Blog | Page 3 | Cognitive Politics

Take a look at Cannon Thomas, Ph.D's Politics and the Catastrophe of Us and Them: We have to change the way we view the opposing party for our nation to thrive. The article favors what I call "floater" centrism: it lists a whole bunch of acts of violence all by one side, and draws the conclusion that we're all equivalent (floating between the parties) instead of cal

Techniques:

Floater Centrism

Bedrock Centrism

What does it mean to be a centrist amidst today's partisan brawling?

admin
Sat 2018-10-13

An awful lot of us are pissed off at partisanship coming from politicians — and our friends.

The ideals of a democracy where we talk to each other and are all trying to make this country better, with different views of how to make the country better, they are failing. The center is not holding.

Techniques:

Tribalism, Centrism, Values

The Need to Reach Across the Aisle

admin
Thu 2018-10-04

Have you given up on communication techniques to politically opposed voters? Don't bother with active listening, don't bother with framing, because it's hopeless?

The results of how the we handled Kavanaugh should change your mind.

Suggested Small Action: Townhall Exercise on Sexual Assault

admin
Mon 2018-10-01

Here's a gentle action that might change the frame for congresspeople and congressional staffs regarding sexual assault — that I hope could work well in conservative districts:

Techniques:

Encourage Talk Beyond Talking-Points

active listening

Scales of Judgment: one lifetime vs one fact

admin
Mon 2018-10-01

Politics today are described as "tribal" — most people start with their allegiances and judge or filter each fact based on those allegiances.

Image of judge's scales: a lifetime of beliefs heavy on one side, one fact on the other

Techniques:

Judgment: Weight Facts, Don't Judge Entire Belief Systems

communication techniques

GIsh Gallop

admin
Sat 2018-09-08

Imagine your position as a fortress, and solid counter-arguments are cannons. A "Gish Gallop" is like bringing automatic tennis ball launcher a quarter mile from the walls of the fortress and turning it on. The defender comes out and whacks the tennis balls away. No chunks are torn from the walls of the fortress. But to anyone watching, it sure looks like the attacker is wearing out the defender; with so many points, some must be true?

Techniques:

communication techniques

Ending the "Civility/Incivility" Frame

Stephen Cataldo
Sun 2018-07-01

First draft -- Help me write this!

There is a bit of noise on the internet about civility:

Personally, I think that the options that fall under "civility" are usually the right choice, and name-calling almost always counter-productive.

I'm not sure what our frame should be; it's not as simple, not a binary. I think groups that want Gandhi or King style resistance should be exploring ways to get us out of the civility-incivility frame. It might be best expressed with a graphic, something that we can dump into all the articles.