Archive of posts tagged Political Affiliation

Cell phones, Type II error, and motivated reasoning

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The chief medical officer from Wales recommends teens text rather than talk on their cell phones, despite other concerns about the problems of texting. Because new research suggests that efforts to correct misperceptions often backfire based on political ideology, journalists have to be very careful suggesting correlations exist as it may be hard to dissuade people of their beliefs if new evidence comes to light.

Crisis, opportunity, and timing

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We’ve all heard the saying that “crisis” means “opportunity” and “danger.” But when thinking about the Gulf oil disaster, many remain puzzled as to why this crisis has not produced the type of sustained public outrage that other environmental disasters have. Bad timing plays a key role in explaining the lack of public response, but it is also important to consider who is being asked and what they are being asked about to figure out people’s response to the disaster.