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Chapter 8 - Intuitive and Reflective Beliefs in a Modern World

from Implicit vs Explicit Beliefs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 November 2022

By
Bastien Trémolière  and
Florence Lespiau
Edited by
Julien Musolino ,
Joseph Sommer  and
Pernille Hemmer
Julien Musolino
Affiliation:
Rutgers University, New Jersey
Joseph Sommer
Affiliation:
Rutgers University, New Jersey
Pernille Hemmer
Affiliation:
Rutgers University, New Jersey
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Summary

Human beings form beliefs about the way the world works according to the information that is available to them, their processing ability, and their existing knowledge. However, in such an information-rich world, they sometimes trust their intuitive beliefs rather than their reflective ones. Intuitive beliefs tend to have a bad press in our modern world, as they are often regarded as suboptimal and even erroneous. In the present chapter, we aim to restore their reputation. First, we provide an overview of the two types of beliefs, in the light of dual-process theories whereby people can engage in either fast, almost automatic thinking processes, or slower, more deliberative ones. We then identify contexts in which intuitive beliefs provide compelling cues for daily human activities and sometimes outperform reflective beliefs. Finally, we discuss how intuitive beliefs can even be beneficial for reasoning and learning.

Keywords

human thinkingintuitive beliefsreflective beliefsdual-process frameworkevolutionary perspective
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cognitive Science of Belief
A Multidisciplinary Approach
 , pp. 172 - 190
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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