Everyone has a tendency toward confirmation bias. Once we’ve made up our minds about something, we tend to look for information that supports our conclusion, and to dismiss (even unconsciously) information that may challenge it. “I knew I was right!” we might say, triumphantly, upon having our pre-existing ideas confirmed.
Clearly, it’s important to be able to build a case for the things we believe in, and also to live in the world in as conscious a manner as possible. These two things can go together. We can build stronger arguments by looking at differing perspectives. And our minds stay agile as we try to see through someone else’s eyes.
I had a very uncomfortable revelation the other day. I realized that if Trump had been a passionate environmentalist, in addition to all the terrible things he revealed about himself and his beliefs, I might actually have considered voting for him. Like those one-issue voters who cast their ballot for him because he had promised to overturn Roe v. Wade, if he had pledged to do everything in his power to protect the environment, I might have found myself supporting him. I understood then that on some level I could not condemn anyone who had voted for Trump based on their particular issues. My understanding of who I was shifted and my confirmation bias was challenged. It made my brain hurt to have this thought, but at the same time I felt my heart, for lack of a better word, opening more fully.
For more information, see:
* https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/science-choice/201504/what-is-confirmation-bias
* http://skepdic.com/confirmbias.html
* http://pages.ucsd.edu/~mckenzie/nickersonConfirmationBias.pdf
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