26. The GI Joe Fallacy
Wireless Philosophy, Cognitive Biases, 3:17. Original title: CRITICAL THINKING - Cognitive Biases: The GI Joe Fallacy [HD]
Summary
Laurie Santos (Yale University) closes the series on cognitive biases with the GI Joe fallacy: the mistaken belief that simply knowing about a bias is enough to overcome it.
Where the name comes from
The fallacy is named after the 1980s cartoon GI Joe, whose episodes closed with a public service announcement ending in the catchphrase "Now you know, and knowing is half the battle." Santos argues that cognitive science shows this is often false: for many biases, merely knowing about them is nowhere near half the battle.
When knowing genuinely helps, and when it does not
Santos concedes that knowing is sometimes enough, as with multiplication tables or which aisle the milk is in. But she gives three examples where it is not, each drawn from an earlier video in the series: knowing that the Grand Canyon Skywalk is perfectly safe does not stop it from feeling scary (alief); knowing that arbitrary anchors distort judgement does not stop a "five for five dollars" sign from making five items feel like the right number to buy; and knowing that wording alone can change our intuitions does not stop us from being more hesitant to accept a risk framed as lives lost than the identical risk framed as lives saved (reference dependence and loss aversion).
What actually controls our behaviour
Santos points to research suggesting that consciously recognising a bias is only a small part of what controls behaviour. On her account, much of our behavioural control comes instead from habits and from the situations we find ourselves in, rather than from conscious awareness, which is why deliberately shaping our situations, and learning to regulate our emotions, can do more over time than simply knowing the facts.
The fallacy applies to itself
Santos ends on a self-referential note: even knowing about the GI Joe fallacy does not protect you from it. You may consciously know that knowing is only half the battle, yet still act as though conscious knowledge were the main thing controlling your behaviour. Even after watching an entire series of videos on cognitive biases, Santos says, viewers will still be subject to the same effects described in them, the GI Joe fallacy included.
Key takeaway
Santos's closing point inverts the cartoon's slogan: for most cognitive biases, consciously knowing about them is not even half the battle, so now that you know that, you have gained less than half of what you need.