Chilling and Warming Effects on the Production of Legal Scholarship

Abstract

How do legal scholars decide what to write about? I hope that most of us try to write about what interests us or what benefits society. In this article though, I suggest that more insidious influences chill and warm our interest in research topics. I reflect on some sources of these chilling and warming effects in my own research environment – specifically, the implicit intimidation of power and the pressure to increase publications. I never imagined that I could simultaneously be such a coward and opportunist. I also look to insights from psychology, sociology and other fields to understand how these influences affect us and how we might manage them. I suggest though that we not be too hard on ourselves, especially if our choices are at their foundation compatible with our personal values and those of the greater scholarly enterprise.