Confirmation Bias
The following are samples of scenarios that were given to participants in an experiment..
Assume that a clinical psychologist
wrote the following description of Tom W. five years ago, when Tom was a senior
in high school. Please read it carefully
and then respond to the questions below.
Tom W. is of high intelligence, although lacking in
true creativity. He has a need for
order and clarity, and for neat and tidy systems in which every detail finds
its appropriate place. His writing
is rather dull and mechanical, occasionally enlivened by somewhat corny puns
and flashes of imagination of the sci-fi type.
He has a strong drive for competence.
He seems to have little feeling and little sympathy for other people
and does not enjoy interacting with others.
Self-centered, he nonetheless has a deep moral sense.
Today, Tom is a patient in a state hospital.
Might that outcome have been predicted when Tom was a senior in high school?
On what basis?
Assume that a clinical psychologist wrote the following
description of Tom W. five years ago, when Tom was a senior in high school.
Please read it carefully and then respond to the questions below.
Tom W. is of high intelligence, although lacking in
true creativity. He has a need for
order and clarity, and for neat and tidy systems in which every detail finds
its appropriate place. His writing
is rather dull and mechanical, occasionally enlivened by somewhat corny puns
and flashes of imagination of the sci-fi type.
He has a strong drive for competence.
He seems to have little feeling and little sympathy for other people
and does not enjoy interacting with others.
Self-centered, he nonetheless has a deep moral sense.