The Deceptive Brain
Our brains have inherent biases that distort perception and thinking, such as confirmation bias and inattentional blindness. Awareness of these biases can help us avoid irrational beliefs and make better decisions.
THE IDEA
The Deceptive Brain
Remembering the past accurately is not our only problem. Far from it. We aren't very good at thinking straight about the present, either. We all have many natural biases that have stealthy ways of distorting our thinking. What we may imagine is a reliable and logical brain is more like a three-ring circus of wacky thinking. For example, did you know that we instinctively notice and remember evidence that supports our beliefs while simultaneously ignoring and forgetting evidence that contradicts our beliefs? It gets worse. We can look at a scene before us, convince ourselves that we are paying close attention to it, and then fail to notice important, unusual, or unexpected things present, even though they are right in front of our open eyes. Yes, just because you may be staring at something doesn't necessarily mean you see it. Our brains also compulsively "connect dots" in order to create meaningful images out of visual input. This can be a useful ability in some situations, but in others it becomes a mental trap that causes us to see and believe in things that aren't there. These are only a few of the many problems we face when trying to figure out what's going on around us. You can go through life never knowing or caring about them, but why would you want to? Don't you want to give yourself the best chance possible to avoid mistakes in how you think and how you perceive the world around you?
After years of researching skeptic topics and the natural workings of the human brain, I have a lot of empathy for people who believe weird things that almost certainly are not true. It's so common to the human condition to be snared by irrational beliefs that I feel very fortunate not to be running around somewhere right now searching for fairies, preparing for the mothership to land, or giving away half of my income to some psychic or faith healer. The good news for you is that just being aware of how your brain goes about its business greatly improves your chances of keeping both feet planted in reality. When you realize that your brain is playing its own game by its own rules, then you know better than to trust it unconditionally and you are better prepared to take on the world.
When to use it
When evaluating scientific claims, intentionally seek out evidence that contradicts your hypothesis to counteract confirmation bias.
While driving, minimize distractions to reduce the risk of inattentional blindness causing you to miss pedestrians or obstacles.
In data analysis, be cautious of apophenia by using statistical tests to determine if observed patterns are likely to be genuine or due to chance.
FROM THEORY TO EVERYDAY LIFE
In practice
Confirmation Bias
A person who believes in psychic powers only remembers the few 'hits' and ignores the many misses, reinforcing their belief despite contradictory evidence.
Inattentional Blindness
While focusing intently on counting basketball passes, viewers fail to notice a person in a gorilla suit walking across the scene, even though it is in plain sight.
Apophenia
Seeing faces in clouds or patterns in random noise, such as interpreting a stain on a wall as a specific shape, leading to false beliefs about supernatural phenomena.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Put it to work.
Can you recall a time when you ignored evidence that contradicted a strongly held belief? How might that have affected your decision?
Have you ever failed to notice something obvious because your attention was focused elsewhere? What does that say about the reliability of your perception?
In what areas of your life might you be seeing patterns that aren't really there? How can you test whether those patterns are real?
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION
Source texts
- Think (Guy P. Harrison)