Dr. Richard A. Friedman

Richard A. Friedman is a professor of clinical psychiatry and the director of the psychopharmacology clinic at the Weill Cornell Medical College, and a contributing opinion writer.

The Neuroscience of Hate Speech

Humans are social creatures who are easily influenced by the anger and rage that are everywhere these days.
Richard A. Friedman

By Richard A. Friedman

Dr. Friedman is a psychiatrist.

We know that repeated exposure to hate speech can increase prejudice, as a series of Polish studies confirmed last year. It can also desensitize individuals to verbal aggression, in part because it normalizes what is usually socially condemned behavior.