The roles of belief, evidence, perspective, and individual differences in scientific evaluations
Date
2009-09
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
ORCID
Type
Degree Level
Masters
Abstract
Reasoners who adopt the perspective of another can increase the proportion of logically valid inferences they make (Thompson, Evans, & Handley, 2005). A possible explanation is that shifting perspective promotes analytic reasoning. If this were the case, then shifting perspectives should also reduce the belief-bias effect. Furthermore, strong evidence should be preferred over weak evidence. To test this, 256 participants read twenty-four research descriptions that varied in evidence quality and degree of personal belief content. Participants indicated whether the data supported the researcher’s hypotheses. Belief bias was reduced when participants evaluated the data from the researcher’s perspective relative to their own. Evidence strength was an important determining factor in decision-making and it was sensitive to perspective and individual differences.
Description
Keywords
perspective, scientific reasoning, belief bias, Dual Process Theory
Citation
Degree
Master of Arts (M.A.)
Department
Psychology
Program
Psychology