By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Predicting is tough, and can be even tougher when we don’t believe the limits of our own predictive abilities. Daniel Kahneman, a giant in the psychology world, recently wrote in the New York Times Magazine about an odd task that neatly parallels an attorney’s challenge in case assessment. Dr. Kahneman’s job as a British army […]
Predict With Care: Adapt to Overconfidence in Case Assessment Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Here is some practical advice for capital defense jury selection that carries important implications for civil cases as well. It is well established that the process of “death qualifying” a capital jury, by weeding out those have a moral or other objection to the death penalty, ends up biasing the panel
“Life Qualify” Your Capital Jury (And Balance Out Your Civil Panel Too) Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: I’ve sometimes noticed during jury selection, that attorneys are prone to like the likable. They want to believe that the panelist who appears to be well-connected, sociable, and friendly is more likely to be kind and empathetic toward their case and their client. This preference might be understandable, though it overlooks the possibility that the sociable
Don’t Mistake Sociability for Empathy Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: I’ve written about presidential aspirant Herman Cain, and his effective use of the “9-9-9” mnemonic, but more recently, Mr. Cain might be having more troubling memories. Specifically, he might be thinking, “If only I had an iron clad non disclosure agreement in my sexual harassment settlements….” While Mr. Cain’s predicament is unique, what is
Help Your Fact Finders Think About What Might Have Been Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Two rival narratives are currently battling it out in a Boston courtroom in the Tarek Mehanna case. The prosecutor’s story involves the spectre of homegrown terror, narrowly averted before anyone was harmed. The defense story involves an individual prosecuted for expressing opinions and for refusing to become an informant for the FBI. A key
Get Inside the Black Box of “Intent:” A Note on the Tarek Mehanna Trial Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: The news media pounced on it, but the scholars said it didn’t exist. The “CSI Effect,” or the tendency for high technology crime dramas to fuel a juror expectation for sophisticated investigations and definite answers, entered the popular and media imagination as a powerful effect that could stymie prosecution (by creating unrealistic evidentiary
Yes, Virginia, There is a CSI Effect: Account for It in Your Science Case Read More »
Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: It is generally a mistake to change strategies in the middle of trial. Dr. Conrad Murray, the personal physician hired to care for Michael Jackson during the rehearsals for his comeback tour, is now in trial on involuntary manslaughter charges in the entertainer’s death, based on his administration of Propofol, a drug usually administered
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: As you begin reading this post, please don’t think about the white bear. Seriously, don’t think about it. Did that work? Or are you now thinking about the white bear even more? That is the classic example in psychology research on the counterproductive effect of “thought suppression” instructions. Test subjects given
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: As we enter the 20th day of protesters’ continued occupation of Wall Street, and sit-ins spread to similar sites across the country, what stands out the most is the sheer variety of their causes. The first declaration to emerge from the Wall Street encampment highlights concerns ranging from home foreclosures, to government bailouts, faulty products, medical
Bad Company: Investigate the Sources of Anti-Corporate Attitudes Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Rushing into the courtroom, late in returning from a break, the lawyer stood before the already seated jury, red-faced, but with a self-deprecating smile. “Ladies and gentlemen, this is what every lawyer fears, and I’m truly…mortified to have kept you waiting.” And the jury responded not with irritation, but with
Don’t Be Afraid of a Little Humiliation in the Courtroom Read More »