Are racists dumb? Do conservatives tend to be less intelligent than liberals? A provocative new study from Brock University in Ontario suggests the answer to both questions may be a qualified yes.
The study, published in Psychological Science, showed that people who score low on I.Q. tests in childhood are more likely to develop prejudiced beliefs and socially conservative politics in adulthood.
I.Q., or intelligence quotient, is a score determined by standardized tests, but whether the tests truly reveal intelligence remains a topic of hot debate among psychologists.
Dr. Gordon Hodson, a professor of psychology at the university and the study's lead author, said the finding represented evidence of a vicious cycle: People of low intelligence gravitate toward socially conservative ideologies, which stress resistance to change and, in turn, prejudice, he told LiveScience.
Why might less intelligent people be drawn to conservative ideologies? Because such ideologies feature "structure and order" that make it easier to comprehend a complicated world, Dodson said. "Unfortunately, many of these features can also contribute to prejudice," he added.
Dr. Brian Nosek, a University of Virginia psychologist, echoed those sentiments.
"Reality is complicated and messy," he told The Huffington Post in an email. "Ideologies get rid of the messiness and impose a simpler solution. So, it may not be surprising that people with less cognitive capacity will be attracted to simplifying ideologies."
LWDLIK - Thank you Ryoog (the all day Kuwaiti breakfast people) for posting this on FB today such an interesting topic.
log·ic/ˈläjik/
ReplyDeleteNoun:
Reasoning conducted or assessed according to strict principles of validity: "experience is a better guide to this than deductive logic".
The problem is, people can learn what logic is, however they chose to skip that part and presume they understand the "principles of validity".
like math, logic is important, but people suck in one and assume they know the other!
EB
Thank you EB always get some really intriguing comments from you :OD Religion and logic are considered to be mutually exclusive. Logic being reality. However one's reality maybe their religion if one is brought up in a religious household, attends a religious school and lives one's life by the book. What happens when one is removed from that setting is interesting indeed.
ReplyDeletehmmmm I don't know where to start! But logic is not reality as per your definition, I actually pasted the definition from a dictionary up there.
ReplyDeleteLogic is a science. It is defined in simple wiki for example:
is the formal systematic study of the principles of valid inference and correct reasoning... It examines general forms which arguments may take, which forms are valid, and which are fallacies.
Another well defined field :
Argumentation theory, or argumentation, is the interdisciplinary study of how humans should, can, and do reach conclusions through logical reasoning, that is, claims based, soundly or not, on premises. It includes the arts and sciences of civil debate, dialogue, conversation, and persuasion. It studies rules of inference, logic, and procedural rules in both artificial and real world settings.
logic is not reality, logic is the parameters of argument, nothing is excluded.
Presuming objectivity, cool heads, politeness and understanding of logic, one can debate any subject and end up with an outcome, specially religion.
I wrote this in a rush... forgive any mistakes and just remember my original point... if people knew what logic and math are, we would be better of for sure.
What we have now, is ppl arguing and not knowing the parameters of arguments. Arguing for argument sake if you will.
Knowing logic and applying it are different though. I do agree that religiousness tend to make people biased.
EB:
Funny thing is Muslims believe the holy Quran started with the verse "read" not to mention the many verses about learning and sound argument.
Ok now I'm lost :OD
ReplyDeleteHave re-read it a couple of times and it is starting to become clearer. Perhaps what I mean to say is my logic is based on facts and proven theories. Simple stuff like fire burns, and there are no ghosts if I can't see them.
ReplyDeleteOk how about this - Valid inference being the act or process of deriving logical conclusions from premises known or assumed to be true. And correct reasoning; a term that refers to the capacity human beings have to make sense of things, to establish and verify facts, and to change or justify practices, institutions, and beliefs.
ReplyDeleteTherefore can religion only be 'assumed' to be true? And correct reasoning would need facts to verify it? But logically there must be a creator of the universe?
LOL.. I think we are having a logical discussion Aristotle style. I need some panadol :OD
You said: Religion and logic are considered to be mutually exclusive. Logic being reality.
ReplyDeleteI said: logic is a formal systematic study of the principles of valid inference and correct reasoning.
And therefor those who exclude religion (deity) from logic, are saying: there are no valid inference or correct reasoning for Religion. Also known as Atheism. Agnostic on the other hand is just not knowing (research yielded no conclusions).
Point is, it doesn't matter what subject it is. Logic can not be excluded.
More important point, if people spent 1 millionth of there tweeting time to read about logic, they'll stop arguing for argument sake.
Great argument, you have convinced me and I am enlightened on the true meaning of logic, thank you. Reminds me of a favourite quote of mine ~ Don't raise your voice, improve your argument ~ Bishop Desmond Tutu
ReplyDelete