for the Introduction to the Ladder of Inference
and CranioRectal Inversion (CRI) #2
Mental Tagging of Information
As I've
defined the Ladder here, the third rung involves how we make sense of
information so that we can store it and use it later – and how we
make decisions about what to do in the present. That brings up an
interesting element of this phase of the process: time and pressure.
When factors place a limit on the time we have to observe, think,
and then decided on a course of action, we encounter a whole other
set of types of biases. If given more time and less pressure, we
have the luxury of being more circumspect and discerning.
Manipulators also take advantage of this kind of pressure, and
unpleasant circumstances also affect how we both take in information
but especially how we tag or categorize it.
Consider
that the most neurally primal way of tagging memory to recall it
later involves our sense of smell. If you know little to nothing
about how the brain works, you can think about how close in proximity
the nose is to the brain. It just so happens that data from one's
sense of smell feeds directly into the emotional center in the brain
anatomically through a crainal nerve. Sight and sound are not far
behind, but olfactory sense becomes remarkably involved in long-term
memory – a strongly emotionally driven process.
Consider
also the fundamental function of the mind as well that has been often
repeated in this discussion: the amazing thing about the human mind
is not so much its ability to realize things and think. What is most
remarkable, creative, resilient, enduring, and impressive is the
manner in which the mind avoids information and thought that causes
emotional discomfort. You might say that we are hardwired for denial
which makes any objectivity quite a miracle in light of this very,
very human trait. We like to ignore those things which we find
distasteful or discomforting, and we like to focus on those things
which enhance our feelings of well-being. We select what we take in
from our environment as well as how we tag and store memory.
Interpretation: Yet Another Opportunity for Bias
The
fourth rung on this interpretation of the ladder introduces another
level of potential error, incongruence with objective reality, and
self-serving mechanisms of the mind. Here we see more cognitive
biases that line up with logical fallacies. Note again that
fallacies attend to the study of error with a focus on logic, and
cognitive bias focuses explaining the functional ways and means by
which the mind departs from sound logic. Depending on the task,
considering cognitive bias becomes more of a study of the wonder of
how we arrive at logical conclusions. Again, I'm not so interested
in where these things classify, because the biases build on one
another and extend from one rung to the other. All of the previous
processes guide and build upon how we draw conclusions from them.
The
Lies We Believe
Basically,
what we experience teaches us who we are, how the world works, and
just how we fit into the process. We start out with very basic,
“primitive,” self-centered beliefs as a starting point and then
life proceeds to wake us up into bitter reality. We can learn
collapsed, pessimistic views about who we are which is something that
disappointments, failures, or chronic trauma teaches us. We can also
learn lessons in life that give us a grandiose view of who we are and unrealistically optimistic “rules” and a basic “truths.”
Somewhere in the middle there is balance that we learn through
experience and healthy, interdependent relationships with others as
we engage life.
The
“leader” of the cult spoof Church of the Subgenius, J.R.
“Bob” Dobbs says “Relax in the safety
of your own delusions.” Have truer words ever been
spoken, even if for the sake of slack? Sadly, that is where we will
live our lives if our egos have anything to say. What is encouraging
about this whole process of cognitive bias that it's at this place
where we can really isolate and evaluate our thoughts as a good
starting point. I stole the subheading from one of my favorite books
on this topic (another subject to come under the grand heading of
recovery from trauma).
And I
would be remiss at this juncture if I passed up the opportunity to
quote Sir Joshua Reynolds: “There
is no expedient to which a man will not resort to avoid the real
labor of thinking.”
It helps to balance out the quote from Bob.
Action Follows Thought, then It's Déjà Vu All Over Again
And we
arrive at rung six on my adaptation of the Ladder of Inference where
we take all of what we've tagged and interpreted, misinterpreted, and
concluded to choose a course of action (which can be inaction). When
we act implicitly, without much or any active thought or
consideration, we can shoot right up the ladder into bad decisions or
ones that make no logical sense to another person. Our own,
individualized process of arriving at choice and action makes sense
to us and seems to work for us – though it usually involves no work
whatsoever.
And
because we proceed from what we already know, the next time a similar
situation comes along, we have created a habit of using this same
ladder unless we're given good cause to question some element of how
we made it from the first rung to the last. We repeat mistakes
without even realizing that they are mistakes – like the rest of
the human race. But we can live more stable lives in the long run if
we keep at the hard and oft' painful labor of thinking instead of
enjoying the illusion of safety in delusion.
For Further Reading Until CRI #3:
- One of the $3 Kindle books about Cognitive Bias at Amazon.com
- Arglyis' Reasoning, Learning, and Action
- Nadler's Leadership with Emotional Intelligence
- Chabris & Simons' The Invisible Gorilla
- Gilovich, Griffin & Kahneman's Heuristics and Biases
- Robert Cialdini's Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
- Judith Herman's Trauma and Recovery
As if two posts with a woman falling down stairs and feature quotes from J.R. “Bob” Dobbs, "The Club" member Reynolds, and Yogi Bera weren't frenetic enough, here's a silly skit that he did with Johnny Carson where he says, “Just the facts...” and more. That Carson was a cute kid.
