Articles about: irrationality
Can pessimism be beneficial?
In previous articles, I wrote about the positive distortions of our image. The fact that most think they are better than most; that when we succeed, we conclude that it is our merit, and if we fail, we were simply unlucky; that we don’t believe that something bad could happen to us and the like […]
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Planning our activities and confidence in our knowledge, i.e. how we overestimate ourselves
In my article on self-serving bias, I mentioned that we often unfoundedly consider ourselves superior to others, but even when we do not compare ourselves to anyone, we tend to overestimate ourselves.
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The illusion of control
It is nice to feel in control of what is happening, but there are situations that, despite our best efforts, we cannot control. It would be rational in such situations to admit that well – I have no influence on this event, but research shows that we often succumb to the illusion of control.
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Unrealistic optimism, or are we too optimistic?
Unrealistic optimism is a concept that is very well known in psychology. Many studies show that people are often characterized by unreasonably high optimism, which can also be seen in everyday life. We do not wear seat belts, we cycle without a helmet, we do not insure our apartments, we do not regularly attend medical […]
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To think well about yourself, i.e. self-serving bias and cognitive dissonance
The human mind can do a lot to convince you that you are an intelligent and valuable person. We like to have good self-esteem and are reluctant to admit to ourselves that we have done something unfair or unwise.
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Selfie: Hardly anyone likes them, but almost everyone does
When asked whether they prefer to watch their friends’ selfies or ordinary photos on social networks, most users say that they prefer ordinary photos. They see their friends taking pictures of themselves as narcissistic, but they also take pictures of themselves… How to explain this paradox?
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Cognitive biases in different cultures
Correspondence bias, self-serving bias… probably all psychology students have heard these concepts. I learned a lot about it myself, I also wrote about these and other biases in my ebook “Wszyscy jesteśmy nieracjonalni” (We are all irrational). Few people however mention intercultural diversity.
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Vaccine dispute from a psychological perspective
There has long been a dispute over the safety of vaccines on the internet and in the media. It started with thimerosal vaccines that are supposed to cause autism, but recently I have been hearing more and more voices about the harmfulness of all vaccinations. I don’t want to stand on either side in this […]
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