Library:The Knowledge Illusion
| The Knowledge Illusion: Why We Never Think Alone | |
|---|---|
| Author | Steven Sloman & Philip Fernbach |
| First published | 2017 |
| ISBN | — |
| Role | Analysis |
| Domains | Science & Space Society, Identity & Demographics |
| Tactics | Statistical & Evidentiary Distortion |
The Knowledge Illusion: Why We Never Think Alone is a 2017 book by Steven Sloman & Philip Fernbach.
Summary
Cognitive scientists Steven Sloman of Brown University and Philip Fernbach of the University of Colorado argue that individuals know much less than they think. People feel they understand how a zipper, a toilet or a policy works until they are asked to explain it.
Human intelligence, they argue, is collective: we rely on knowledge stored in other people and in tools, and we often mistake that shared knowledge for our own.
Key points
- The illusion of explanatory depth. Asking people to explain how something works reduces their confidence in their understanding.
- Community of knowledge. Relying on others is a strength, but it means we can be confident about things we do not understand.
- Politics. In experiments, asking people to explain how a policy would work, rather than to justify their position, made their views less extreme.
Relevance to Bullshitopedia
The book helps explain why people defend claims they cannot support, and why asking "how would that work?" is a useful way to defuse misinformation.