Managed Hearts on the Bench - Management(,) Psychology, and Judges

Abstract

In “Psychological aspects of outsourcing in the “justice sector” in England & Wales” I examined how psychological concepts, especially radical behaviourism (evident in New Public Management (NPM)) were evident in management of the justice sector in England & Wales. In this essay I narrow my focus to the courts and judges of the same jurisdiction. My aim is to identify the insights and techniques drawn from psychology which have contributed to the development of management practices in the judicial branch – taking England & Wales as a case study. As I will explain further below, in the past, the idea of “management practices” would have been viewed as anathema to the ethos of the judicial branch, and yet such terms have appeared in this arena just as in others. Before getting to those issues though, a comment about the disciplines of psychology and management.

Keywords: Judicial branch; judges; psychology; emotional managment