People Have Very Different Understandings of Even the Simplest Words
Scientific American
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In this edition of Today in Science, conceptual differences, even of the simplest words, show up everywhere, and most people have no idea that others think differently than they do.
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Andrea Gawrylewski , Chief Newsletter Editor
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Lost in Translation
Psychological studies show that people have very different concepts in their minds for most words. Even simple words like “penguin” conjure varying images in many people’s minds. So it makes sense that for more complicated and nuanced topics like climate change, a shared understanding is rare. Kris De Meyer, a neuroscientist at University College London found in studies that the concepts of “risk,” “uncertainty” and “threat” (all terms used in the climate discussion) mean very different things to people. Such differences are underpinned by differences in how the brain represents concepts, a process influenced by politics, emotion and character, according to neuroscience research.
Why this matters: This phenomenon may explain why climate scientists struggle to get their messages across to the public and policy makers, and why big financial organizations underestimate the threats of climate change. Terms can even differ from one discipline to another. For example, the term “risk” to an economist is an estimate of probability of a particular outcome occurring. But climate scientists use “risk” to describe negative consequences of warming global temperatures.
What can be done: People are usually oblivious to these disparities, recent psychological studies show. De Meyer says his first step is to make people aware their concepts differ. “If people are aware it’s there, that will make a big difference in how they’re able to communicate,” says cognitive psychologist Celeste Kidd of the University of California, Berkeley.
libero professionista at me
1 年develop logical and philosophical reserach, the epistemology is a essential pass in the nets
This is my favourite article of the year.
President at Ilan Geva & Friends, Senior Strategy Director & Head of US and Americas office at Vmarsh Healthcare
1 年The worst is when people assume you know certain terms, and then invent acronyms...of course most people will be afraid to admit they don't understand the acronym, and go on with their lives not understanding the conversation...