Read more »
Esposo SR, Hornsey MJ, & Spoor JR. (2013) Shooting the messenger: Outsiders critical of your group are rejected regardless of argument quality. The British Journal of Social Psychology. PMID: 23316747
- May 13, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 61 views
Maybe you really should use PowerPoint in court!
by Doug Keene in The Jury Room
PowerPoint is often maligned but new research shows a courtroom PowerPoint effect that is nothing to dismiss! When Plaintiff attorneys used PowerPoint slides, mock jurors thought the Defendant was more liable for the alleged behavior. When the Defense used PowerPoint slides, the Defendant was less liable in the eyes of the mock jurors. Seriously? Because [...]
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Patent litigation and wonder in East Texas
Chicago attorney explains to Court: “Personally, I like large breasts.̶........ Read more »
Park, J., & Feigenson, N. (2013) Effects of a Visual Technology on Mock Juror Decision Making. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 27(2), 235-246. DOI: 10.1002/acp.2900
- May 8, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 54 views
Eyewitness testimony: It’s how you talk and who I think you are
by Doug Keene in The Jury Room
We know about the problems with inaccuracy in eyewitness testimony. But here’s a study showing bias in how listeners assess the eyewitnesses themselves. Yes, you read that correctly. It isn’t about the content of the eyewitness’ testimony. Oh no. It is instead about how the eyewitness talks and how the listener assesses their social standing. [...]
Related posts:
Helping jurors ‘see’ what eye witnesses said they saw
When “I don’t know” improves the accuracy of eye-witness identi........ Read more »
Jules, S., & McQuiston, D. (2013) Speech style and occupational status affect assessments of eyewitness testimony. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 43(4), 741-748. DOI: 10.1111/jasp.12002
- May 6, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 70 views
Simple Jury Persuasion: “The opportunity to leave a cognitive legacy”
by Rita Handrich in The Jury Room
As trial consultants we are always alert to the possibility of new persuasion strategies. Often we find new perspectives in disciplines other than our own. Intriguing and powerful conclusions can stem from different sorts of thinking processes, based on different bodies of research. Recently, we ran across the work of Arthur (Skip) Lupia whose presentations contain [...]
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Simple Jury Persuasion: Avoid ‘oops you did it again’ errors
Simple Jury Persuasion: The more thi........ Read more »
Lupia, Arthur. (2012) The Trouble with Voters and Those Who Try to Fix Them. SSRN Electronic Journal. info:/
- May 3, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 109 views
Facial disfigurement is too disturbing, or why I won’t hire you
by Doug Keene in The Jury Room
Roger Ebert was a standout when it comes to facial disfigurement. We knew him before it happened. We applauded his bravery and courage in re-emerging publicly after disfiguring cancer surgery. Yet we also stared in disbelief when we saw him. His disfigurement was such that it gave the sense he was always smiling. That probably helped [...]
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When facial disfiguration disgusts
Judging books by their cover: More on facial clues to character
Proof we don’t hire the most qualified c........ Read more »
Stone, A., & Wright, T. (2013) When your face doesn't fit: employment discrimination against people with facial disfigurements. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 43(3), 515-526. DOI: 10.1111/j.1559-1816.2013.01032.x
- May 1, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 62 views
“My nostrils? My nostrils are virile…”
by Rita Handrich in The Jury Room
Oh, the things men say. Well, in truth, no real man said this. It’s featured in a parody of the viral Dove video where a forensic artist draws pictures of women as they describe themselves and then as they are described by a stranger. In the real ad, the women describe themselves as less attractive than [...]
Related posts:
Real men don’t make mistakes
“It was ‘a man’s work’ and I just didn’t like working with those incompetent women….”
Look into my eyes…..
... Read more »
Cha, Y. (2013) Overwork and the Persistence of Gender Segregation in Occupations. Gender , 27(2), 158-184. DOI: 10.1177/0891243212470510
- April 29, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 96 views
Look into my eyes…..
by Doug Keene in The Jury Room
How often have you read that “the eyes are the window to the soul”? What that means, say proponents, is that all you have to do to know how someone feels is to look into their eyes and you know all. New research would say that only holds true (at least if you are a [...]
Related posts:
We pray with closed eyes
The eyes of [not just] Texas are upon you…
“I can look into his eyes and just tell he is lying”
... Read more »
Schiffer B, Pawliczek C, Müller BW, Gizewski ER, & Walter H. (2013) Why don't men understand women? Altered neural networks for reading the language of male and female eyes. PloS one, 8(4). PMID: 23593185
- April 26, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 113 views
Larger groups means you are less likely to form interracial relationships
by Rita Handrich in The Jury Room
I sent my kids to a small school with a 1:12 student teacher ratio for kindergarten through 12th grade. While I knew that student/teacher ratio was terrific, I worried sometimes that they did not have the diversity in student body they would have in a larger school. My kids (now in college) have told me [...]
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“That’s a big knife!”: Threatening objects loom larger
Contempt for Gen Y: It’s everywhere—including law firms!
Attractiveness and being fired for poor performance........ Read more »
Cheng S, & Xie Y. (2013) Structural effect of size on interracial friendship. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. PMID: 23589848
- April 24, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 105 views
Simple Jury Persuasion: The Sunshine Samaritan Effect
by Doug Keene in The Jury Room
If you want to prevail at trial, would it be useful to be able to control the weather? New research would say it depends on whether you want the jurors to help the plaintiff or defendant or not. Seriously? Seriously. It’s called the Sunshine Samaritan Effect. “Your Honor, I’d like to recess until the sun [...]
Related posts:
The “hoodie effect”: A domestic variant of the turban effect
The hypercorrection effect: Correcting misinformation and false beliefs
Simple Jury Persuasio........ Read more »
Guéguen, N., & Lamy, L. (2013) Weather and Helping: Additional Evidence of the Effect of the Sunshine Samaritan. The Journal of Social Psychology, 153(2), 123-126. DOI: 10.1080/00224545.2012.720618
- April 17, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 87 views
The seductive allure of ‘seductive allure’
by Doug Keene in The Jury Room
Sometimes academics make the most of a clever turn of phrase. But this post isn’t about sex and it isn’t about Marilyn Monroe. Instead, it is about everyone’s favorite other topic: the CSI effect. Am I right? That is your favorite other topic, isn’t it? Even though there have been growing indications that fear of [...]
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Redux: Bye-bye CSI?
The dilemma of the ‘Expert’ Witness
Confused about brain scans? Welcome to the club!
... Read more »
Farah, M., & Hook, C. (2013) The Seductive Allure of "Seductive Allure". Perspectives on Psychological Science, 8(1), 88-90. DOI: 10.1177/1745691612469035
- April 15, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 75 views
Which jurors most “feel” your client’s pain?
by Doug Keene in The Jury Room
This is an intriguing question with a pretty straightforward answer. But if you are assuming the answer is “women”, you are only partially correct. Researchers from Michigan, New York and North Carolina investigated the relationship of age and empathy in three large samples of American adults who ranged in age from 18 to 90 years. [...]
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Does your capital client “look deathworthy”?
Pretrial publicity & bias: Take a look at the age of your jurors!
Should you ask your o........ Read more »
O'Brien E, Konrath SH, Grühn D, & Hagen AL. (2013) Empathic concern and perspective taking: linear and quadratic effects of age across the adult life span. The Journals of Gerontology. Series B, Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 68(2), 168-75. PMID: 22865821
- April 12, 2013
- 07:02 AM
- 137 views
Stereotypes happen all the time if you are neither pale nor male
by Rita Handrich in The Jury Room
The title of this blog post comes from a post by Ainissa Ramirez on gender and racial bias in the workplace. It’s a lovely turn of phrase even for such an ugly thing. We might think of the science fields as being more neutral and unbiased. I mean, it is science, right? Not so much. Researchers [...]
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Hey Professor! Get married and get tenure–if you’re male!
Asian stereotypes: Furtive, sneaky, dishonest and trying to one-up Americans
Are female stalkers less likely to be........ Read more »
Moss-Racusin CA, Dovidio JF, Brescoll VL, Graham MJ, & Handelsman J. (2012) Science faculty's subtle gender biases favor male students. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 109(41), 16474-9. PMID: 22988126
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