Via Ronda Reed. A good set of self-reflective exercises and cognitive techniques to fight bias.

Originally shared by Rick Wayne (Author)

“Education does little to prevent polarised thinking…” Same for facts.

People think vigorous “resistance” is effective. Not true. It only tends to further polarize and entrench. All creatures defend themselves when attacked. The more violent the attack, the more vigorous the defense, which means vigorous “resistance” will actually have the opposite effect of what it intends.

(But then, people don’t do it because it’s right. They do it because it feels good.)

Rather than shaking our fists at faraway things, or agitating to change the whole kaboodle, we should be motivating for change in our own spheres of influence — starting with ourselves.

This article is hardly an exhaustive resource — in fact, it’s very brief, which is why I think it’s handy. No one wants tl;dr. And the value isn’t so much the summary as the links under each section, which can lead you (or whoever you share it with) to reflect more. The last, in particular, on practical tips for overcoming confirmation bias, is worth considering.

But it’s not enough to share. We need to engage others and to listen, which means starting from the standpoint that we could be wrong. I used this approach in a discussion with my folks yesterday, where I focused more on myself than them, and in so doing discovered an incongruity in my thinking.