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In today's flood of information, even the most critically minded individuals can sometimes fall for a misconception or a scam. It might be a phishing message from a "friend" on WhatsApp asking you to vote for someone's daughter, a detox recipe shared by a colleague, or the latest misleading claim about a political figure from a relative. It is easy to dismiss such situations as failures of critical thinking that happen to others, until they happen to us. So why do these failures occur?

Lazy brain hypothesis

"Simply put, there are two main explanations. The first, the so-called lazy brain hypothesis, suggests that cognitive activity is very energy-demanding. The brain consumes up to 20% of our energy, even though it accounts for only about 2% of body weight. As a result, it tends to conserve effort whenever possible and relies on intuitive thinking," explains Vladimíra Čavojová from the Institute of Experimental Psychology, CSPV SAS. Cognitive shortcuts, including stereotypes, operate on this principle. It is far more efficient to view individuals as members of a broader group, for example, scientists, than to analyse how one particular scientist differs from another.

"Similarly, conformity simplifies our lives. When we are unsure how to behave, we often follow others' actions or rely on social norms. Some norms are specific to certain cultures or groups, such as whether we take off our shoes when entering a home or what food we offer guests, while others are universal," the researcher explains. One example is the norm of reciprocity or prosocial behaviour. When someone asks us for something, we often feel pressure to comply to maintain relationships and our self-image as a "good person". These automatic responses are frequently exploited by manipulators, especially when the cost of compliance is low, such as voting in an online poll or sharing a post.

However, as Čavojová adds, when the cost is higher, for example, when a request involves money, time, or effort, we are more likely to notice inconsistencies that may signal fraud or manipulation. We may question whether the message really came from a trusted source or recall having heard of a similar scam before.

In short, the lazy brain hypothesis suggests that we either failed to pay sufficient attention or lacked the knowledge or skills to evaluate the situation properly. But is it really that simple?

Motivated brain hypothesis

What if the issue is not a lack of attention? The second explanation, the motivated brain hypothesis, offers a more unsettling perspective. Strong analytical skills or extensive knowledge do not necessarily protect us from believing false information.

"This is because the human brain is not primarily motivated by the search for truth, but by the need to confirm our existing worldview," explains the researcher. "We interpret the same events differently depending on our prior beliefs, the information we already have, and the groups we identify with. If someone from a group we perceive as 'ours' makes a mistake, we tend to judge it less harshly than if someone makes the same mistake from an opposing group." This helps explain why politically motivated disinformation spreads so easily. People are often less concerned with whether information is true if it aligns with their existing beliefs or reinforces their attitudes toward others.

At first glance, this might suggest that people are overly trusting and easily manipulated. In reality, the situation is more complex. The human brain evolved to help us survive, and excessive trust would not be advantageous. At the same time, constant suspicion is also impractical. Developing critical thinking, therefore, also requires understanding how our own minds work and becoming aware of the blind spots in our reasoning. "Critical thinking does not begin with others. It begins with looking into our own mirror," concludes Vladimíra Čavojová.

Source: Vladimíra Čavojová, Institute of Experimental Psychology, CSPV SAS

Edited by: Andrea Nozdrovická

Photo: canva.com