Putting the Ego on a Diet - Big Lies and Confirmation Bias

Hello Susan:

I really like the quote you selected from Richard Paul and it is so true.

Let me respond to your first question at this time. I believe if we look at the egocentric dispositions that are naturally inherited in individuals, the task is formidable.

According to the Center for Critical Thinking, the human mind has at least nine egocentric tendencies. I have listed them below for review and discussion.

egocentric memory (the natural tendency to "forget" evidence and information which does not support our thinking and to "remember" evidence and information which does)

egocentric myopia (the natural tendency to think in an absolutist way within an overly narrow point of view)

egocentric infallibility (the natural tendency to think that our beliefs are true because we believe them)

egocentric righteousness (the natural tendency to feel superior in the light of our confidence that we are in the possession of THE TRUTH)

egocentric hypocrisy (the natural tendency to ignore flagrant inconsistencies between what we profess to believe and the actual beliefs our behavior imply, or inconsistencies between the standards to which we hold ourselves and those to which we expect others to adhere)

egocentric oversimplification (the natural tendency to ignore real and important complexities in the world in favor of simplistic notions when consideration of those complexities would require us to modify our beliefs or values)

egocentric blindness (the natural tendency not to notice facts or evidence which contradict our favored beliefs or values)

egocentric immediacy (the natural tendency to over-generalize immediate feelings and experiences--so that when one event in our life is highly favorable or unfavorable, all of life seems favorable or unfavorable as well)

egocentric absurdity (the natural tendency to fail to notice thinking which has "absurd" consequences, when noticing them would force us to rethink our position)
Taken from The Miniature Guide to the Human Mind

How do we awake people to overcome these egocentric tendencies? I would suggest that individuals become aware of these tendencies first and use illustrations and examples for each. I think many people would agree if they went through an exercise like this they would admit that they have "some" of these tendencies. Awareness is key. I believe if we practice with practical case studies where we have these tendencies we can identify with real life issues and understand that the human mind is seeking comfort, security, personal confirmation and self-interest. It is natural for us to do so.


In addition, I think if we work on the Intellectual Traits identified by the Center for Critical Thinking, and go through each term for clarification and relevancy, we will become more aware and improve our thinking about ourselves.

{"ops":[{"insert":"Susan, Many members of this community likely agree with your sentiment expressed in your questions, and ostensibly read the excerpt from Richard Paul with nodding heads. In a historical vein of thought, the ancient viewpoint on propaganda is interesting. They seem to have allowed propaganda against their enemies. Take a look at this link about some of the allowed \"fake news\" in ancient times. "},{"attributes":{"link":"https://balkancelts.wordpress.com/tag/ancient-greek-propaganda/"},"insert":"https://balkancelts.wordpress.com/tag/ancient-greek-propaganda/"},{"insert":"\n\nAccording to Aeschylus, \"In war, truth is the first casualty.\" Greece allowed propaganda with regard to their enemy, the Celts. The imaginative records given as \"fact\" are nearly laughable.; however, we can imagine many, many Greek citizens believed the reports.\n\nWhat do we say about an America not at war, but in an era of peace? Yet, we have fake news and manipulative smear campaigns pitting one political party against the other. Instead of lobbing mistruths at the \"enemy\" without, we purpose to smear the \"enemy\" within. We have no civility in the public square; one of the stalwarts of Greek political life, and we don't know how to debate properly with innate respect for the words and concepts of the other. \n\nPerhaps it's time to say \"enough is enough!\" Let's ask those making claims to provide evidence for each statement given and have it corroborated.\n"}]}