The theory of psychological reactance originates in the 1960s with Jack Brehm, who developed it when he was a professor at Duke University. Brehm said that humans are negatively aroused when they ...

In the December 2008 issue of EC&M, we talked about calculating the inductive reactance of conductors that are in close proximity to (or touching) one another. We also noted that the inductance and, ...

Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Ph.D., is a freelance journalist who regularly contributes to Discover Magazine. She reports on the social sciences, medical history, and new scientific discoveries. View Full ...

Reactance theory grew out of research on consumer behavior. This psychological theory describes how people react when they sense a threat to their freedom of choice. The theory extends to many other ...

This is the second part of a two-part series of essays. [July 14 update: I posted this essay July 13, one day before the Trump administration announced that it was rescinding the ICE policy described ...

Inductive Reactance is defined as the opposition to current flow. It is the reaction of the inductor to the changing value of alternating current. To explain further, a back electromotive force (emf) ...

Reactance bias is thought of as the “F.U. I won’t do what you tell me” bias, but reactance is more nuanced than that. Originally defined by Brehm in 1966, it is “the tendency to do the opposite of ...

THE teenage girl who wins the boy by playing hard to get. The parents whose disapproval of their daughter’s boyfriend only drives her into his arms. The child who will wear anything except what her ...

From seatbelt laws to new speed limits -- many people soon stop resisting policy changes that restrict their personal freedom once the new rules come into force. Researchers also identified the ...

This is the first part of a two-part series of essays. [July 14 update: I posted this essay July 12, two days before the Trump administration announced that it was rescinding the ICE policy described ...