Problem solving, decision making, and professional judgment

de Paul Brest

"In Problem Solving, Decision Making, and Professional Judgment: A Guide for Lawyers and Policymakers, Paul Brest and Linda Hamilton Krieger prepare students and professionals to be creative problem solvers, wise counselors, and effective decision makers. The authors provide readers with the essentials of decision theory, probability and statistics, and social and cognitive psychology, and arm them against common sources of judgement error. The ultimate goal is to help readers "get it right" in their roles as professionals and citizens." "Brest and Krieger fill a huge vacuum. Their book is likely to transform the curricula of law schools and public policy schools by providing an excellent text for courses that systematically analyze the crucially important, but hitherto largely neglected, processes by which lawyers and policymakers exercise their judgment. Their multidisciplinary approach is ambitious and rigorous yet clear and accessible. "Dean and Lawrence King Professor of Law, New York University School of Law" ""Brest and Krieger pull off quite a trick here. The book is at once lucid, practical, and intellectually deep. The authors demonstrate admirable sophistication in interpreting the seminal psychological findings, as well as the rational choice inference and decision making models. At the same time, they repeatedly demonstrate how professionals might really improve how they do their work." James C. Gaither Professor of Law and Vice Dean, Stanford Law School"--BOOK JACKET.