Apr 29, 2025
Show Notes:
Rebecca Hollander-Blumoff shares her journey
from college to law school. After deferring her law school for a
year, she spent a year in Spain to gain language and cultural
experience. She then went to law school in Cambridge and clerked
for a federal judge in New York before going into practice. Rebecca
was initially interested in becoming a federal prosecutor but
realized she first had to go into practice. She worked for a
small boutique litigation firm that did about 60% white collar
criminal defense and about 40% civil litigation. While she loved
being a counselor to her clients, and a person who a client could
call, day in, day out, she found the law firm's hierarchy
unappealing.
The Psychology of Negotiation, a PhD., and
Teaching
Rebecca decided to pursue a PhD in Social Psychology to study the
psychology of negotiation. She talks about negotiation in law, and
she began taking classes in NYU's master's program and eventually
obtained a PhD in Social Psychology with a dissertation on
procedural justice in negotiation. She taught in the lawyering
program at NYU and was an adjunct at Seton Hall in New Jersey
teaching negotiation. After obtaining her PhD, she went on the job
market for academia; she got a position at Washington University in
Saint Louis. Rebecca has been teaching at Washington University in
Saint Louis since 2006. She teaches various core classes, including
civil procedure, federal courts, law and psychology, negotiation,
negotiation for executive education, and has also developed a
course in women’s leadership and negotiation. She has worked for
groups like the Brookings Institution and the Rodel Institute.
Women’s Negotiation and Navigating Stereotypes
Rebecca's approach to teaching women's negotiation is not about
focusing on gender differences but rather on understanding the
research that informs her approach. She believes that women need to
be armed with knowledge about the effects of gender, culture, and
race on negotiation. This knowledge can help them navigate through
stereotypes and roadblocks that may arise in negotiations. In her
classes, she also discusses the research that is relevant to
everyone, not just women, and mentions the issue of different
perceptions of men and women in and on negotiations, and how
behavior of men and women is perceived differently. The discussion
also touches on the misconception that some people are born good
negotiators and others are bad at it. This is a misconception that
can hinder effective negotiation. The best way to think about
negotiation is as an experience that can be prepared for and
analyzed from both structural and interpersonal perspectives. This
involves considering possibilities, actions to take if negotiations
don't work out, and the interpersonal elements present.
Negotiation and Problem-solving
Rebecca mentions that negotiation is often seen as adversarial, but
it is actually more about strategically problem-solving to increase
the size of the pie and generate low-cost but high-value outcomes
for both parties. Examples of negotiations that are not adversarial
include family law, business contracts, and reputational effects.
Negotiations can have broader implications, as people may still be
in each other's lives after the negotiation. The key piece that
students often overlook is the relational aspect of negotiations.
In negotiations, parties are not in front of a judge, and the
outcome must be decent for both parties. For example, in a
negotiation for a new salary or project, one person has all the
power, but the decision by fiat can lead to less positive results
over time, less employee retention, and less positive feelings
about the project. In real-world situations, negotiations can have
other elements and dimensions available. Lawyers should question
their assumptions and think about the best end goal for their
clients. They should also consider the potential negative
consequences of their actions and the impact on their reputation
and business relationships.
Negotiations in Practice
The conversation turns to the dynamic between attorneys and clients
in family law negotiations. Research has shown that when lawyers
experience fairness in negotiation, they are more likely to
recommend the agreed-upon outcome to their clients, believing it
forms the basis for a better long-term agreement. However, the
client is not in the room, and the lawyer may manipulate the
client's desire for fair process and present things differently to
the client based on what they think might happen. This can lead to
a gap between what the lawyer is experiencing and what the client
is experiencing. Research by a professor at UC Davis has found that
one of the most desirable forms of dispute resolution for regular
people is negotiation by their lawyer while the client is present
in the room. This could reduce the dissonance between the lawyer
and the client, potentially leading to better negotiation
outcomes.
A Year in Madrid
Rebecca recounts her experience in Madrid after college, where she
lived with a family for most of the year, a difficult but
interesting experience. She studied at the Complutense University,
where she participated in a Hispanic studies program, which taught
history, language, grammar, and art in Spanish. The program was an
international one, and the students from around the world were
taught in Spanish. Despite the initial loneliness and lack of
familiarity, Rebecca found it fascinating and eventually moved into
an apartment with friends. She found that Madrid was a large city,
but not warm and fuzzy, and it was a great place to live.
A Passionate and Adventurous Baker
Rebecca is a passionate baker She enjoys sharing her creative side
with her students, who are always happy when she bakes for them. In
her home life, she has three boys and two nephews who live nearby,
making the house full of baked good eaters. Baking provides a time
to disconnect from the stress of professional life and connect with
the world through the act of baking. One of her favorite projects
was when she baked 12 cakes of Christmas based on the 12 days of
Christmas. She also used cooking as a project to open her
children’s horizons to different cultures and ideas, especially
when her kids were younger. They would research a country and make
a whole meal of that country’s cuisine, usually with a baked
dessert. One of her favorite baked goods is a Kringle, made from an
Estonian recipe. Her oldest child also fell in love with the
Mongolian beef patty, a dish made from a dough of flour and water
wrapped around ground beef.
Influential Harvard Professors and Courses
Rebecca took Justice as a freshman and ironically found it to be
one of her least favorite classes. However, she enjoyed her classes
in the history and literature concentration. She also took a
phenomenal French literature class and enjoyed a class on modern
poetry, which she likens to the study of law, as every word and
construction has a reason or purpose.
Timestamps:
06:11: Transition to Academia and Negotiation Research
10:12: Teaching Women's Negotiation and Gender Dynamics
18:08: Negotiation Skills for Law Students
26:12: Relational Aspects of Negotiation
31:08: Consulting and Baking Passion
41:23: Personal Reflections and Cultural Experiences
44:22: Influence of Harvard Classes and Professors
Links:
Author Page for Rebecca E. Hollander-Blumoff :: SSRN
Instagram: @rebeccahollanderblumoff
Blue Sky: @rhollblum.bsky.social.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebecca-hollander-blumoff-475636270/
Work: https://law.washu.edu/faculty-staff-directory/profile/rebecca-hollander-blumoff/
Book: https://www.amazon.ca/Research-Handbook-Psychology-Rebecca-Hollander-blumoff/dp/1800881916
Featured Non-profit:
The featured non-profit of this episode of The 92 Report is recommended by Elaine Lum MacDonald who reports:
“Hi, I'm Elaine Lum McDonald, class of 1992. The featured nonprofit of this episode of The 92 report is SV2. Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund. SV2 is a community committed to accelerating equity in the Bay Area through grant making to local nonprofits, impact investing in local and global entrepreneurs and immersive learning experiences. I am proud to have been a member of this organization since 2021 and I'm currently serving on the board. I love SV2 because it is truly innovative in two ways. First, it's equity based practices, including putting grantees and investees on the board and its trust based philanthropy practices. And secondly, because of its focus on creating impact across the capital spectrum, from donations to investments. You can learn more about their work at SV2.org and now here is Will Bachmann with this week's episode.”
To learn more about their work, visit: SV2.org.