Conspiracies Flashcards
What is cognitive dissonance?
We come to rationalise our bad decisions, because we don’t want to be wrong.
The balance theory is confirmed with the relationships between people, objects, attitudes etc, and we strive for balance. (comfortable feeling if all three people like each other) (smoking is dumb - rationalise and quit)
Cognitive dissonance is this psychological discomfort.
Who started the anti-vaxx movement? I
Andrew Wakefield. Funded by lawyers who wanted to sue vaccine makers. Conflict of interest. Published his autism link with vaccines. His journal article got deleted but idea still sticks. HE WAS NOT AN ANTI VAXX
How many people still believe that the MMR vaccine could cause autism?
Approx. 33% of Americans surveyed in 2014. And in 2017, 48% of US and 41% of Aussies said “true or unsure”.
Anti-vaxx moved the goalposts when science determined that autism did not result from vaccines. This avoids the need to change opinion.
What’s the information deficit model?
When it doesn’t work to give people undeniable evidence disconfirming their beliefs.
What the prospect theory?
Risk are not weight objectively and dispassionately. (Kale fixed my cancer and it can fix yours too)
Salience/availability vs. representiveness
What is false cause fallacy?
Illusory covariation
Observation of things happening after an event, so therefore presuming the even causes the observation “my son does 49 hours after a vaccination”
What appeals to heuristics?
Presentation of info often encourages non critical processing of information. Appeals to emotion spreads fear not facts.
Appeals to nature
Natural stuff is good, unatural stuff is bad.
Beware of false dichotomies: natural doesn’t necessarily mean good
Natural does not necessarily mean bad
What is an anecdote fallacy?
One means death is a tragedy. A thousand deaths is a statistic. (Base rage neglect)
Science (systematic observation) = corrupt
Anecdotes (non-systematic observation) =truth
Psychosocial influences on conspiracies
Anti-vaxx usually associated with other “alternative lifestyles”
Choices form part of a self-scheme and broader self-concept
Perceived “logic of care”
Why do people believe dumb stuff about themselves?
Self-enhancement/self serving bias
Eg illusory superiority
Metacognition: thinking about our own thinking
Dunning-Kruger Effect: or “unskilled or unaware”
Tested in logical reasoning, grammar and humour. People rated themselves way better then how they actually performed.
What is dual burden?
People who are unskilled in the domain
Their lack of skill means they cannot evaluate their own e skill.
You have to know what good performance looks like to be able to critique your own performance,
What Dunning- Kruger isn’t
Unskilled people ALWAYS think they’re more skilled then they actually are
Unskilled people think they’re more skilled than VERY SKILLED PEOPLE
everyone who thinks their tips actually totally sucks
