> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.opendemocracy.net/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Dr Julia Minson on how to disagree better, receptiveness and changing her mind on Transitions for minors - URL: https://www.opendemocracy.net/dr-julia-minson-on-how-to-disagree-better-receptiveness-and-changing-her-mind-on-transitions-for-minors/ - Published: 2026-07-16T08:46:47.000Z - Updated: 2026-08-10T15:39:32.000Z - Author: The Depolarization Project - Tags: 'Changed My Mind', podcasts, Interview, Saumitra Jha [Listen on Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/changed-my-mind/id1441157722?ref=opendemocracy.net) [Listen on Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/58KNTFlSOFhEMQZ03jRrDf?si=031996902e2d4822&ref=opendemocracy.net) [Listen on Pocket Casts](https://pocketcasts.com/podcast/changed-my-mind/84182ff0-6484-013d-7b54-0ef99577e22d?ref=opendemocracy.net) Host Alex Chesterfield and co-hosts Ali Goldsworthy and Laura Osborne interview Julia Minson, a researcher on disagreement, about building receptiveness and improving conflict conversations through practice, realistic goals beyond persuasion, and concrete language changes. Minson describes her background in competitive ballroom dancing as a metaphor for opposing perspectives, and outlines the HEAR framework for “conversational receptiveness”: Hedging, Emphasizing agreement, Acknowledging the other view with true paraphrase, and Reframing to the positive. She discusses applying these tools in schools and other real-world settings, and research questions about reputational rewards for receptiveness. Minson also shares a rapid, emotionally complex series of belief updates on gender transitions for minors, influenced by Utah Governor Spencer Cox’s arguments and later by meeting a trans woman, highlighting how minds change through human contact and context. 00:00 Third Rail Belief Shift 00:17 Show Intro and Guests 01:36 Co Hosts Takeaways 03:58 Ballroom Dancing Origins 07:50 Training Receptiveness Habits 10:34 How to Disagree Better 12:57 Start Small Not Hot Topics 15:53 HEAR Framework Language 22:36 Where Research Goes Next 24:47 Campaigning Incentives Tension 27:29 Changing Mind on Transitions 36:03 Environment and People Matter 38:14 Who Should Be Next Guest 38:55 Hosts Reflect and Wrap Up [Buy **How To Disagree Better Dr Julia Minson**](https://uk.bookshop.org/a/8711/9781398725041?ref=opendemocracy.net) [https://uk.bookshop.org/a/8711/9781398725041](https://uk.bookshop.org/a/8711/9781398725041?ref=opendemocracy.net) Buy Alison, Laura and Alexandra’s new book, [**Poles Apart: Why People Turn Against Each Other, and How to Bring Them Together** https://uk.bookshop.org/a/8711/9781847942975](https://uk.bookshop.org/a/8711/9781847942975?ref=opendemocracy.net) [**Subscribe to openDemocracy’s weekly newsletter**](https://www.opendemocracy.net/):