I’m back. Because silence isn’t an option right now. In this episode, I share how graduate study / critical inquiry into leadership and social psychology is helping me make sense of an upside-down world. Groupthink, aka hive mind, isn’t just a ‘culty’ thing. For better and for worse, conformity happens everywhere along the political spectrum. I speak to how unspoken “display rules” keep us from speaking up, then make the argument that Democratic leaders in Washington desperately need to ditch cultural etiquette in order to demand accountability. I also share J. W. Brehm’s theory of reactance, which can help us to better understand friends and family members on the MAGA/MAHA right who continue to double down on misinformation. Bombarding them with the facts will likely backfire, and I tell you why. Lastly, and most importantly, I talk about pluralistic ignorance – what it is & why understanding it is absolutely essential in the fight against fascism. Self-regulation works great for peace of mind, but it can operate like a sort of pathology when it keeps us from protecting one another and demanding justice.
March 18, 2025
Referenced in this episode:
- The Social Animal, by Elliot Aronson
- Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini
- What is Group Think? Online PM Courses
- My two-part interview w/ Aimee Van Ausdall
- Conspirituality Brief: Antifascist Woodshed 2 (Punching Nazis?)
- Keep Going Together – Facebook Community led by Susan McCulley
