By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Your face is probably blank as you read this. So just as an experiment, right now, smile. Now, even if your smile is forced, goofy, or pasted on, hold that smile for at least 20 seconds or so. If you’re like most, you should feel your mood lifting almost immediately. […]
Smile (For Credibility and Affect) Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: On a recent trip returning to the U.S., I was eyed closely as I answered a series of apparently mundane questions from the uniformed American agent. Where was I born? Where do I live in the U.S.? How long had I been gone? What cities had I visited? And so
Treat Body Language as Unproven, Yet Trusted Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: If a “hot bench” is one that involves a judge actively participating in oral argument with questions and responses, then a “cold bench” must be one in which the judge just sits silently and watches. By that standard, there is no better exemplar of the cold bench than U.S. Supreme
Know How to Address a “Cold Bench” Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Consider for a moment what is going on in the minds of jurors. They’ve been asked to sit in judgment of the actions of another in a way that will have a direct and immediate effect on either the freedom or the fortunes of that party. It’s a setting that
Know Your ‘God-Thinking’ (Book Review) Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: There are strategies and techniques, and then there are fundamental bedrock principles of human communication. The use of story and narrative structure definitely falls in the later category, perhaps to a greater degree than we’ve previously thought. I’ve written before that stories can show us what’s moral, fill gaps in
Arc Your Trial Story Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: If you read articles online and continue into the “comments” section, it doesn’t take long to find them: individuals, usually anonymous, who are engaged in surprisingly hostile and personal exchanges with strangers — and they seem to relish the sport. Who are these people, I’ll often wonder, and what motivates
Look Out for Trolls Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Let’s play word association. If I say “old age,” what are the first words that come to mind? Would it be something like “senile,” “feeble,” “scattered,” “sad,” “sick,” or “absent-minded”? If so, you would be in line with most individuals’ general associations with the elderly. And these stereotypes attach to
Trust Your Older Jurors (or Judges) Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: New Jersey Governor Chris Christie seems to be stuck in a jam, and much like the George Washington bridge commuters last September, it doesn’t seem to be going anywhere. At this point, it appears his marathon press conference hasn’t helped. He publicly apologized for the actions of his staff in closing
Don’t Sully Your ‘Sorry’ Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: Ducks and Vikings have been prominent recently on the free expression front of the culture wars. The ‘Duck’ would be Duck Dynasty’s reality star Phil Robertson, who’s recent comments on homosexuality and race caused his network, A & E, to briefly suspend him from the show. The ‘Viking’ would be former
Frame It as “Freedom with Consequences” Read More »
By Dr. Ken Broda Bahm: What does it take to beat a reptile? In most cases, a mongoose will do the job. As attention to the Reptile perspective on plaintiffs’ advocacy has been growing, an interest in the best modes of defending against it has finally started to catch up. The “Reptile,” of course refers
Defendants: Be the Mongoose Read More »