Sterling Terrell

recovering economist

Live Up To Our Principles

Live Up To Our Principles

Everything contains a worldview.

And what is described below is the worldview that I am partial to too.

Honestly, most of the characteristics on this list are quite common in America.

Police officers, teachers, bankers, mechanics, carpenters, insurance agents, and Army officers all over the land see the world this way.

I wish more people did.

But as Francis Schaeffer and other writers have pointed out, every piece of writing, every movie, every work of art contains a worldview. Mine traces back to the small town in rural West Texas where I grew up. It contains the social norms of a group of people who till the soil, tend livestock, and operate small businesses. We pay our bills on the tenth of every month, believe in thrift, personal honesty, fidelity in marriage, hard work, and the importance of being good parents. We don’t always live up to our principles, but at least we think we should.

-John Erickson, Story Craft (Amazon)

What Is Confirmation Bias?

What Is Confirmation Bias?

What is confirmation bias?

Confirmation bias is simply a fancy way of saying that people tend to see what they want to, more often than they think.

Here’s a simple example.

You and a friend are arguing about whether fiscal policy works or not.

Both of you have known yourselves to be correct about this issue since college. You gather your facts, she does the same. Finally, you compare your findings. You show each other studies and graphs for an hour. Did either one of you convince the other?

Of course not.

We tend to lean on that which confirms what we already believe – and tune out the rest.

You are likely worse at this than you think.

You do it reading the news, talking at work, browsing on social media, and texting with friends.

Understand: A common worldview is a difficult thing.

This is what psychologists call confirmation bias: When you have a preference, you seek out information supporting it, while overlooking information that challenges it.

-Adam Grant, Originals

Sterling Terrell