Episode #176 - Dogmatism and the Dogmatic Juror

Guest: Ava Hernandez, M.A., CSI Litigation Consultant

CSI Litigation Consultant Ava Hernandez, M.A. joins Steve Wood, Ph.D. to discuss the concept of dogmatism in jurors. Ava defines what dogmatism is and shares the different perspectives of psychologists about whether dogmatism is a personality trait or is domain specific. Steve and Ava talk about open and closed systems of thinking and how dogmatism doesn't allow an individual to change their perspective, even in the face of evidence that contradicts their beliefs. They also discuss how to approach jury selection to identify dogmatic jurors during voir dire and whether and how someone can be lifted out of their dogmatic belief state.