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Articles 1 - 17 of 17
Full-Text Articles in Law
Law, Environment, And The “Nondismal” Social Sciences, William Boyd, Douglas Kysar, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Law, Environment, And The “Nondismal” Social Sciences, William Boyd, Douglas Kysar, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
Over the past 30 years, the influence of economics over the study of environmental law and policy has expanded considerably, becoming in the process the predominant framework for analyzing regulations that address pollution, natural resource use, and other environmental issues. This review seeks to complement the expansion of economic reasoning and methodology within the field of environmental law and policy by identifying insights to be gleaned from various “nondismal” social sciences. In particular, three areas of inquiry are highlighted as illustrative of interdisciplinary work that might help to complement law and economics and, in some cases, compensate for it: the …
The Psychological Foundations Of Behavioral Law And Economics, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
The Psychological Foundations Of Behavioral Law And Economics, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
Over the past decade, psychological research has enjoyed a rapidly expanding influence on legal scholarship. This expansion has established a new field—“Behavioral Law and Economics” (BLE). BLE’s principal insight is that human behavior commonly deviates from the predictions of rational choice theory in the marketplace, the election booth, and the courtroom. Because these deviations are predictable, and often harmful, legal rules can be crafted to reduce their undesirable influence. Ironically, BLE seldom recognizes that its intellectual origins lie with psychology more so than economics. This failure leaves BLE open to criticisms that can be answered only by embracing the underlying …
Barack Obama, Implicit Bias, And The 2008 Election, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Gregory S. Parks
Barack Obama, Implicit Bias, And The 2008 Election, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Gregory S. Parks
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
The election of Barack Obama as the forty-fourth president of the United States suggests that the United States has made great strides with regard to race. The blogs and the pundits may laud Obama’s win as evidence that we now live in a “post-racial America.” But is it accurate to suggest that race no longer significantly influences how Americans evaluate each other? Does Obama’s victory suggest that affirmative action and antidiscrimination protections are no longer necessary? We think not. Ironically, rather than marking the dawn of a post-racial America, Obama’s candidacy reveals how deeply race affects judgment.
Heuristics, Biases, And Philosophy, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Heuristics, Biases, And Philosophy, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
Commenting on Professor Cass Sunstein's work is a daunting task. There is simply so much of it. Professor Sunstein produces scholarship at a rate that is faster than I can consume it. Scarcely an area of law has failed to feel his impact. One cannot today write an article on administrative law, free speech, punitive damages, Internet law, law and economics, separation of powers, or animal rights law without addressing one or more of Sunstein's papers. And his work is typically not a mere footnote. Sunstein has changed how scholars think about each of these areas of law. More broadly, …
Cognitive Errors, Individual Differences, And Paternalism, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cognitive Errors, Individual Differences, And Paternalism, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
Legal scholars commonly argue that the widespread presence of cognitive errors in judgment justifies legal intervention to save people from predictable mistakes. Such arguments often fail to account for individual variation in the commission of such errors even though individual variation is probably common. If predictable groups of people avoid making the errors that others commit, then law should account for such differences because those who avoid errors will not benefit from paternalistic interventions and indeed may be harmed by them. The research on individual variation suggests three parameters that might distinguish people who can avoid error: cognitive ability, experience …
The Uncertain Psychological Case For Paternalism, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
The Uncertain Psychological Case For Paternalism, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
The Cognitive Components Of Punishment, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Forest Jourden
The Cognitive Components Of Punishment, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Forest Jourden
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
Judging By Heuristic: Cognitive Illusions In Judicial Decision Making, Chris Guthrie, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Andrew J. Wistrich
Judging By Heuristic: Cognitive Illusions In Judicial Decision Making, Chris Guthrie, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Andrew J. Wistrich
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
Many people rely on mental shortcuts, or heuristics, to make complex decisions, but this sometimes leads to inaccurate inferences, or cognitive illusions. A recent study suggests such cognitive illusions influence judicial decision making.
Cognitive Psychology And Optimal Government Design, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Cynthia R. Farina
Cognitive Psychology And Optimal Government Design, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Cynthia R. Farina
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
Inside The Judicial Mind, Chris Guthrie, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Andrew J. Wistrich
Inside The Judicial Mind, Chris Guthrie, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski, Andrew J. Wistrich
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
The quality of the judicial system depends upon the quality of decisions that judges make. Even the most talented and dedicated judges surely commit occasional mistakes, but the public understandably expects judges to avoid systematic errors. This expectation, however, might be unrealistic. Psychologists who study human judgment and choice have learned that people frequently fall prey to cognitive illusions that produce systematic errors in judgment. Even though judges are experienced, well-trained, and highly motivated decision makers, they might be vulnerable to cognitive illusions. We report the results of an empirical study designed to determine whether five common cognitive illusions (anchoring, …
Is Evolutionary Analysis Of Law Science Or Storytelling?, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Is Evolutionary Analysis Of Law Science Or Storytelling?, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
In recent years, some legal scholars have argued that legal scholarship could benefit from a greater reliance on theories of human behavior that arise from biological evolution. These scholars contend that reliance on biological evolution would successfully combine the rigor of economics with the scientific aspects of psychology. Complex legal systems, however, are uniquely human. Law has always been the product of cognitive processes that are unique to humans and that developed as a response to an environment that no longer exists. Consequently, the evolutionary development of the cognitive mechanisms upon which law depends cannot be rigorously modeled or studied …
Heuristics And Biases In The Court: Ignorance Or Adaptation?, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Heuristics And Biases In The Court: Ignorance Or Adaptation?, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
The Psychology Of Global Climate Change, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
The Psychology Of Global Climate Change, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
In its attempt to address the threat of global climate change, society has struggled to reach a consensus regarding the need for preventive measures. Professor Rachlinski describes the threat of global climate change as a unique commons dilemma and explains that various psychological phenomena of judgment render it unlikely that society will be able to respond effectively to the threat. After considering the effects of biased assimilation, loss aversion, and other psychological processes, the author explains that an innovative approach is necessary to properly address the dilemma of global climate change.
Specifically, the author examines the prospect of governmental intervention …
Regulating In Foresight Versus Judging Liability In Hindsight: The Case Of Tobacco, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Regulating In Foresight Versus Judging Liability In Hindsight: The Case Of Tobacco, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
Potentially dangerous products, such as cigarettes, can be regulated through ex post liability or ex ante regulation. Both systems should reach the same result. In practice, however, cognitive biases that influence the liability system can produce incentives to take an excess of precautions. In particular, because people tend to see past events as more predictable than they really were, judges and juries will tend to find defendants who took reasonable care negligent or even reckless. As a consequence of these biases, a liability system can be more expensive than a regulatory system, both to potential defendants and to society. Cognitive …
The Limits Of Social Norms, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
A Positive Psychological Theory Of Judging In Hindsight, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
A Positive Psychological Theory Of Judging In Hindsight, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications
Gains, Losses, And The Psychology Of Litigation, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Gains, Losses, And The Psychology Of Litigation, Jeffrey J. Rachlinski
Cornell Law Faculty Publications