The Decision Education Podcast Episode 037: Choosing With Intent with Dr. Sunita Sah
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Sep 24, 2025 
Dr. Sunita Sah, a Cornell University organizational psychologist and former physician, dives into the mechanics of decision-making. She explores why we often choose the default option and presents the concept of defiance as a courageous alignment with our values. Sunita discusses the implications of compliance versus true consent and highlights how small acts of defiance can be practiced. She introduces the Defiance Compass as a tool for teaching integrity, aiming to foster critical thinkers and moral mavericks from a young age.
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Consent ≠ Compliance
- Compliance and consent are different: compliance is an external yes, consent is a true yes with five elements.
- True consent requires capacity, knowledge, understanding, freedom to say no, and authorization aligned with your values.
Use The Defiance Compass
- Use the Defiance Compass: ask who am I, what type of situation is this, and what would a person like me do.
- Write down your values and use them to guide actions so behavior aligns with identity.
Disclosures Can Increase Compliance
- Simple disclosures of bias can backfire and increase compliance rather than reduce it.
- People often comply more after a disclosure because they fear signaling distrust in the advisor.
