A primary
reason some people believe in pseudo-science, pseudo-health and the more
outrageous conspiracy theories is the natural aversion toward complexity. Sara
E. Gorman, PHD and Jack M. Gorman, MD, write in their 2017 book Denying To The Grave: Why We Ignore The
Facts That Will Save Us:
“It isn’t
that we are incapable of learning the facts but rather we are reluctant to put
in the time and effort to do so. This may especially be the case when science
and math are involved because many people believe, often incorrectly, that they
are incapable of understanding those disciplines except in their most basic
aspects. As we explain when we discuss some aspects of brain function, our
minds gravitate naturally to clear and simple explanations of things, especially
when they are laced with emotional rhetoric. We are actually afraid of
complexity. Our natural instinct is to try to get our arms around an issue
quickly, not to obsess or get caught
in the weeds about it.
“(This)
retreat from complexity is similar to the other reasons for science denial in
that it is in many ways a useful and adaptive stance. We would be paralyzed if
we insisted on understanding the technical details of everything in our lives.”
Unsmooth Talkers
Often the
professionals trusted to “know” aren’t very effective communicators:
“But when
making health decisions, the inability to tackle scientific details can leave
us prone to accepting craftily packaged inaccuracies and slogans. Scientists,
doctors, and public health experts are often not helpful in this regard because
they frequently refuse to explain things clearly and interestingly. Scientists
seem to waver between overly complicated explanations that only they can fathom
and overly simplistic explanations that feel patronizing and convey minimal
useful information.”
A Vaccine Example
Understanding
the complexity of the human body’s immune system is essential in making an
informed decision on whether to vaccinate or not. The average person, no matter
how educated, cannot possibly take into account all its elegance and
intricacies:
“The human
immune system is one of the most beautifully organized systems in the universe,
capable of protecting us against the barrage of dangerous microbes we face
every second of our lives. But those microbes are also brilliant in their
ability to elude and co-opt the immune system in order to cause disease. How
vaccines fit into this system ….. is ultimately a very complicated affair.”
The
beleaguered person searches the internet, is faced with a deluge of contrary
opinions and technical jargon, and often settles for the simplest explanations.
Pseudo-health advocates are master manipulators, experts at giving easily
understandable accounts, but couching outright lies in alarmist, conspiracy
theory, appeal- to- outrage diatribes that can lead to medically harmful
outcomes.
Taking The Easy Way
In recent
years researchers have been coming to the conclusion that autism is for the
most part genetic:
“The human
genome is dotted with hundreds of autism risk genes. Individually, each gene is
usually harmless, and is in fact essential for normal function. This suggests
that autism is caused by combinations of genes acting together. Think of genes
as being like playing cards, and think of autism outcomes as depending on the
entire hand.”
How a number
of genes collaborating to cause autism, or any other disease, is beyond the understanding
of the average person. Many people will choose the easy way, believing that a
poisonous substance in vaccines, thimerosal, causes autism. A number of
anti-vaccine web sites cater to people’s emotions and sound the alarm that the
medical establishment is out to sicken everyone’s children. The facts prove
otherwise:
“The
potential impact of thimerosal on autism has been investigated extensively.
Multiple lines of scientific evidence have shown that thimerosal does not cause
autism. For example, the clinical symptoms of mercury poisoning differ significantly
from those of autism. In addition, multiple population studies have found no association
between thimerosal and autism, and rates of autism have continued to increase
despite removal of thimerosal from vaccines. Thus, major scientific and medical
bodies such as the Institute of Medicine and World Health Organization (WHO) as
well as governmental agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
and the CDC reject any role for thimerosal in autism or other
neurodevelopmental disorders. In spite of the consensus of the scientific
community, some parents and advocacy groups continue to contend that thimerosal
is linked to autism.”
Avoidance of
complexity leads many concerned parents to the false belief that adding a toxic
substance to the human body is bad for one’s health, rather than in certain
cases, medically necessary. An army of microscopic genes in our own body
maliciously conspiring to make us sick is much more difficult to grasp. The
emotional, easier cause is often chosen, and there are many pseudo-health
practitioners out to fan the flames.
Why We Hate Change
Any attempt
to change someone’s mind is often a Herculean endeavor and met with much
defiance. Resistance is not futile,
with apologies to Star Trek’s The
Borg. Aside from the ever present big ego and unwillingness to admit being
wrong, scientists now have a better understanding on why we have such an
aversion to change:
“Neuroscientists
also tell us that changing one’s viewpoint on any issue is difficult, in part
because staying put on a point of view activates the pleasure centers of the
brain whereas making a change excites areas of the brain associated with
anxiety and even disgust ….. They found that staying put activated an area of
the brain called the ventral striatum whereas changing activated the insula.
The ventral striatum ….. is central to the brain’s pleasure response. It is one
of the parts of the brain that is routinely stimulated by drugs like alcohol
and heroin and lights up in animals and people whenever they are happy ….. By
contrast, the insula is activated when someone is anxious or frightened or
shown disgusting pictures ….. So changing an opinion is associated with fear,
which is precisely what we need to overcome if we are going to change people’s
minds from familiar, easy default positions to more complex scientific
ones.”
Is it Credible?
Anyone can
put up a good looking website and make all kinds of claims. It is difficult to
know what is credible and what is not. One primary guideline is:
“Pay
attention to what kinds of sources the articles or information on the website
cite. Do they make a lot of claims without citing any sources at all? Unless
it’s a purely and explicitly opinion-based website, this is usually a bad sign.
If they do cite sources, try to do a little investigation. What kinds of
sources are they? Do they simply link to very similar websites with no sources
listed? Or do they take you to a wide array of peer-reviewed, scientific
journal articles? Also pay attention to how dated the cited material is.
Science moves very quickly, and if a website is consistently citing information
from many, many years ago, that is a good sign that it is not a reliable
source.”
PubMed
PubMed is a
free resource that is developed and maintained by the National Center for
Biotechnology Information (NCBI), at the U.S. National Library of Medicine
(NLM), located at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Ask
Cutting Questions
Penetrating, thoughtful questions are crucial in determining the facts
regarding any health issue. The weight of complexity can often be reduced when the right questions
are asked. A well-sharpened sword is needed to slice through the weeds of paranoia
and misinformation. The post “30 Prying and Probing Questions To Bolster Critical Thinking” is useful
in providing thirty such questions. Number 14 reads:
“When I hear or read unsubstantiated hysteria and paranoia – like
anti-vaccine or anti-GMO spin – do I suddenly run around like a chicken with
its head cut off, or do I calmly, honestly, and intelligently gather all the
facts to form a valid and informed opinion? Do I think on issues with my
emotions or with my brain?”
Primary Source
Sara E.
Gorman, PHD and Jack M. Gorman, MD, Denying
To The Grave: Why We Ignore The Facts That Will Save Us, Oxford University
Press, 2017
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Photo:
http://www.palominoconsultinggroup.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Complex-Maze.png
Jerry De Luca is a Christian freelance writer who loves perusing dozens of interesting and informative publications. When he finds any useful info he summarizes it, taking the main points, and creates a (hopefully) helpful blog post.
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