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Janet Givens

Author

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    • JANET
      • At Home on the Kazakh Steppe
      • LEAPFROG
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  • LEARN MORE
  • SUBSTACK
  • WELCOME
  • ABOUT
  • BLOG
  • BOOKS & EVENTS
    • JANET
      • At Home on the Kazakh Steppe
      • LEAPFROG
      • Events
    • WOODY
      • MOLP
      • Kmedjzik
      • The Woonboot
      • Cargo
  • LEARN MORE
  • SUBSTACK

anterior cingulate cortex

25 Apr 2018

The Downside of Empathy

Two weeks ago, in Cultivating Empathy: My Journey to Understand, I shared this fairly common definition of empathy: the ability to walk in the shoes of another person, to live their life momentarily, to understand the world inside their head.  … Read More

anterior cingulate cortex, Codependency, cortisol levels and health, Janet Givens author, The Downside of Empathy
12 Apr 2017

When Incivility Runs Amok: LEAP FROG Part 5, the F

We’re back with our series on civil discourse today, moving on to FROG.   Yes.  I’m tickled too.   Do you dread neighborhood gatherings because they always end in a political argument?   Do you secretly cringe when your seat mate on the commuter line … Read More

anterior cingulate cortex, Backfire Effect, civil civic discourse, F is for Facts, Janet Givens author, LEAP FROG into Civil Discourse, oxytocin
3 Aug 2016

Blame it on the Oxytocin

This is a post on what is called “The Backfire Effect.” Essentially, it holds that: Confronting a belief with facts to the contrary only strengthens the initial belief. I was discouraged when I sat down to write this post. How could it be, … Read More

"When Prophecy Fails", anterior cingulate cortex, Carl Sagan, Civil Discourse, Democratic Party, homophily, Joe Keohane, oxytocin, Republican Party, The Backfire Effect, Weltschmerz

Post Archives


Books

LEAPFROG: How to hold a civil conversation in an uncivil era

“Janet’s LEAPFROG describes— in an accessible and fun way— the nuts and bolts of how to have a civil conversation…”

Click here for more on LEAPFROG

At Home on the Kazakh Steppe:A Peace Corps Memoir

Praise from Kirkus Review

“…she writes engagingly … a sharp-eyed journalist. A worthwhile read for anyone with an interest in humanitarian work.”

At Home on the Kazakh Steppe, A Peace Corps Memoir, by Janet Givens
Buy the book

© 2026 Janet Givens