![]() The scary and uncertain times we live in could actually be driving the boom in conspiracy theories. “People with genetically higher levels of free dopamine are more likely to believe in one or more conspiracy theories.” After these beliefs take root, confirmation bias strengthens them. Odell goes on to examine why some people are more susceptible to these theories than others, saying that “People who believe in conspiracy theories have brains that are more prone to illusory pattern perception: aka finding connections when there are none.” The culprit behind this could be dopamine. “As we evolved, the brain got so good at finding patterns that it sometimes sees a pattern in completely unconnected data.” Pattern processing became increasingly sophisticated with expansion of the cerebral cortex, particularly the prefrontal cortex and regions involved in image processing.” However, this survival mechanism can end up running wild. “The human brain is wired to see patterns to help us survive,” Odell explains. So why, in a world already full of chaos, are people so enthusiastic about whipping up more? Neuroscientist Shannon Odell explains why in this video from Inverse. Some people even believe that the Vatican is covering up the existence of giants. Proponents of this idea have even mistaken normal airplanes for UFOs checking the chemtrails out. Conspiracy theorists claim that the vapor trails behind airplanes are “chemtrails”, containing harmful substances being deliberately sprayed on us for some reason. By checking the frequency rate of each cell, a person can identify the illusory correlation and avoid unhealthy thought patterns.Somehow, these are not even the most fantastical conspiracy theories out there. Cell D refers to not witnessing the animal and having no work stress on the same day. With cell C, the person can realize that even though he or she did not see the animal, their work stress was very high. From cell B, the person can understand that although he or she saw the animal, they had a healthy and productive day at work without any stress. When the cause and effect are applied to cell A, the person might believe that seeing the animal increases work stress. The table can help a person rationalize and decide if their correlations are real or illusory by analyzing the cause (bad omen) and effect (work stress). People sometimes relate happenings of life to omens, such as an encounter with a particular animal bringing either good or bad luck. It functions by analyzing the four possible correlations between the cause and effect of two variables.Ĭell A refers to an actual existing cause and a possible effect as its consequence.Ĭell B refers to a potential cause present and absence of any effect.Ĭell C refers to the absence of the cause but presence of the effect.įor example, a person might associate work stress to seeing or not seeing an animal. This causes people to assume that what they observed is true without any rational basis.Ī Contingency table can help identify the unverified assumptions of relationship between different variables. For example, mental representation of people from different groups immediately influences a person to form judgments about a person from other the group just by observing their actions or by looking at them. Heuristic cues help people assume what immediately comes to their mind and most likely becomes the option or outcome. This phenomenon has been related as a consequence of mental heuristics. On the other hand, distinctive and undesirable behaviors were overestimated and influenced people to judge exhibited behaviors. ![]() This is because of the easy accessibility to recall such incidents due to the importance attached to those memories.ĭavid Hamilton and Robert Gifford in 1976 showed that positive and desirable behaviors were not overestimated or distinctive, so people were able to make accurate and rational associations. The correlation looks to be true as it creates an impression that it has occurred many times. Illusory correlation helps in the formation of superstitious beliefs as well. For instance, when few people have become successful and popular businessmen by dropping out from school or college, people tend to believe that a strong relationship exists between becoming successful and leaving formal education. This happens as a result of observing something unusual as opposed to their beliefs about normality. When a similar pattern is observed with few members of the group, people readily associate it with all the other members of the group. People belonging to a specific culture or nationality can be related to particular traits or mannerisms, such as speaking loudly, eating habits, etc. Illusory correlation has a major impact on stereotyping different social groups.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |