I’m a rational human being, right? Someone gives me the facts, I make up my mind, right? Actually, wrong…
More and more research is being published that proves facts often don’t have the power to change our minds and even less our behaviour. Even worse, being confronted with objective facts that we disagree with can sometimes harden our opinions even further.
Whaaat? Yep.
Here’s why.
1. Most of what we believe about the world and ourselves comes from some messy places – experiences, emotions, half remembered ideas, things we heard growing up… Believing this stuff makes us who we are and helps us fit into the groups that make us feel safe. We like to think it’s rational, but it’s also emotional and historical. We’re really going to give that up on the strength of a good infographic? Or even worse – a heated argument?
2. Humans unconsciously look for information that reinforces what we already believe, uncritically accepting information that confirms our views while rejecting anything we find threatening. This means we’ve unknowingly built up a storehouse of biased info and our ‘open minds’ are anything but.
3. Let’s face it, it’s really hard to be proved wrong! And people who like to see themselves as ‘informed’ are likely to be more threatened by facts than those who openly admit they don’t have an opinion. Studies in the US, for example, questioned people about how much the government spent on welfare. Those who already had a strong opinion were not only the ones most likely to be completely wrong on the figures, but also those who most strongly resisted the objective facts after they’d been pointed out.
This shows that those of us who have the most need of correction are also often those who are least likely to be moved by facts because we have the most to lose. Many of us simply switch off as a defence mechanism. Facts? Who cares?
Aggghhhh! This is a pretty depressing place to find ourselves, especially if you believe that ‘truth wins in the end’ and informing people has the power to be a game changer. Think about campaigns around asylum seekers in Australia, for example. “Seeking asylum is not illegal: SHARE THE FACTS”. Or campaigns that try to change people’s minds about climate change by appealing to scientific facts.
Potentially, as it turns out, simply “sharing the facts” might make not much difference at all.
So what do we know about how to change people’s minds? *note to self for next argument with spouse/teenager.
1. Feeling good is important. To risk changing our ideas, we have to start from a position of self-esteem. Of course, this is a life-long endeavour and creating a sense of self esteem is even harder in whole societies easily threatened by scare campaigns, sudden economic downturns and other nasty surprises. But at the micro level, psychologists suggest before conversing with people about something difficult, begin by sharing something positive – a memory, good feedback etc. Oscar Wilde said: “If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh. Otherwise they’ll kill you.”
2. Following on from number 1 – we probably need to stop being sarcastic toward, belittling and satirising people who don’t agree with us or who are ‘misinformed.’ All those send ups, cartoons and snarky remarks on Facebook followed by “SHARE THE FACTS”? Um, no. Probably not going to build the kind of environment that enables us to let go of our beliefs with dignity. Sure, everyone who already agrees with us is having a whale of a time! But changing the minds of anyone else? Not so much. Who wants to join the team that was previously calling you names? (Darn. So much fun…)
3. Get people to think up their own counter argument to their position to find out what they already know and oppose (ie “If you were going to argue against yourself, what would you say?”) Apparently people are more convinced by their own reasoning.
4. When it comes to facts, keep them simple and human. Tell stories. Use voices that people relate to. Anecdotally, I recently heard it reported that a major human rights agency did some extensive market research into how to convince people about the facts relating to asylum seekers. “Have people tell their stories,” they were told. “But… they’ll need to be white people.” What??? That’s crazy. Yes. Australians are apparently that racist…. Embarrassing as the example is, it just proves that there are some people we trust, feel safe with and listen to – others we switch off.
And finally…
If you’re the kind of person, like me, who considers themselves passionate and reasonably well informed – frustrated by others willingness to bend to facts – consider this: We’re exactly the kind of person who may well be at risk of being every bit as selective about the facts we take on board as the people we criticise…
But it’s okay. You don’t have to believe me.
Comentarios