Confirmation Bias: It's Hard to See

For more on confirmation bias:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/articles/c/confirmation_bias.htm
For background on Thomas Kuhn:
http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/thomas-kuhn/
For more on debate:
http://www.truthtree.com/debates.shtml

Category:

Education

Tags:

• science
• confirmation
• bias
• Thomas
• Kuhn
• Structures
• Scientific
• Revolutions
• pro
• anti
• prostitution
• pornography

[TKStoddart]

At last! I see other people's confirmation biases EVERYWHERE. This video confirms what I previously believed about confirmation bias in others. ;)

[2bsirius]

@TKStoddart

I haven't had any comments on this video in while, now I've had two today along with two new thumbs down. Interesting.

[2bsirius]

@2bsirius

Yes, OK...I just had another thumb down in the last half hour since I posted my comment to you. This video has been up for months and in the last few hours it's had more thumbs down then it had in all the previous month. Strange how these coincidences happen, isn't it?

[2bsirius]

(3)

I would ask if Masluxx is the source for your knowledge of this video but whatever. It doesn't matter much.

When this happens, my only choice is to suspend ratings to stop the onslaught of thumbs down.

You gotta love YouTube.

[Viracocha711]

At least in science "Confirmation Bias" will get weeded out eventually by the scientific community at large...And things will change or stay the same depending on the issue.

[2bsirius]

@Viracocha711

Yup, excellent point. One example that came to my mind immediately on reading your comment is the situation at Harvard with Marc Hauser's scientific misconduct and data falsification.

His research assistances first raised the red flag themselves. If they had been more invested in maintaining false appearances and consensus creation at any cost, we might never have found out about Hauser's methods, but good scientists & researchers are interested in data integrity, thank god.

[2bsirius]

@nactan

Yes, good point. There is a lot of contention around the idea that something like 'human nature' actually exists, so I will happily withdrawn that phrase and substitute instead 'the ways that humans beings very often behave'. The argument is not seriously altered by that change btw.

[alowlyapprentice]

I'm a firm believer in devil's advocacy. Where I'm from this method of rhetoric starts in Jr. High School. What I find most beneficial is that you are better at understanding different opinions or sides to a discussion.

However, it starts with foundations and first principles. In science these are often shared. Yet when it is sociological they are more likely not to be shared. Logical and rational thought can produce different outcomes if the starting points are not the same. 

[MultiPaulinator]

You didn't have to do that. I would've thumbed it up.

[TKStoddart]

@2bsirius It's because of the way youtube works. Someone I subscribe to liked or commented on your video, and it comes up on my feed along with recommendations and such.

[2bsirius]

@masluxx

Why are you asking me? It's clear you think I suffer from confirmation bias myself. Thank god you don't though.