People are convinced not only by the logical structure of an argument but the traits of the entities presenting it and the specific way in which the arguments are made.
[…]
Consider the implications for a while.
I know that the main stance here on LW is that we need to improve our thinking, and I completely agree with that, but in this comment I would like to make the following point: as humans, we actually are really good at thinking already. We’ve evolved a certain way of thinking, and it makes sense to think about why we think that way and why it works so well to think that way.
The way thought actually goes (before it is tamed via talking and writing) seems chaotic, undisciplined and opaque (or instead: organic, flexible and efficient). We have a model that transparent, linear logical thought is superior and more reliable, but I suspect this has more to do with the effectiveness of our communication than our thought process. (People who harness transparent, linear logical thought are better at communicating their ideas accurately.)
Whenever I think about something, I notice that a heuristic explanation will arrive first and that this heuristic answer is more reliable than any logical linear answer I subsequently come up with. Therefore, heuristic solution in hand, communication of ideas to myself or others becomes a problem of finding a linear logic that roughly fits the networked solution. (This could be criticized as trying to find an argument that fits the conclusion, but I think this is uncharitable. It is the uncertain process of approximating a complex multi-dimensional organic network with a static, linear causal chain.)
On the one hand, I think a networked, heuristic, gut answer should be re-expressed in a logical linear way, for the purposes of error-checking, fine-honing and communication, and you almost always gain deeper understanding from doing so. (E.g., the network gains clarity and faulty or irrelevant links are down-voted). If there is a discrepancy between a linear argument answer and a heuristic answer, you can compare the two, trying to determine if there is something important missing from the linear argument or a false connection in the heuristic argument.
On the other hand, in the case of a conflict between a heuristic answer and a logical linear answer, I will always go with the heuristic. I realize that this probably sounds like blasphemy on a rationality site, but I am being honest and I can justify this position. (To myself, heuristically – we will see if I can do so linearly.)
Suppose that reasoning logically one way gives an answer, but my gut feeling is that the answer is something else. Experience has taught me that the heuristic always wins with understanding the correct answer first. But this makes sense. If the heuristic is not convinced by a logical argument, then either the logical linear argument is wrong or I haven’t fully understood it, in which case I’m not qualified to have confidence in it. As soon as I have understood the argument, and if I agree with it, my heuristic incorporates the argument. Thus by the time I have understood a correct logical argument, the logical reasoning is just a subset of my functioning heuristic solution.
So I don’t think it’s logical to prefer a logical argument to a heuristic argument, but of course still, a heuristic with a logical backbone is much more solid than one without.
I have written a bit about the relation between logical and heuristic thinking and I think you did an excellent comment; you might consider expanding it slightly as a top level post.
On the other hand, in the case of a conflict between a heuristic answer and a logical linear answer, I will always go with the heuristic.
Unless time limited, I usually try to find the error in my thinking. Usually, it will be some factor I missed in my logical analysis, but sometimes it will be some factor my gut feeling didn’t accurately weigh. That is why we need to continue learning about availability heuristic and other biases, we need to learn them so thoroughly that our gut feelings take them into account.
Not in the way that ‘rationalization’ is used in natural language. That refers to a non-rational statement that is used in place of rationality in order to satisfy the desire to present an argument as rational without having to go through the trouble of actually constructing and adopting a rational position.
The biggest functional difference: when a reason is abolished, the behavior goes away. When a rationalization is abolished, the behavior remains.
I know that the main stance here on LW is that we need to improve our thinking, and I completely agree with that, but in this comment I would like to make the following point: as humans, we actually are really good at thinking already. We’ve evolved a certain way of thinking, and it makes sense to think about why we think that way and why it works so well to think that way.
The way thought actually goes (before it is tamed via talking and writing) seems chaotic, undisciplined and opaque (or instead: organic, flexible and efficient). We have a model that transparent, linear logical thought is superior and more reliable, but I suspect this has more to do with the effectiveness of our communication than our thought process. (People who harness transparent, linear logical thought are better at communicating their ideas accurately.)
Whenever I think about something, I notice that a heuristic explanation will arrive first and that this heuristic answer is more reliable than any logical linear answer I subsequently come up with. Therefore, heuristic solution in hand, communication of ideas to myself or others becomes a problem of finding a linear logic that roughly fits the networked solution. (This could be criticized as trying to find an argument that fits the conclusion, but I think this is uncharitable. It is the uncertain process of approximating a complex multi-dimensional organic network with a static, linear causal chain.)
On the one hand, I think a networked, heuristic, gut answer should be re-expressed in a logical linear way, for the purposes of error-checking, fine-honing and communication, and you almost always gain deeper understanding from doing so. (E.g., the network gains clarity and faulty or irrelevant links are down-voted). If there is a discrepancy between a linear argument answer and a heuristic answer, you can compare the two, trying to determine if there is something important missing from the linear argument or a false connection in the heuristic argument.
On the other hand, in the case of a conflict between a heuristic answer and a logical linear answer, I will always go with the heuristic. I realize that this probably sounds like blasphemy on a rationality site, but I am being honest and I can justify this position. (To myself, heuristically – we will see if I can do so linearly.)
Suppose that reasoning logically one way gives an answer, but my gut feeling is that the answer is something else. Experience has taught me that the heuristic always wins with understanding the correct answer first. But this makes sense. If the heuristic is not convinced by a logical argument, then either the logical linear argument is wrong or I haven’t fully understood it, in which case I’m not qualified to have confidence in it. As soon as I have understood the argument, and if I agree with it, my heuristic incorporates the argument. Thus by the time I have understood a correct logical argument, the logical reasoning is just a subset of my functioning heuristic solution.
So I don’t think it’s logical to prefer a logical argument to a heuristic argument, but of course still, a heuristic with a logical backbone is much more solid than one without.
I have written a bit about the relation between logical and heuristic thinking and I think you did an excellent comment; you might consider expanding it slightly as a top level post.
Unless time limited, I usually try to find the error in my thinking. Usually, it will be some factor I missed in my logical analysis, but sometimes it will be some factor my gut feeling didn’t accurately weigh. That is why we need to continue learning about availability heuristic and other biases, we need to learn them so thoroughly that our gut feelings take them into account.
I think it’s exactly right. All reasons are rationalizations.
Not in the way that ‘rationalization’ is used in natural language. That refers to a non-rational statement that is used in place of rationality in order to satisfy the desire to present an argument as rational without having to go through the trouble of actually constructing and adopting a rational position.
The biggest functional difference: when a reason is abolished, the behavior goes away. When a rationalization is abolished, the behavior remains.