Disagreeing Better in a Polarized World: A conversation with Julia Minson and Todd Rogers

This event took place on March 26, 2026. Click above to watch the recording.

What does it take to disagree productively in an increasingly polarized world? Behavioral scientist Julia Minson’s new book, How to Disagree Better, explores the hidden skills that help people navigate conflict, build trust, and engage constructively across differences.

Join Harvard Kennedy School professors and Shorenstein Center resident faculty members, Julia Minson and Todd Rogers, for a conversation centered on the research in Minson’s, How to Disagree Better (published March 24, 2026). Drawing on insights from behavioral science, the discussion will explore why polarization and conflict can be so difficult to address and what research suggests about communicating across differences more effectively.

Julia Minson is a professor at the Harvard Kennedy School. She is a behavioral scientist whose research focuses on conflict, communication, negotiations, and decision making, with a primary emphasis on the “psychology of disagreement,” or how people engage with opinions, judgments, and decisions that differ from their own. Her work has been published in leading academic journals and covered by CNN, TIME, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, and The New York Times.

Todd Rogers is the Weatherhead Professor of Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. He is a behavioral scientist who works to increase student attendance, strengthen democracy, and improve communication.  He is coauthor of Writing for Busy Readers, with Jessica Lasky-Fink.