Life on Autopilot

Law and Crime

The West Memphis Three: A Four Step Recipe for False Confessions

Keith Payne Ph.D. on August 23, 2011

It took Eddie Vedder and a Dixie Chick to seal the deal. That, and a little DNA. But last Friday, three men in Jonesboro, Arkansas walked out of prison after serving 18 years for a grisly crime they didn't commit. All because of a false confession.

It took Eddie Vedder and a Dixie Chick to seal the deal. That, and a little DNA. But last Friday, three men in Jonesboro, Arkansas walked out of prison after serving 18 years for a grisly crime they didn't commit. All because of a false confession.

Sexual Orientation

Do you own the thoughts that occur to you?

Keith Payne Ph.D. on August 3, 2010

Where you think your thoughts come from shapes what you think you believe.

Where you think your thoughts come from shapes what you think you believe.

Williams syndrome is a genetic disorder in which just 25 genes are missing. Also missing is any feeling of social fear. Lack of fear may translate into a lack of prejudice.

The human tendency to turn away from mass suffering is well documented. But why does it happen?