Human beings are perhaps never more frightening than when they are convinced beyond doubt that they are right. — Laurens Van der Post People often ask me: What’s your favorite theory in social psychology? But often what I think they’re really asking is what’s the most important theory? So let me tell you: naïve realism. Naïve realism asserts that humans…
Be yourself, but always your better self. — Karl Maeser I want you to do a little exercise I do with my class before they receive the grades for their first attempt at writing a research paper where the class average is a C-/D+: From the following six topics, please mentally rank them in order…
Concentration is the root of all higher abilities. — Bruce Lee Do you ever get halfway through a page, only to have no memory for what you just read? In long meetings, do you often daydream that you’re a secret agent or a professional musician or lying on a secluded beach? Concentration and mental focus is arguably…
Money can’t buy happiness, but it can buy you the boat that will take you there. – Ron Carlson Recently, I was offered a part-time job that would allow me to make some extra money; however, in order to accept it, I had to attend a training class, spend hours reading preparatory articles, and then actually…
For a complete list of Jake’s research and publications, click here for his CV. To see his profile at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, visit his faculty page here. EXPERTISE BOOK The Handbook of Personalized Persuasion: Theory and Application (link) PEER-REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS 2025: “Does Artificial Intelligence Cause Artificial Confidence? Generative AI as an…
Because power corrupts, society’s demands for moral authority and character increase as the importance of the position increases. – John Adams These last few weeks we’ve been exploring the psychological construct of power and how it affects our thoughts and behaviors. And today’s concluding post on the topic couldn’t have had a better, real life corollary:…