TV cameras,public self-consciousness,and mock juror performance

In Chandler v. Florida (1981), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the presence of television cameras in the courtroom does not violate a defendant's constitutional right to a fair trial. Since then, several states have expanded their TV coverage rights, and the controversy has intensified. The present study tested opponents' argument that TV cameras distract jurors, thereby reducing their reliance on evidence in the decision-making process. Fifty-one community adults watched a 95-min videotape of a civil trial in the presence or absence of a camera. No effects were obtained on verdicts, awards, or a series of self-report measures. The camera did impair subjects' recall of the evidence, but this effect was dually limited—(a) consistent with an adaptation hypothesis, an initially strong distractive effect gradually diminished, resulting in a net post-trial loss of information that was not statistically significant, and (b) consistent with an individual differences hypothesis, the camera impaired the recall of subjects who were low but not high in dispositional public self-consciousness. These findings were discussed in terms of their practical implications for courtroom management and their contribution to the self-awareness literature.     

Individual and group psychology — Are they opposed?

It is regrettable that classical psychoanalysis has failed to pursue Freud's early interest in group psychology. In this paper, the inseparability of individual and group psychology are affirmed and the concept of identification is employed to illustrate this unity. In the absence of a satisfactory global theory of group psychology, we must rely on the contemporary knowledge of specific concepts and mini-models. The human need for finding self-esteem and coherence through group ties is increasingly recognized in the field of community mental health.This paper is based on a lecture presented at the Washington Square Institute for Psychotherapy and Mental Health in 1977.     

Sally Beauchamp's career: a psychoarchaeological key to Morton Prince's classic case of multiple personality

By the methods of psychoarchaeology, the identity of Sally Beauchamp, Morton Prince's classic case of multiple personality, has been established. The reconstructed life history has for the first time revealed the roots of the dissociative process. This goal was actually obscured by the tangled web of Prince's rambling 1906 book and his other publications on the case. The determinative events included two instances of sudden infant death during the childhood period of the patient, the earlier of which was apparently never even known to Dr. Prince. Though not mentioned in the patient's autobiography, it probably induced the initial dissociation to defend the integration of the personality. The relevance of the new concept of SIDS (since 1969) is considered. Other disturbing influences were the constant rejection of the patient by her mother, who died at an early age, and probable severe abuse by the widowed father which led her to run away from home (permanently) at age 16. Nine years afterward, therapy with Dr. Prince began and lasted seven years. It is suggested that this case and the parallel one of Breuer and Freud (Anna O.) be comparatively reexamined from the standpoint of modern feminism. The role of the conventional 19th-century woman was not acceptable to either of them, and both probably had an unusually large innate, bisexual endowment. Endogenous conflict, intensified by social demands, produced dissociation as a pseudo-solution until, through opportune therapy and other environmental opportunities, each was able to achieve a productive modus vivendi. The relation of bisexuality to the etiology of personality dissociation in general is considered. An incidental but instructive discovery made in the course of the Prince research was an unknown letter from William James to Morton Prince about The Dissociation of a Personality. This find points up the fact that James's final metaphysic was a form of pluralistic panpsychism derived from both psychical research and the contemporary knowledge about dissociated personality. James postulated a cosmic multiple personality.     

The placebo and the therapeutic uses of faith

The holistic movement in modern medicine has raised questions concerning the very character of the religion-medicine dialogue. A truly mutual interaction between theology and medicine must require of the theologian a serious interest in and understanding of medicine if the notion of the body-mind unity is to be taken seriously from the point of view of pastoral care. This paper suggests that this discussion may be enriched by a theological analysis of the placebo, which has lately been the subject of controversy within medical circles. Finally, it is suggested that the value of the placebo reposes in its serving as a symbol of the dynamics of faith in medical care.     

Stop Thinking So Much About ‘Sexual Harassment’

This article explores two related widespread mistakes in thinking about sexual harassment. One is a mistake made by philosophers doing philosophical work on the topic of sexual harassment: an excessive focus on attempting to define the term ‘sexual harassment’. This is a perfectly legitimate topic for discussion and indeed a necessary one, but its dominance of the literature has tended to prevent philosophers from adequately exploring other topics that are of at least equal importance, particularly that of bystanders' responsibilities. The other mistake is one made not just by philosophers but by most people attempting to deal with real‐world behaviour that is either sexual harassment or closely related to sexual harassment: an excessive focus on whether or not formal charges of sexual harassment are possible or appropriate. (This is clearly related to the first mistake in that a part of deciding whether charges are appropriate is deciding whether the behaviour meets the definition of sexual harassment.) I argue that these are not merely unfortunate errors in attempting to conceptualise certain problematic behaviours; they have extremely damaging real world effects.     

Looks like a liar? Beliefs about native and non-native speakers' deception

We examined whether observers' beliefs about deception were affected by a speaker's language proficiency. Laypersons (N = 105) and police officers (N = 75) indicated which nonverbal and verbal behaviors were predictive of native versus non-native speakers' deception. In addition, they provided their beliefs about these speakers' interrogation experiences. Participants believed that native and non-native speakers would exhibit the same cues to deception. However, they did predict that non-native speakers would likely face several challenges during interrogations (e.g., longer interrogations and difficulties understanding the interrogator's questions). Police officers and laypersons also differed in their beliefs about cues to deception and interrogation experiences.     

The forensic confirmation bias: Problems,perspectives, and proposed solutions

As illustrated by the mistaken, high-profile fingerprint identification of Brandon Mayfield in the Madrid Bomber case, and consistent with a recent critique by the National Academy of Sciences (2009), it is clear that the forensic sciences are subject to contextual bias and fraught with error. In this article, we describe classic psychological research on primacy, expectancy effects, and observer effects, all of which indicate that context can taint people's perceptions, judgments, and behaviors. Then we describe recent studies indicating that confessions and other types of information can set into motion forensic confirmation biases that corrupt lay witness perceptions and memories as well as the judgments of experts in various domains of forensic science. Finally, we propose best practices that would reduce bias in the forensic laboratory as well as its influence in the courts.