The psychology of two pens

I spent a couple hours in jail Wednesday, where I learned about the psychology of using two pens. Don't worry. I was there on my own volition and did not get locked up. I was working on a story for the newspaper about how bail is set and was there to observe the process.

Notice in the picture above how this young man at a bank counter has a small raised platform between him and the bank teller. In Bell County the justice of the peace who sets bail has a similar setup between him and the prisoners.

The man I observed setting bail has been doing it for more than 13 years and one of the things he was insistent about was that he have two ink pens placed on the raised platform before prisoners entered the small courtroom.

He explained to me that if only one pen was available that after each prisoner signed his necessary paperwork the pen would end up either on his or the prisoners side of the raised platform. If he placed two pens side-by-side on the raised platform, however, each time a prisoner used a pen he would subconsciously note where the other pen was located and place the pen he used beside the other one on the counter.

With the prisoners in the courtroom I witnessed with my own eyes that the judge's words about the pens were true. He showed me both one pen on the counter and two pens on the counter. The difference was exaclty as he said. At one point he smiled and said, "that's the psychology of two pens."

This experience has prompted a thought for me: I would like to intuitively do similar things as a parent, so that I don't have to be repetitive in teaching my children and they instinctively know what is right.