Of 49 people included in the study who believed in such a connection, only one shed the certainty when presented with prevailing evidence that it wasn't true.
The rest came up with an array of justifications for ignoring, discounting or simply disagreeing with contrary evidence — even when it came from President Bush himself.
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Badger reports on a study trying to understand why some people's beliefs are not disturbed by facts. Quite interesting, but not as deep as one might hope. The report itself looks more informative.
they were actively engaged in reasoning that the belief they already held was true.
Evidence suggests people are more likely to pay attention to facts within certain emotional states and social situations. Some may never change their minds. For others, policy-makers could better identify those states, for example minimizing the fear that often clouds a person’s ability to assess facts and that has characterized the current health care debate.
