Since the recent shooting death of a Minnesota woman, Renee Good, by an ICE agent, Jonathan Ross, there has been a flood of high-profile political and social responses, from the early conclusions by federal officials to the growing number of protests-and even more recently, to the mass resignation of prosecutors. The news has been emotionally overwhelming to many and doesn't seem to be subsiding.
Leon Festinger, a young American psychologist at the University of Minnesota, read about these rumors in the early nineteen-fifties and was puzzled. Festinger didn't think people would voluntarily adopt anxiety-inducing ideas. Instead, he reasoned, the rumors could better be described as "anxiety justifying." Some had felt the earth shake and were overwhelmed with fear. When the outcome-they were spared-didn't match their emotions, they embraced predictions that affirmed their fright.
Confirmation bias is when people only believe information that reinforces what they already believe. For example, vaccine opponents may only believe information about vaccines being unsafe, and will reject any contrary information or facts. Confirmation bias is one reason people find it hard to let go of their belief in misinformation. Misinformed people often trust virtual or online sources, such as social media or podcasts. However, misinformation is increasingly coming from state and federal government agencies.
Over the past few years, there have been televised congressional hearings, repeated news segments across major networks, and a recent release of a mind blowing documentary called The Age of Disclosure that brings much of this information together, featuring on-the-record disclosures and sworn testimony from dozens of current and former high-level U.S. government, military, and intelligence officials describing secret classified government programs tasked with investigating unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAPs).
What about the lies you tell yourself? Aren't you also aware of these? After all, you know when you've had "one too many" of something that's bad for you. It's not pleasant to admit it, but the truth is definitely "out there" (or, in this case, "in here"). An act of self-deception may seem pretty harmless, all things considered, especially when compared to lying to others. But why bother? There's nothing really in it for you other than maybe feeling better in the moment.
At some point in our lives, most of us have been told to "put on a happy face" or "fake it 'til you make it." But it may be detrimental to pretend to be happy when you're not. The more people value happiness, the more unhappy they are A 2024 study by Zerwas, et al. surveyed 1,800 people about their level of happiness and their desire to be happy.
Evidence suggests that watching debates has no impact on opinions whatsoever. A study tracking 100,000 respondents found no evidence that debates helped voters make up their minds.