The boomerang effect of trying to influence the population on healthy living can be seen in the failure
to convince teenagers or adolescents, certainly in the UK to stop smoking.
Why is this? Well, we believe what we want to believe. This, you might have heard of it
is called Wishful Thinking. If one wished to extrapolate from the common term of wishful thinking,
we might move on the more scientific term motivated reasoning. This term describes how our emotional commitment affects the way we process information process.
We tend to accept information that agrees with our take on the world. Bad news is unwelcome visitors and doe not cross our threshold without a fight...."You are in good health" says the Doctor
"Great." "Or, I am afraid I have some bad news for you..." Are you sure Dr, can I have a 2nd opinion....is there a chance you mixed up the xrays?" Bad news is not received without a good fight.
Why is this?
Take climate change ...the stakes are high...very high....what climatologists are up against
is the bias of sceptics who do not wish to accept 'bad' news, for it causes the cognitive dissonance.
Why is this? Darwin as ever informs us. The underlying theory is that evolution endowed us with feelings to propel us away from threat towards survival and reproductive success ergo
food, shelter and loving mates impart a secure glow. Your emotions are your insurance that your behaviour tilts in your favour, often before that evolutionary newcomer, the thinking
neo-cortex, has any idea about it.
Emotional feelings work as heuristics (heuristics are decision making short-cuts) which we us all the time as short-cuts because they deliver the right answers more quickly than sitting down and mulling over the pro and cons.
Heuristics makes us project our feelings into the future, we imagine how things may turn out then we tag it with feelings.
If say you did not believe in Climate Change and you were then convinced beyond doubt that it is
happening, the result for you would be 'cognitive dissonance', ie, bad.
We push bad news away and embrace good news we employ fight or flight not only to predators but to data as well.This is termed motivated reasoning. A rosy tint also lowers stress.
Emotions are like an elephant we sit on we give an effective twitch here and there but
this is a strong beast with very much a will of its own.
Good luck when you next ride the elephant.
Source Dr Paul Reigler Climate of Disbelief Philosophy Now.
to convince teenagers or adolescents, certainly in the UK to stop smoking.
Why is this? Well, we believe what we want to believe. This, you might have heard of it
is called Wishful Thinking. If one wished to extrapolate from the common term of wishful thinking,
we might move on the more scientific term motivated reasoning. This term describes how our emotional commitment affects the way we process information process.
We tend to accept information that agrees with our take on the world. Bad news is unwelcome visitors and doe not cross our threshold without a fight...."You are in good health" says the Doctor
"Great." "Or, I am afraid I have some bad news for you..." Are you sure Dr, can I have a 2nd opinion....is there a chance you mixed up the xrays?" Bad news is not received without a good fight.
Why is this?
Take climate change ...the stakes are high...very high....what climatologists are up against
is the bias of sceptics who do not wish to accept 'bad' news, for it causes the cognitive dissonance.
Why is this? Darwin as ever informs us. The underlying theory is that evolution endowed us with feelings to propel us away from threat towards survival and reproductive success ergo
food, shelter and loving mates impart a secure glow. Your emotions are your insurance that your behaviour tilts in your favour, often before that evolutionary newcomer, the thinking
neo-cortex, has any idea about it.
Emotional feelings work as heuristics (heuristics are decision making short-cuts) which we us all the time as short-cuts because they deliver the right answers more quickly than sitting down and mulling over the pro and cons.
Heuristics makes us project our feelings into the future, we imagine how things may turn out then we tag it with feelings.
If say you did not believe in Climate Change and you were then convinced beyond doubt that it is
happening, the result for you would be 'cognitive dissonance', ie, bad.
We push bad news away and embrace good news we employ fight or flight not only to predators but to data as well.This is termed motivated reasoning. A rosy tint also lowers stress.
Emotions are like an elephant we sit on we give an effective twitch here and there but
this is a strong beast with very much a will of its own.
Good luck when you next ride the elephant.
Source Dr Paul Reigler Climate of Disbelief Philosophy Now.
No comments:
Post a Comment