Why we deny the scienceWhy we deny the science
All In The Mind
In this age of contested political issues and unchecked information, we examine the psychological tricks and the quirks of neuroscience which often lead us to believe untruths and ignore the facts.
29:35•3 Dec 2017
Why We Cling to Beliefs and Ignore the Science
Episode Overview
- Beliefs formed from early or dramatic information are very hard to reverse, even after the original evidence is disproven.
- Confirmation bias and fear responses in the brain make people tune out arguments that challenge their identity or group membership.
- Having a gun at home statistically increases risk, yet many people maintain the opposite belief for emotional reasons around protection.
- Charismatic leaders and tight group identities reinforce an us-versus-them mindset that makes anti-science beliefs more resistant to change.
- Being aware of your motivations and search terms online can help you avoid falling into misinformation traps and rigid thinking.
“Once we've formed a belief, it's very hard to change our minds.”
Curious about how others navigate their sobriety journey? This instalment of *All In The Mind* might surprise you, because it’s less about substances and more about the way our brains cling to beliefs – even when those beliefs could put our health and safety at risk. Host Lynn Malcolm talks with Dr Sarah Gorman, a public health and behavioural science expert from New York, about why people reject well-established science on vaccines, guns, climate change and even the opioid crisis.
Sarah and her father, neuroscientist Jack Gorman, wrote *Denying to the Grave: Why We Ignore the Facts That Will Save Us*, and the episode walks through its key ideas. Using the debunked Andrew Wakefield MMR–autism study, Sarah explains how once a belief is formed, it sticks.
As she puts it, "once we've formed a belief, it's very hard to change our minds." She links this to confirmation bias and shows how brain scans suggest that hearing opposing views can activate fear circuits, while reinforcing your own beliefs lights up reward centres with a rush of dopamine. So yes, feeling "right" is literally pleasurable.
The conversation moves to gun ownership in the US, where evidence that a gun in the home increases risk is often ignored, and to climate change, where helplessness and inconvenience can quietly morph into denial. Sarah also points to charismatic leaders and tight-knit groups that create an "us versus them" mentality, making it even harder for people to leave or question shared beliefs.
For anyone interested in recovery, mental health or just trying to make better decisions, there’s practical advice too: becoming aware of your online search habits, questioning your motivations, and paying attention to that "middle ground" of uncertainty rather than sliding into extremes. It’s a smart, down-to-earth discussion that might make you look twice at your own strongly held views. Which of your beliefs are based on evidence, and which are just giving your brain that comforting dopamine hit?
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