"All of us stick to beliefs in the face of contradictory evidence. All of us have beliefs that do not match reality. It is unavoidable. But it's possible that some people are better or worse than others at keeping an open mind," says Celeste Kidd. (Credit: Getty Images )
Why COVID-19 deniers stick to their beliefs
Even as the number of deaths rises, some COVID-19 deniers are sticking to their belief that the pandemic is overblown or even fake. An expert explains why.
Even in the face of rising global and US COVID-19 cases and deaths, many people hold on to the belief that the pandemic is “fake” or overblown, experts say.
“Words aren’t just words. Words are the basis of beliefs, and beliefs drive our behavior.”
In recent weeks, several conservative media personalities, political and business leaders, and other influencers have publicly shrugged off warnings about the dangers of the novel coronavirus, calling it no deadlier than the flu.
Many young adults continue to defy the six-feet-apart social distancing rules. A group in Kentucky even threw a coronavirus party, which helped to spread the virus.
What causes certain people to stick to their beliefs and act with skepticism despite overwhelming contradictory evidence?
Here, Celeste Kidd, a computational cognitive scientist at the University of California, Berkeley, who studies false beliefs, curiosity, and learning weighs in:
The post Why COVID-19 deniers stick to their beliefs appeared first on Futurity.
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Dec. 31, 2020 • futurity