[Koglist] [CEU Cogsci Talks] TODAY at 4.00pm: CogSci CEU Colloquium: Ryan McKay (Royal Holloway, University of London)

The CEU Department of Cognitive Science and the Social Mind Center cordially invites you to its talk by: 1) Ryan McKay<https://pure.royalholloway.ac.uk/portal/en/persons/ryan-mckay(cda72457-6d2a-4ed6-91d7-cfd5904b91e4).html> (Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London) Belief Formation in a Post-Truth World In 2018 we inhabit a “post-truth” world where scientific evidence and accurate information must compete with appeals to emotion and “fake news”. In this talk I will attempt to shed some light on the human tendency to believe “alternative facts”. For one thing, individuals tend to restrict the amount of information they collect when forming beliefs, “jumping to conclusions” on limited evidence. In an era where dubious claims are routinely propagated by highly visible individuals, it is little wonder that mistaken beliefs – “misbeliefs” – about empirical reality persist in the face of contrary scientific evidence. Alongside a generalised tendency to jump to conclusions when forming beliefs, however, is a pronounced failure to form beliefs dispassionately. Instead, humans are disposed to form “motivated” beliefs. In particular, we are prone to a desirability bias, being more inclined to accept evidence if it supports what we want to believe. Finally, some beliefs may be held for social rather than epistemic reasons – that is, to signal commitment to cultural groups upon which individuals depend. Date: Friday, September 14, 2018 - 16:00-17:30 Location: Department of Cognitive Science, CEU, Oktober 6 St. 7, room 101 We are looking forward to see you at the talks! Cognitive Science Events at CEU: http://cognitivescience.ceu.hu/events Social Mind Center Events at CEU: http://socialmind.ceu.edu/events ------------------------------------------------ Andrea Jenei Coordinator, Social Mind Center ------------------------------------------------ [cid:SVTVOGOKDNYV.IMAGE_1.jpeg] Central European University Nador u. 9. | 1051 Budapest, Hungary + 36.1.887.5135 | jeneia@ceu.edu<mailto:jeneia@ceu.edu> http://socialmind.ceu.edu/ http://cognitivescience.ceu.edu/ ------------------------------------------------- ______________________________________________ Subscribe by sending an empty mail to talks-subscribe(a)cogsci.ceu.edu Unsubscribe by sending an empty mail to talks-unsubscribe(a)cogsci.ceu.edu