May 5th, 2009
Some interesting articles and blog posts that you might want to check out…
The Power of False Remembering (hat tip to John Sumser)
When people are fooled into thinking they made a different choice than the one they actually made, and then articulate their “reasons” for this supposed choice, they then may actually change their future preferences to conform to their confabulated preference.
Where Failing Means Fitting In (hat tip to David Pollard)
The problems of young people like Jesselyn are sometimes called failures of assimilation. But they can also be seen as assimilation to the wrong things: crime, drugs and self-fulfilling prophecies of racial defeat.
Stereotype Threat and Exit Exams
California’s high school exit exam is keeping disproportionate numbers of girls and non-whites from graduating, even when they are just as capable as white boys, according to a study released [last week]. It also found that the exam, which became a graduation requirement in 2007, has “had no positive effect on student achievement.”
The Power of Frustration (from Jamie Notter)
Social Media and associations, but also Aikido:
In the martial art of Aikido, the attacker’s force is rarely simply blocked or opposed. You use that force–merge with it–so you can redirect it in a way that keeps both you and the attacker from harm. And to merge with the attacker’s force, you typically have to position yourself right next to the attacker, turning yourself around to see the world from the attacker’s point of view. The willingness to make that shift is actually a big deal, particularly if you label the other’s view as whining, inappropriate, or otherwise not worthy of your attention.
-be good to each other