There's a Name For That Archives

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There’s a Name for That: Social Identity Theory

Identities that govern seemingly innate experiences, such as the taste of food—or even racial bias—can be harnessed to create positive social change.

Emily Moon

There’s a Name for That: Dementia Worry

Are aging Americans hyper-anxious about dementia?

Peter C. Baker

There’s a Name for That: Gruen Transfer

A decades old idea argues that shopping is not about the items you sell—it's about the spectacle in which you sell them.

Elena Gooray

There’s a Name for That: Norman Doors

Injuries and deaths from Norman doors are often later chalked up to human error, designer Don Norman says. But the error is not the user's. It's the designer's.

Sarah Witman

There’s a Name for That: The Emotional Seesaw

According to a recent research, law enforcement often leverages a powerful psychological susceptibility—the "emotional seesaw effect"—that potentially has widespread application.

Peter C. Baker

There’s a Name for That: Partisan Signaling

Most of the time, we end up with opinions we parrot from political figures we support.

Peter C. Baker

There’s a Name for That: Jevons Paradox

The 19th-century British economist Stanley Jevons predicted—correctly—that the invention of more-efficient steam engines would lead to more coal getting burned.

Peter C. Baker