Intellectual humility: the rewards of being willing to change your mind
Feb 29, 2024
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Exploring intellectual humility and its impact on society, the podcast delves into the value of being open-minded and willing to change one's mind. It highlights the importance of acknowledging what we don't know and the joy of being wrong. The discussion covers navigating grief, questioning beliefs, and embracing curiosity, emphasizing personal growth and societal advancement. Cultivating intellectual humility is essential for relationships and balancing confidence with openness to new evidence. The journey to intellectual humility involves embracing diverse viewpoints, questioning biases, and expanding understanding through varied experiences.
Acknowledging what we don't know is as important as asserting what we do know, cultivating intellectual humility.
Being open to revising beliefs based on evidence is crucial for personal growth and societal cohesion, balancing humility and certainty.
Deep dives
Importance of Intellectual Humility in Today's Society
Acknowledging what we don't know is as crucial as asserting what we do know. Intellectual humility is significant in a polarized landscape where people are entrenched in their beliefs, hindering progress. Curiosity and open-mindedness play a vital role in finding solutions and connecting with others, fostering better relationships and societal harmony.
Diverse Research on Intellectual Humility
Academic research on intellectual humility extends across philosophy, political science, psychology, and organizational behavior. Scholars investigate truth, virtues, and interactions across divides. Diverse studies explore admitting cognitive limitations, revising beliefs based on evidence, and maintaining an optimal size between arrogance and meekness in interpersonal exchanges.
Challenging Benefits and Drawbacks of Intellectual Humility
While intellectual humility enhances relationships and societal progress, it can have psychological costs, particularly in cases of uncertainty about existential beliefs. Being open to revising beliefs can lead to anxiety and lower spiritual well-being for some individuals. Striking a balance between humility and certainty is crucial for personal growth and societal cohesion.
With unlimited information at our fingertips and dozens of platforms on which to share our opinions, it can sometimes feel like we’re supposed to be experts in everything. It can be exhausting. In this episode, we talk to a psychologist whose research and experiences of intellectual humility have taught him that acknowledging what we don’t know is as important as asserting what we do know.
Featuring Daryl Van Tongeren, associate professor of psychology at Hope College in Michigan, and Maggie Villiger, senior science and technology editor at The Conversation in the US.
This episode of The Conversation Weekly was written and produced by Katie Flood with assistance from Mend Mariwany. Eloise Stevens does our sound design, and our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. Gemma Ware is the executive producer. Full credits available here. A transcript will be available shortly. Subscribe to a free daily newsletter from The Conversation.