Uncommon Sense
Click here to test your psychology knowledge before your read further. Don’t worry; it isn’t graded! Now, click here to see the answers. How did you do? Most people miss at least a few.
Why do we think we know so much about psychology?
Popular psychology lore permeates our culture. We hear soundbites of information from poorly vetted sources across various forms of media every day. Pop psychology is often based on flimsy studies using the poorly designed methodology. We then integrate the unsupported knowledge into our fund of information. The psychomyths spread and become difficult to challenge.
Beyond pop psychology exposure, internal forces are shaping our notions about human behavior. Many people think answers to psychological questions are obvious. Every day on social media, I see commentary asking why we need to do scientific research to understand human behavior that is just “common sense.”
In fact, many people believe their intuition—immediate, automatic feeling or thought—is always (or almost always) accurate. And sometimes it is. Often, however, we are wrong.
Why does this happen?
We use heuristics (mental shortcuts) to understand the world around us. Sometimes, these shortcuts are helpful, allowing us to make quick decisions in a fast-moving world. Frequently, mental shortcuts…
