Lack of curiosity is, according to a new study summarized by Science Daily, a condition among some people that helps clarify why, despite all evidence to the contrary for decades, otherwise sensible people have believed that the Christian Right was dead, dying or greatly diminished even during the rise and later election of Donald Trump, and why Dominionism denial has been fashionable for so long. So much has been lost due to radically inadequate understandings of the Christian Right, one of the most significant social and political movements in American history. It is long past time for those with the ability to see and do things differently, to take center stage.
Ever wonder why flat earthers, birthers, climate change and Holocaust deniers stick to their beliefs in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary?
New findings from researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, suggest that feedback, rather than hard evidence, boosts people's sense of certainty when learning new things or trying to tell right from wrong.
Developmental psychologists have found that people's beliefs are more likely to be reinforced by the positive or negative reactions they receive in response to an opinion, task or interaction, than by logic, reasoning and scientific data.
Their findings, published today in the online issue of the journal Open Mind, shed new light on how people handle information that challenges their worldview, and how certain learning habits can limit one's intellectual horizons.
"If you think you know a lot about something, even though you don't, you're less likely to be curious enough to explore the topic further, and will fail to learn how little you know," said study lead author Louis Marti, a Ph.D. student in psychology at UC Berkeley.
This cognitive dynamic can play out in all walks of actual and virtual life, including social media and cable-news echo chambers, and may explain why some people are easily duped by charlatans.
Like the denialists in other areas, people who thought they knew what they needed to know, and resisted learning new things about the Christian Right, have contributed mightily to their success.
While I just wanted to say that, I have an additional reason for posting tonight.
If you (or someone you know) is curious about the Christian Right; is a researcher/writer; and is concerned about reproductive justice -- there is a job opening at Political Research Associates in Somerville, MA for a Research Analyst for Reproductive Justice.
For more than 35 years, Political Research Associates has been the preeminent progressive think tank that monitors and challenges the U.S. Right Wing. PRA has built the capacity of social justice change makers to understand, adjust, and do battle with their organized adversaries on the Political Right. We are a broadly respected and trusted source of information and analysis among advocates, journalists, and academics alike, combining a social justice movement orientation with deep expertise on the key groups and individuals at the center of the Right’s new governing coalition, including the Christian Right/theocrats, white nationalists and the “alt-right,” economic libertarians, and Patriots and other right-wing forces.
So if you are tired of the know-it-alls who have gotten it wrong for so long and want to be part of a dynamic learning environment; and work with eclectic, but somehow like minded folks with a vision of progressive social change, click here.
An additional benefit (or annoyance depending on your point of view) would be that you would get to work a bit with me. Questions? Ask me here, or drop me a note.