On Beliefs and Social Purpose, Delusions and Reality, and Changing Our Minds
Photo by Morning Brew, Unsplash
This week’s top reads are about our perception and how it shapes our reality. We cover beliefs and their social purpose, delusions and reality, and why it’s hard for us to change our mind. Here’s the most recent science on how our brain is hardwired to often only let us see what we believe, and why that matters.
Image: Milada Vigerova, Unsplash
Image: Zachary Spears, Unsplash
Image: Morning Brew, Unsplash
Beliefs have a social purpose. Does this explain delusions?
While delusions have been simply classified as irrational thinking for long, cognitive psychologists now find that there are a lot to learn from them in regard to what we call rational thinking.
Now You See It
Our brain predicts the outcomes of our actions. Why does that matter? Because it often lets us only see what we believe. Here’s how our brain attempts to make sense of our complex environment, and the shortcuts that lead it to align the actual experience with our expectation.
The Backfire Effect: The Psychology of Why We Have a Hard Time Changing Our Minds
Pre-existing beliefs and perceptions often disconnect us from reality. Why do we prefer to deny information that contradicts our beliefs than to go through the discomfort of acknowledging that we’re wrong?
Read Our Blog
Dive into the fascinating intersection of psychology and marketing and how to use psychological biases in marketing strategy.