Why Do You Believe What You Believe?

Chances are, if you’re reading this, you have some inclination or idea of what it is that I’m going to say already (or so you think).

Beliefs arise out of what we have been taught, experienced, read, or conceptualized, and this only gets compounded over time through either consistent direct experience or confirmation bias. In effect, what we choose to believe will be reinforced by what we seek out or what we are presented with.

Normally, this isn’t really a problem because we are able to seek out alternate forms of information in an unskewed manner; simply learning about new information and getting rid of old information that doesn’t fit our latest paradigm. However, is this really the case in our current digital age due to Recommendation Algorithms?

The way a Recommendation Algorithm works is that it will present you with further information related to what it is that you had initially been looking at and found interesting (not true… interesting…). That is to say, if you watch something that promotes Anti-Vaccination (let’s say) and you continue it to the very end—and even go so far as to “Like” it—chances are, you’ll be recommended another likeminded video by the end of it.

Now, what happens if every video you are recommended to watch or article you are recommended to read prompts you ever-further toward Anti-Vaccination perspectives; what do you think your likelihood of believing in Anti-Vaccination is going to be then? Pretty high, no doubt.

Granted, when the Recommendation Algorithm works, it works great. Who doesn’t love watching more hilarious memes and TikTok videos? The real problem occurs when our entire understanding and belief system about the world around us has essentially succumb to a more pervasive form of confirmation bias. If all you have is a hammer, everything will look like a nail. If all you are shown is that vaccines are bad for you, you’ll probably never want to get a vaccine ever again.

The rise of the internet and the digitization of our information has come with many benefits—we are now able to quickly learn about things that would traditionally have taken us days, months or even years of researching to find out. However, what our current digital age has also done is made us more susceptible to what I call the “Idea Virus”.

Idea Viruses, with a foundation supported by facts, are actually highly beneficial! Idea Viruses are what helped Edison, Einstein and even Elon Musk do and create great things. The issue is when the Idea Virus comes in the form of unsubstantiated data; or science that has not yet been thoroughly investigated or peer reviewed. Worse yet, when Idea Viruses come in the form of click-bait headlines that can easily be consumed and quickly disseminated.

How can you inoculate yourself against the maleficent Idea Virus, you ask? By being skeptical about everything it is that you read and watch online. Looking for alternate-sources bringing forth divergent opinions which challenge the way you think and examining them through an open and critical mind.

Can Crystals and Vibrational Mantras Kill COVID-19? Well, if every video you watch on YouTube made by someone who hasn’t studied science promotes it, you just might think so. But what do the scientific experts have to say on the matter? Can they debunk your current understanding through logic and evidence or have you been so indoctrinated by the Crystals and Vibrational Mantras Kill COVID-19 Idea Virus that you’re unwilling to listen to more evidence-based material?

By looking at what we already believe through a more skeptical and scientific lens, we will have effectively untangled ourselves from the chains of Recommendation Algorithms and allowed ourselves to take back our own sovereignty in the form of more critical-based thinking.

Though, I guess, can you really believe all that I have just said to be true—or am I just another confirmation biased-feedback loop that you, yourself, have been caught in?

-read more divergent perspectives and find out.