The effect of perspective-taking on reasoning about strong and weak belief-relevant arguments

Matthew T. McCrudden; Ashleigh Barnes; Erin M. McTigue; Casey Welch; Eilidh MacDonald

The effect of perspective-taking on reasoning about strong and weak belief-relevant arguments

This study investigated whether perspective-taking reduces belief bias independently of argument strength. Belief bias occurs when individuals evaluate belief-consistent arguments more favourably than belief-inconsistent arguments. Undergraduates (n = 93) read arguments that varied with respect to belief-consistency (i.e., belief-consistent or belief-inconsistent) and strength (i.e., strong or weak) about the topic of climate change. After participants read each argument, those in the perspective-taking condition rated the argument's strength from a perspective of a climate scientist and then from their own perspectives, whereas those in the no perspective-taking condition only rated the arguments from their own perspectives. Perspective-taking eliminated belief bias for weak arguments, but not for strong arguments. Theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed, and directions for future research are provided.

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Metadata

Work Title	The effect of perspective-taking on reasoning about strong and weak belief-relevant arguments
Access	Open Access
Creators	Matthew T. McCrudden Ashleigh Barnes Erin M. McTigue Casey Welch Eilidh MacDonald
Keyword	Belief bias Myside bias Perspective-taking Reasoning
License	In Copyright (Rights Reserved)
Work Type	Article
Publisher	Thinking and Reasoning
Publication Date	September 30, 2016
Publisher Identifier (DOI)	https://doi.org/10.1080/13546783.2016.1234411
Deposited	August 09, 2023

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The effect of perspective-taking on reasoning about strong and weak belief-relevant arguments

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View: ACCESSIBLE_VERSION_T_R_2017_Perspective_taking___belief_bias.pdf

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The effect of perspective-taking on reasoning about strong and weak belief-relevant arguments

Files

View: ACCESSIBLE_VERSION_T_R_2017_Perspective_taking___belief_bias.pdf

Metadata

Versions

Analytics

Collections

Work History

Version 1 published

Version 2 published

Version 1
published

Version 2
published