Category Archives: Psychology

Motivated Reasoning, and Vigilantism

Posted on Wednesday 17 May 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

Two themes today. A prime example of motivated reasoning, from today’s NY Times font page (as if on cue from yesterday’s post), about conservative opposition to transgenders And several examples of the increasing Republican approval of vigilantism NY Times, 16 … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Psychology | Comments Off on Motivated Reasoning, and Vigilantism

Skepticism, Beliefs, and Cognitive Biases

Posted on Tuesday 16 May 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

Familiar topics, but worth another look, especially since if they were broadly understood it would make so many of America’s partisan controversies go away. (But conservatives will never allow concepts like skeptical thinking to be taught in schools, for precisely … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Culture, Psychology | Comments Off on Skepticism, Beliefs, and Cognitive Biases

Red Herrings, and AI’s effect on Capitalism

Posted on Sunday 14 May 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

Two items today How Big Oil uses “red herring” issues to deflect attention away from the big issue Ted Chiang on the potential corrosive effect of AI on capitalism Plus, a brief reflection on the SF writers who’ve had things … Continue reading →

Posted in Psychology, Technology | Comments Off on Red Herrings, and AI’s effect on Capitalism

Addicts and Free Will

Posted on Wednesday 3 May 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

Today, an interesting article about whether addicts have free will. Here’s a piece that’s interesting for its take on a still contentious philosophical issue. Do humans have free will? Intuitively virtually everyone would agree that we do. People “make decisions” … Continue reading →

Posted in Personal history, Psychology | Comments Off on Addicts and Free Will

Gun Violence and Mental Illness

Posted on Saturday 29 April 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

Observations about gun violence in the US and its relationship to mental illness. Last month Washington Post published results of a survey, asking AR-15 owners why they bought and owned them. Washington Post, 27 Mar 2023: Why do Americans own … Continue reading →

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A quiz about which personality quiz applies to you

Posted on Saturday 22 April 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

The Atlantic, Kelly Conaboy, 18 Apr 2023: What Your Favorite Personality Test Says About You, subtitled “Are you a Myers-Briggs person, an Enneagram person, or something else? The Atlantic made a quiz to help you find out.” (Updated Sun 23 … Continue reading →

Posted in Personal history, Psychology | Comments Off on A quiz about which personality quiz applies to you

Arguing Styles, Debates, and Winning vs. Being Right

Posted on Friday 14 April 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

I’ve mentioned the book RESPONDING TO THE RIGHT by Nathan J. Robinson a couple times before, and today I want to summarize the gist of the book.

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Politics, Psychology | Comments Off on Arguing Styles, Debates, and Winning vs. Being Right

Rules of Law, and Gods, and Politicians

Posted on Wednesday 5 April 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

Topics in this post: How MAGAites think their god (Trump) is above the law, with wise insights from John Scalzi; how Republicans want the dumbest parents to control school curricula; the link between white supremacy and anti-abortion politics; how owners … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Psychology, Religion | Comments Off on Rules of Law, and Gods, and Politicians

Negative News, Conspiracy-Minded Customers, Conservative Traditions

Posted on Thursday 23 March 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

Three items for today. How the negativity bias in news reporting is partly a matter of demand and supply; How “the customer is always right” thinking leads Fox News and Republican congressmen to pursue outlandish conspiracy theories, because that what … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Politics, Psychology | Comments Off on Negative News, Conspiracy-Minded Customers, Conservative Traditions

The Latest from Steven Pinker

Posted on Wednesday 22 March 2023 by Mark R. Kelly

Today, a long interview with Steven Pinker about ‘progress’ despite human nature; about the value of rationality; about looking at data and not headlines to understand the state of the world; about cancel culture; about the perils and inevitability of … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Progress, Psychology, Science, Steven Pinker | Comments Off on The Latest from Steven Pinker