Modern Wisdom

#493 - David McRaney - Where Do Our Beliefs Come From?

Jun 30, 2022

David McRaney, a psychologist and author known for his work on belief formation, engages in a thought-provoking discussion about the origins and complexities of our beliefs. He explains how group dynamics can shape individual convictions and why online arguments often fail. McRaney delves into the emotional underpinnings of beliefs, using the Westboro Baptist Church as a case study for extreme ideologies. Listeners will discover strategies for effective persuasion and learn how to foster genuine dialogue for belief change.

01:01:10

Creator website

Episode guests

David McRaney

Highlights

AI Chapters

Episode notes

How to Assimilate

01:19

We All Watch The Same Video, Same Evidence, Different Interpretations

01:17

The Fear of Social Death

00:52

Intro

2min

Exploring the Nature of Beliefs and Their Complexities

3min

The Dynamics of Changing Minds

27min

Exploring Tribal Beliefs and Extreme Ideologies

3min

Breaking Free: The Journey of Belief Change

25min

Strategies for Positive Belief Change

2min

Exploring Beliefs and Persuasion in Society

2min

David McRaney is a psychologist, journalist and author.

Where do our beliefs come from? How do we form opinions? Why are we persuaded by some points of view but not by others? These are important to understand if we are to avoid developing a biased, unrepresentative worldview, they've also been the focus of the last few years of David's research.

Expect to learn how everybody in a group can believe something that nobody believes individually, why arguing online so rarely works, whether people really are becoming more ingrained into their beliefs, how the Westboro Baptist Church convinces its members, the best ways to persuade someone who disagrees with you and much more...

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