Conversation
srijit

Srijit Kumar Bhadra

Edited 1 year ago

Convincing a person through facts, logical argument and reasoning and the role of Whatsapp University

[I am sharing below an updated version of my previous post.]

These days it is increasingly challenging to logically argue with a person and drive home a message based on facts and data in my neighborhood and society in Bengaluru, India though all of them are well educated. Many have extended international exposure. All of us now have our own preferred channels of information, and unless one belongs to those channels, they will most likely be unconvincing to the listener. In my opinion some of the main reasons behind this mindset are the following.

  1. It is difficult to change someone’s opinion or belief by using facts and logical arguments if that person did not arrive at their opinion through a process of reasoning and critical thinking. In other words, if someone has formed their opinion based on emotions or other non-rational factors, it can be difficult to change their mind using logical arguments alone.
  2. People don’t turn away from reasoning because they are just disinterested, they turn away because their survival literally depends on not looking.
  3. It is difficult to get a person to understand something when their financial income depends on not understanding it.

I shared my local experience. The same may be true for similar societies in rest of India and few other countries.

In this context the article “Do Facts Matter” is relevant. As stated in the article, facts matter when they support our beliefs and lead to conclusions we like. Information processing by our minds is influenced by goals, emotions, preexisting beliefs and culture. Our inferences will not change just based on raw facts.

One good example of such information channels are WhatsApp Groups in India. A recent study by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford suggests that the majority of Indian citizens trust the information they receive on WhatsApp.

What can change our informed decision making process? From my personal experience I see that facts or apparent facts driven by extreme external circumstances (e.g. business, finance etc.) and deep rooted emotional triggers can challenge our preexisting beliefs and modify our information channels. It seems that changing our bias and worldview doesn’t necessarily mean changing our belief about something.

We will always continue to believe what we think is right for us. We will keep tweaking and tuning our information channels and sources to suit our needs and beliefs.

As aptly mentioned here, the goal is not to change our belief but to create space for other people to have different perspectives. It is essential that we listen actively, ask questions respectfully, acknowledge differences without judgment or blame, and seek common ground wherever possible.

#LogicalReason #Logic #Society #Information #WhatsApp #WhatsAppUniversity #Facts #Mind #Harmony #Perspectives #Respect

#MastIndia #MastodonIndians

cc: @srijit

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