Media Literacy
Cognitive Biases and Logic Pitfalls: Behind Reasoning and Decision-Making
Logical fallacies and cognitive bias go hand in hand. It takes critical thinking skills and positive self-doubt to avoid these traps that contribute to stereotyping, stigmatization, misrepresentation, and other negative outcomes of the lack of media literacy skills. This is the fourth article in the series produced together with the Baltic Media Centre of Excellence, where we explore the intricacies of the human mind and the potential traps in decision-making, while reminding you of 12 common cognitive biases and 10 logical fallacies that often shape our understanding of information.
Cognitive biases and logical fallacies are the silent influencers that mold our perceptions and shape our responses. Thus, knowledge and understanding of what these things are, can in fact contribute to a more critical and informed reading of any media text and any human interaction.
The difference between cognitive biases and logical fallacies might seem a bit unclear at first, as these are actually related concepts which often influence human reasoning and decision-making, but these types of errors are different. Cognitive biases are more related to how individuals perceive and interpret information, often resulting in systematic errors in judgment. Meanwhile, logical fallacies are errors in the structure of arguments that can lead to faulty reasoning. Both can have an impact on the decision-making process and result, therefore being aware of them can help to improve the quality of reasoning.
Cognitive Biases: Understanding the Inner Workings of Thought
In this section we’ll go over 12 types of cognitive biases, that we can learn to recognize and train ourselves to prevent similar trains of thought in the future.
Logical Fallacies: How to Avoid Faulty Reasoning?
To understand and learn how to avoid faulty reasoning, one must first understand what logical fallacies are and what are the ‘red flags’ that signal that someone (including you) is using faulty arguments. Here we go over 10 of the most frequently used fallacies, giving examples to make it all clearer.
Example: in an argument on climate change, instead of addressing the argument, someone responds by saying, “You say that because some time ago you worked for an environmental group.”
Example: Without presenting any data someone announces that, “Our boss says that the company is financially stable, and despite the recent losses there is no need to worry.”
Example: Ignoring the possibility of alternative solutions or nuanced opinions someone says that "Either you agree with this proposal, or you are against development and growth."
Example: "If we allow same-sex marriages, the traditional definition of marriage will be altered, thus leading to a breakdown of the institution of marriage, dissolving social values and the disintegration of the family unit as a whole.”
Example: When discussing neighbourhood safety after theft rates have gone up, someone might suggest installing more security cameras within the area. A classical straw man argument to that would be: “So you don’t trust your neighbours?”
Example: “I went to Paris and got scammed at the hostel. Paris is full of scammers!”
Example: “The Bible is true because it says it is, and it's the word of God.”
Example: Without any argumentation or evidence someone announces that, “You must donate as much money as you can to our charity. Think of the children who will suffer without your help.”
Example: “Since the new government started their work, the unemployment rates have gone up. The new government is why people are losing jobs.”
Example: “This is the smartphone that everyone buys right now, the sales have skyrocketed. It must be the best one.”
Cognitive biases and logical fallacies that we’ve gone over throughout this article are not the only ones. But understanding the basics can have a great impact on the comprehension of human thought and the processes behind reasoning and decision making. From confirmation bias to the bandwagon fallacy, understanding these influences equips us to navigate the information landscape with confidence.
Authors: Monika Hanley, Krista Luīze Priedīte
Information collected in these articles is accessible in visual toolkit format and can be downloaded here.
Noturiga_Baltija_infografika_ENG.pdf
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