The human mind is really amazing. Not just because of what you’re able to create and learn, but because of the many ways you can go wrong. This is partly what makes us integrate different cognitive trends into our thought processes. Trends that, on the other hand, are often conditioned by those who have or want to have power for their benefit.
Rational thinking requires effort, preparation, and reliable sources of information. In addition, people tend to be guided by sympathies, tastes, fears, etc. we disapprove of it because we “feel”? It’s better that way. This is a clear example of how cognitive trends work.
- In political elections and also in the exercise of power.
- Many use these cognitive tendencies to manipulate people’s opinions.
- Even making people believe that what is only good for a minority is good for all or vice versa.
- We will see 5 of these control mechanisms below.
This is one of the most destructive cognitive trends, as it leads to great injustices; consists of a misinterpretation and a simplistic interpretation of the principle of action and reaction, it’s supposed that someone can’t go through something without having done anything to get there.
In this way, it is thought that everyone who is in a bad situation is because he deserves it, the poor are guilty of their poverty, victims of aggression, sick with their pain, etc. , although there is no data to confirm it, we tend to see it with prejudice that there is something behind each person in a bad situation. Moreover, this trend is favored because it gives us the feeling of being in a more controllable world, so that we can always do something not to end up like the others, that is, this bias has embedded an intrinsic strengthener that tends to perpetuate it.
Confirmation bias is to give credit only to data confirming our established beliefs; in this case, the source of this data is not evaluated or contrasted with different ideas, it simply adheres to the idea, more or less blindly. it carries an intrinsic strengthener: it promotes, at least initially, cognitive economy.
This is especially true in situations where a political party or religion is chosen; in general, these beliefs are inherited and never questioned; there is no notion of another stance, so it is automatically assumed that the belief itself is the true one. , only the data confirming it is considered valid.
This is one of the cognitive biases directly related to the media and has to do with the tendency to draw different conclusions, depending on how we access information or how it is presented to us.
A classic example is: “More than 30% disagree with Paco. “So instead of saying that about 70% of people share Paco’s ideas, the opposite is emphasized. In this way, it is given a more negative than positive connotation.
The illusory correlation is the tendency to establish connections between two variables, although objectively this association does not exist, in this way two realities are associated from invalid elements, usually the intention is to disguise a situation or build an illusion of truth.
A very common example of this is when structural facts are associated with specific situations that are not related, for example, let’s say that prosperity began when the sovereign?X? He came to power, unaware that an oil field was discovered at the time. in the country. The source of progress is not the rule, but the discovery of the ore. The opposite can also happen.
It is also one of the most damaging cognitive biases, as it is the basis of intolerance, is to cling to ideas as if they were part of ourselves.
That’s why we assume the cost of changing your mind is very high. On the one hand, it means having something that we consider “ours”, which makes us see the situation as a loss. On the other hand, it takes a lot of effort. Canceling ideas and understanding new ways of looking at things is a fascinating exercise, but it’s often also difficult.
It is very important that we know these cognitive trends in order to detect them and modulate their influence in our line of thinking, on the other hand, the best way to do this is to inform us, that is, to look for reliable and neutral sources. It also correctly analyzes and digests everything that comes from sources that are interested in your opinion, especially those of power.