As humans, we may believe that thinking is no big deal. It is innate in our nature and used in every second of our lives. Most people don’t even think about thinking. However, our ability to think is what makes us stand out from the rest of the species on Earth. Our collective and individual thinking has given us the advanced society we have today. We have cured diseases, created artificial intelligence, built empires and destroyed them, developed sciences to understand how the universe works, and so much more. So how can these great minds be so easily manipulated?
Yes, the question I pose may be cause for speculation, but hear me out. In our everyday lives we are presented with choices for everything we do. What should I wear today? What food am I able to eat? Which job should I take? These choices we face cause us to put more effort into our thinking to make the proper choices. So when options arise that can alleviate this effort, most times we prefer it because that is less work for ourselves. We get lazy. Now when questions are manipulated in such a way where there are still choices, but the proper answer appears to be more prominent, we are more likely to choose this answer since we have been subconsciously persuaded to choose it (Henderson, 2014).
For example, most of Europe has some of the highest amounts of organ donors available. This is not because there is a law where everyone who is able, has to. It is because the choice you have is to opt out of being an organ donor or stay opt in. More people choose to remain to be an organ donor to avoid the stigma of saying no, causing an increase in organ donors to 90%. ('Opt Out', 2012) In places, like the United States, where it is an opt in option, the rates are not nearly as high. Now while people think they made this choice completely on their own, the question is manipulated in such a way so you give the answer the government wants you to give. While, in this case, it is for a good cause, is it always that way when it comes to the government?
In the Henderson 2014 article about libetarian paternalism, he talks about the invisible gorilla... the government. The government, in Western cultures specifically, has the upper hand on us since they are able to manipulate our thoughts and actions in the way they want, with little to no consequences. Take campaigning for example. Those running and the government parties associated with it do everything they can to get the public on their side and be against the other. It causes a divide among us. They use tactics and propaganda that can cloud our thoughts and make us believe in things we didn’t think could be logical before. Think about the Holocaust and how Hitler was able to get so far with his horrific actions. We do not think about the long term consequences of actions such as these, because we would rather benefit in the short term (Henderson, 2014). The article acknowledges that these government officials are human as well; they are imperfect.
So why do we so willingly let them limit our power to think for ourselves? If the wording in a question can easily influence us to choose one way or another, what makes us think people would not take advantage of this and use it against us?
Henderson, D. R. (2014). Libertarian Paternalism: Leviathan in Sheep’s Clothing? Society,51(3),
321-321. doi:10.1007/s12115-014-9788-8
Schieber, F. (n.d.). 'Opt Out' Policies Increase Organ Donation. Retrieved from
https://sparq.stanford.edu/solutions/opt-out-policies-increase-organ-donation
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