11th Annual Book Group

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Presented by the Psychological Association of Northeastern New York

Thursday, February 7, 2025 - 5:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.

Featuring: Good Reasonable People by Keith Payne. Join local colleagues for an important conversation about Keith’s book which can be purchased at Amazon.

Location: Executive Woods/Suites - 855 Rt 146, Suite 105, Clifton Park, New York 12065
(location might change if registration numbers exceed occupancy for this room; we will still meet in Clifton Park, but will alert you if the address changes)

Please RSVP here by Thursday, February 4, 2025.

This book will surely prompt a lively discussion! For those of you who have never attended before, here is how it goes...We all read the book (or as much of it as possible) in advance and come together to discuss and enjoy some light snacks. We hope to see you there!

About the Book

There has been much written about the impact of polarization on elections, political parties, and policy outcomes. But Keith Payne’s goal is more personal: to focus on what our divisions mean for us as individuals, as families, and as communities. This book is about how ordinary people think about politics, why talking about it is so hard, and how we can begin to mend the personal bonds that are fraying for so many of us.

Drawing upon his own research and his experience growing up in a working class, conservative Christian family in small town Kentucky, Payne argues that there is a near-universal human tendency to believe that people who are different from us are irrational or foolish. The fundamental source of our division is our need to flexibly rationalize ideas in order to see ourselves as good people.

Understanding the psychology behind our political divide provides clues about how we can reduce the damage it is causing. It won’t allow us to undo our polarization overnight, but it can give us the tools to stop going around in circles in frustrating arguments. It can help us make better choices about how we engage in political debates, how policy makers and social media companies deal with misinformation, and how we deal with each other on social media. It can help us separate, if we choose to, our political principles from our personal relationships so that we can nurture both.