Truly ignorant individuals lack introspection and stubbornly cling to their irrational opinions.
Cognitive bias is alleged to have contributed to the downing of the Iran Air Flight 655 by the US navy, which killed 290 people in July 1988.
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When we invest money, time or another resource we can’t get back, factoring that sunk cost into our future decisions can be a trap.
Overtly hostile behavior tends to diminish with age except for a minority of children who are at risk of later criminality. This makes childhood a critical time for steering those most in-need away from difficult life paths.
(Erinn Acland)
Overconfidence and other cognitive biases help to drive up real estate prices. Here are three techniques used by real estate agents to exploit those biases.
We need to understand our brains to achieve true change.
A man holds a QAnon sign outside the White House. Even if most people don’t act on their conspiratorial beliefs, such theories can still pose very real dangers.
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Many of those who believe conspiracy theories do not necessarily act on those beliefs. Nevertheless, conspiracy theories can still spread dangerous misinformation that can cause harm.
It can feel safer to block out contradictory information that challenges a belief.
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Here are some reasons for the natural human tendency to avoid or reject new information that runs counter to what you already know – and some tips on how to do better.
Words can have a powerful effect on people, even when they’re generated by an unthinking machine.
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Kyle Mahowald, The University of Texas at Austin and Anna A. Ivanova, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Fluent expression is not always evidence of a mind at work, but the human brain is primed to believe so. A pair of cognitive linguistics experts explain why language is not a good test of sentience.
You might make a quick and exaggerated judgment about what kind of neighborhood you’re in based on the people or flags you see.
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Social psychology researchers found that people commonly exaggerate the presence of certain groups – including ethnic and sexual minorities – because they perceive them as ideologically threatening.
So much uncertainty around risk can make it extra hard to decide what to do.
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People tend to dislike uncertainty and risk – two things that are hard to avoid completely during a pandemic. That’s part of why it can feel especially draining to make even small decisions these days.
Finding out what goes on behind jury decisions and the biases that influence them is hugely important if the criminal justice system is to work properly.
Was Italy hit hardest by COVID in Europe?
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Provost Professor of Psychology and Marketing and co-director of the Dornsife Mind & Society Center, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences