Tertiary Catalogue

Eyewitness testimony and its veracity presents problems for juries and judges, according to the University of California's Dr Elizabeth Loftus. She tells Eve Ash that this intersection of psychology and law has revealed that the more confident a witness, the more they are believed even if their memories are mistaken. More than 300 people, such as Steven Titus (misidentified as a rapist) have been convicted through faulty or false memories. The problem is compounded when zealous detective coach witnesses, or when false and distorted memories are "implanted". People sometimes cling to a mistaken belief, even when the evidence shows they are wrong. Show Less

Eve Ash discusses why people tell lies with the University of Massachusetts Amherst's Professor Robert Feldman, a specialist in psychological and brain sciences. He has studied lying for many years and observes that (1) all people tell lies in different situations; (2) many are not truthful on their resumes and in job interviews; (3) sometimes people confabulate to fill memory gaps caused by stressful or traumatic conditions. In crime situations, he explains that false memories occur, and people's eagerness to find a culprit sometimes leads to the wrong person being convicted. You can't always tell a liar from their physical cues (e.g. excessive blinking, looking away). This can cause deception bias and investigations clouded by tunnel vision. Dr Feldman and Eve Ash discuss the case of Sue Neill-Fraser, convicted and jailed for murder in Tasmania in 2010. Show Less

Eve Ash talks to Professor Robert Feldman (University of Massachusetts Amherst) about his research for the book "The Liar in Your Life": He reveals that we all lie at different times, there are many types of lies ranging from the unconscious to lies of commission, and that people often lie within the first ten minutes of meeting someone. We lie to create an impression, we lie because we are anxious, we make up narratives to fill gaps in our memories. We have a "truth bias" in as much as we don't want to believe another person might be lying. Lies create spiral effects ("You lie, I lie"). We might be suspicious of liars, but we also tend to forgive them. Lies lead to inauthenticity in relationships. People compartmentalize lies and can live with them for many, many years. Show Less

People sometimes lie for a reason and will exaggerate to enhance their prestige in the eyes of others. People having secret affairs tell lies; this was the situation for Eve Ash's mother who lied for years about Eve's biological father. Eve's subsequent investigation revealed her real father, and how he was built into her story, although her mother never admitted the truth. Discovering her personal story has led Eve to forgive her mother's deception. Show Less

President of Quinnipiac University, Dr Judy Olian has met many leaders. One of the qualities of a great leader, she believes, is authenticity. For this to occur, she tells Eve Ash, there must be self-awareness, awareness of how others perceive you, and willingness to absorb information, internalise it and use it. Other essential qualities are enabling team diversity, encouragement of and rewarding truth-telling, and maintaining a healthy balance between work and home, and pursuing physical, mental and emotional health. Show Less

Say "yes" to new career opportunities and most people will find a new injection of career rocket fuel. As Dr Judy Olian explains to Eve Ash, accepting unusual roles as they present themselves allows people to "step out of the safe zone", take calculated risks, learn from failure - all while retaining one's integrity. The idea is to broaden, not stuck in one's career past. As Judy points out, no-one but you is responsible for managing your career. Show Less