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Does the Endowment Effect Justify Legal Intervention? The Debiasing Effect of Institutions
September 14, 2014
"Does the Endowment Effect Justify Legal Intervention? The Debiasing Effect of Institutions" JENNIFER ARLEN, New York University School of Law STEPHAN W. TONTRUP, Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods We claim that the endowment effect rarely justifies legal intervention in private ordering. To our knowledge, we present the first theory to explain how institutions inhibit the endowment effect without altering people’s rights to their entitlements. The endowment effect...
September 14, 2014
"Does the Endowment Effect Justify Legal Intervention? The Debiasing Effect of Institutions" JENNIFER ARLEN, New York University School of Law STEPHAN W. TONTRUP, Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods We claim that the endowment effect rarely justifies legal intervention in private ordering. To our knowledge, we present the first theory to explain how institutions inhibit the endowment effect without altering people’s rights to their entitlements. The endowment effect...
The Brain’s ‘Negativity Bias’ and Persuasion
September 10, 2014
Of Reptiles and Velcro: The Brain's 'Negativity Bias' and Persuasion by Kenneth D. Chestek. Abstract: Negative political...
September 10, 2014
Of Reptiles and Velcro: The Brain's 'Negativity Bias' and Persuasion by Kenneth D. Chestek. Abstract: Negative political...
Latitudes of Acceptance
September 9, 2014
I'll tell you about my new favorite idea, which like all new favorite ideas, is really an old idea. This one, from the 1960s, was used only in a couple of studies. It's called "latitude of acceptance". If I want to persuade you, what I need to do is pitch my arguments so that they're in the range of a bubble around your current belief; it's not too far from your current belief, but it's within this bubble. If your belief is that you're really, really anti-guns, let's say, and I want to move you a bit,...
September 9, 2014
I'll tell you about my new favorite idea, which like all new favorite ideas, is really an old idea. This one, from the 1960s, was used only in a couple of studies. It's called "latitude of acceptance". If I want to persuade you, what I need to do is pitch my arguments so that they're in the range of a bubble around your current belief; it's not too far from your current belief, but it's within this bubble. If your belief is that you're really, really anti-guns, let's say, and I want to move you a bit,...
The Burdens of Pleading
September 3, 2014
To preview my argument briefly, plausibility pleading formally asks judges—for the first time since the advent of the Federal...
September 3, 2014
To preview my argument briefly, plausibility pleading formally asks judges—for the first time since the advent of the Federal...
In Life, Who Wins, the Fox or the Hedgehog?
August 18, 2014
Biologists like David MacDonald, Berlin's fellow Oxonian, have studied fox life in detail. As it turns out, Archilochus got it right: Foxes are far more wily and flexible learners than hedgehogs. But why? Foxes also have a much longer childhood than hedgehogs. Hedgehogs develop their spines—that one big thing—almost as soon as they are born and are independent in only six weeks. Fox cubs are dependent for six months. As a result, hedgehogs need much less parental care—hedgehog fathers disappear...
August 18, 2014
Biologists like David MacDonald, Berlin's fellow Oxonian, have studied fox life in detail. As it turns out, Archilochus got it right: Foxes are far more wily and flexible learners than hedgehogs. But why? Foxes also have a much longer childhood than hedgehogs. Hedgehogs develop their spines—that one big thing—almost as soon as they are born and are independent in only six weeks. Fox cubs are dependent for six months. As a result, hedgehogs need much less parental care—hedgehog fathers disappear...
Counter the Plaintiff’s Damages Anchor (Especially When It’s Overboard)
August 7, 2014
The Question: Three Effects, Which One Wins? Social science results don't always point in the same direction. Sometimes there are conflicting effects, and the question is, "Which effect is stronger?" The three effects compared in the new study (Campbell et al., 2014) are as follows: The Anchoring Effect Will the plaintiff who requests a million for pain and suffering do better than the plaintiff who simply says "you decide"? Yes. Jurors, along with the rest of us, are strongly influenced in numerical...
August 7, 2014
The Question: Three Effects, Which One Wins? Social science results don't always point in the same direction. Sometimes there are conflicting effects, and the question is, "Which effect is stronger?" The three effects compared in the new study (Campbell et al., 2014) are as follows: The Anchoring Effect Will the plaintiff who requests a million for pain and suffering do better than the plaintiff who simply says "you decide"? Yes. Jurors, along with the rest of us, are strongly influenced in numerical...
Lawyer and Nonlawyer Susceptibility to Framing Effects in Out-of-Court Civil Litigation Settlement
July 24, 2014
Settling a legal dispute out of court is typically a good result for both parties. However, many disputes do not settle:...
July 24, 2014
Settling a legal dispute out of court is typically a good result for both parties. However, many disputes do not settle:...
Adverse Rulings Insufficient to Show Judicial Bias
July 17, 2014
The judge has ruled against your client on every pretrial motion, including your motion for recusal and your opponent’s motion for sanctions. Could the judge be biased against you or your client? You will have to show more than adverse rulings to disqualify the judge for bias. In Watkins v. Smith, the plaintiff, a non-lawyer authorized to represent clients before certain administrative tribunals, was recorded offering to waive a client’s fee in exchange for a romantic or sexual relationship....
July 17, 2014
The judge has ruled against your client on every pretrial motion, including your motion for recusal and your opponent’s motion for sanctions. Could the judge be biased against you or your client? You will have to show more than adverse rulings to disqualify the judge for bias. In Watkins v. Smith, the plaintiff, a non-lawyer authorized to represent clients before certain administrative tribunals, was recorded offering to waive a client’s fee in exchange for a romantic or sexual relationship....
Hope and Hopelessness in Intractable Conflicts
July 11, 2014
Have you ever been involved in a conflict you just couldn’t imagine being resolved? In other words, a conflict that was so entrenched, you felt hopeless? Researchers studying the role of emotions in the context of intractable (lengthy, all-encompassing, and possibly violent) conflicts have begun to look at the emotion of hope to understand what effect it can have on conciliatory attitudes. Hope is considered an important emotion in conflict resolution because it involves thinking about different...
July 11, 2014
Have you ever been involved in a conflict you just couldn’t imagine being resolved? In other words, a conflict that was so entrenched, you felt hopeless? Researchers studying the role of emotions in the context of intractable (lengthy, all-encompassing, and possibly violent) conflicts have begun to look at the emotion of hope to understand what effect it can have on conciliatory attitudes. Hope is considered an important emotion in conflict resolution because it involves thinking about different...
Synchronization: The Power of Moving Together
July 9, 2014
What do dance partners, choirs, marching bands, reciting the pledge of allegiance and religious chanting have in common? They all suggest that synchronizing activities facilitate bonding and mutual support among the participants involved. In a series of studies conducted at Stanford, researchers found that people walking in step with each other, or singing and waving cups in unison, reported greater feelings of connectedness and trust with their group – and earned higher pay-offs when playing...
July 9, 2014
What do dance partners, choirs, marching bands, reciting the pledge of allegiance and religious chanting have in common? They all suggest that synchronizing activities facilitate bonding and mutual support among the participants involved. In a series of studies conducted at Stanford, researchers found that people walking in step with each other, or singing and waving cups in unison, reported greater feelings of connectedness and trust with their group – and earned higher pay-offs when playing...
