[extropy-chat] Re: Overconfidence and meta-rationality

[Robin Hanson]

At 08:59 AM 3/14/2005, Dustin Wish wrote:
>Allow me a chance to add to this topic. First, programmed beliefs are
>largely an environment factor that determines the "faith" in those beliefs.
>If as a child you are taught that others are stupid and you are smart then
>you will be predisposed to treating those you deal with as morons. Not that
>you are smarter than they, but that you are told that you are. That seems to
>me the basics of your argument, what you are taught is right.

The pattern is so ubiquitous that it seems hard to believe there isn't a 
large genetic component.  It would be extremely hard to raise people from 
birth so that they did *not* think that they and their group are more 
reliable sources than others.


Robin Hanson  rhanson at gmu.edu  http://hanson.gmu.edu
Assistant Professor of Economics, George Mason University
MSN 1D3, Carow Hall, Fairfax VA 22030-4444
703-993-2326  FAX: 703-993-2323