On an email list I subscribe to, we’ve been discussing stereotypes, and how Americans often conflate “generalization” with “stereotype,” leading to a reluctance to talk about groups at all, for fear of dishonoring individuality. Back when I was designing a research project several years ago, I wanted to look into differing ways Chinese and Americans [...]

If you want the take-home message of this post, just read the last paragraph. If you want the dirty details, read on. The question at the end of the last post looks innocent enough: Are there human rights in China? Given everything we discussed about how language works, though, it seems we’re treading on very [...]

Shifting gears today from the psychological to the linguistic. It’s hard to talk about the importance of words without sounding trite — a testament to the privileged place of language in our human-ness. The problem is that we can get ourselves into trouble if we’re not clear about what we mean by “word.”

More scenarios to think through today. First: Suppose a citizen is walking down the street one day when the police arrest him. They don’t tell him why; they simply arrest him and keep him locked up for three days before letting him go. He has done nothing illegal. What will this person think? What will [...]

Conversations between Colette and me these days — as I imagine is the case for lots of couples — often center around our family’s finances.  Got me thinking about some research I did a few years back. Consider, if you will, this scenario: The Smiths are a three-person family living in the United States:  Mom, [...]