I have noticed that alot of people think the majority of people are stupid based on the things they read online or maybe even experience in real life but I think that there is better explanation than just assuming people are stupid.

A common example people bring up to show that other people are stupid is mentioning how a lot of people believe in conspiracy theories ( such as Qanon or Flat earth) and point out how they are objectively false therefore the people that believe it are stupid.

However when you examine these beliefs in more depth there is obviously some amount of internal logic that is used to justify these beliefs to themselves and others in the group.

You can go to flat earthers forum and they can give huge amounts of “evidence” about how light shouldn’t be visible after 50 kms if the earth was round or how in Qanon there are probably people who have whole boards detailed with connections between how and where democrats participate in satanic rituals but my point is that all conspiracy theories tend to form one cohesive narrative like a collective story that are building.

To be able to make a story that is this detailed it definitely required some amount of forethought and reasoning to make it so everyone in the group reaches the same collective understanding.

This then might lead you to ask why are people susceptible to these ideas and what makes them stick. Well I think that it boils down to three different things.

  1. Our collective feeling that things aren’t going well
  2. Our general distrust in current authorities
  3. Our collective belief that an authority is good/necessary

When you look at how people tend to be influenced into accepting these beliefs it also follows this same general pattern.

  1. People feel that some part of their life isn’t going well and that current institutions aren’t helping them anymore.
  2. A guru/influencer shows up and offers advice (sometimes good advice) to fix their problem
  3. People then start trusting these gurus/influencers and seeing them as authorities
  4. Finally these people take what these gurus/influencers say at face value and build internal lore for their community that makes sense to them given that they accept what the new authority says as fact.

If you want to tackle the root of what makes people susceptible to these ideas you have to tackle those three things or else people will fall into those same traps just with different authorities saying different things.

Also as a semi-related point there are a million and one things that an individual can choose to focus on and become knowledgable about so whilst some people spend that mental capacity on understanding tech or politics others spend that mental capacity on flat earth theory or UFOs.

Main point:

So all of this is to say I think that people aren’t stupid and that we should not treat them as they are such instead if we understand that they are capable of complex reason but they are starting with different base knowledge it’ll be easier to empathize with others. Also if we want society to be less susceptible to this we need to fix one or all of the three things I mentioned that makes us susceptible.

  • @IchNichtenLichtenEnglish
    31•1 year ago

    You seem to be suggesting that lots of people aren’t stupid, they’re just gullible. I’d argue that the end result is the same.

    • Franzia
      6•1 year ago

      Hey I find myself naturally gullible, and I don’t appreciate this reduction.

      • @IchNichtenLichtenEnglish
        3•1 year ago

        98% of gullible people do though, that’s just science. What’s your problem?

      • @IchNichtenLichtenEnglish
        9•1 year ago

        Surely the solution is the same for both - developing the ability to think critically?

        • @[email protected]OP
          1•1 year ago

          If you say that someone is stupid it seems you are suggesting that something is fundamentally off with their ability to reason (ie intelligence). If it is a fundamental problem like that then developing the ability to think critically would do diddly squat. In that scenario (If everyone was stupid) the best and only thing you could do would be to ignore them and dismiss their views.

          Edit: I am not completely sure in this comment so I am just putting that out there.

          • @IchNichtenLichtenEnglish
            4•1 year ago

            Yeah, just spitballing here myself. Critical thinking is a skill though, it can be developed by almost anyone.

            Think of it this way - humanity is a giant mass of people all ripe to be conned, ripped off, and robbed by people who are marginally smarter than average, but also amoral and nasty. It could be scientology, an email from a Nigerian prince, or the cult of Trump, it doesn’t matter. If critical thinking can be taught then that’s a defense against the manipulators and scammers, the only defense that works.

            The flip side is that you can’t use reason to talk someone out of a bad position when they didn’t use reason to get into it in the first place.

            • Franzia
              6•1 year ago

              I find this argument persuasive but I think it’s incomplete. I can’t complete it, but here’s what I like about your rhetoric:

              When I fell for right-wing crap, I was snapped out of it when their debate opponent showed them to be spineless, cowardly, and hypocritical. He didn’t say they were, rather used a… tactical approach. To get me to snap out of it and make the conclusion myself.

              I especially like the argument that we are all ripe to be conned and critical thinking education can help save us. This mimics the strongest pro-sex education argument. It can prevent abuse.

              And on “you can’t use reason” - I’ve recently come across the idea that you can’t logic your way out of mental illnesses, and logic can actually add to the problem. This is… probably also relevant to those who are tricked by this.