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cognitive fluency
You mistake easy thinking for the truth.
Cognitive fluency is the phenomenon where you evaluate information as more truthful if it is easy to process.
Information that is presented in a clear font, rhythmically spoken, or simply repeated feels more accurate to the brain than complex data. Your mind uses the 'effort' required for processing as a shortcut for validity. If it feels simple to understand, you assume it must be reliable.
You are judging the truth of the message by its polish.
Where this comes from
- Study
- Alter and Oppenheimer, 2009
- What the check found
- The definition provided is accurate, and Alter and Oppenheimer (2009) is indeed the definitive review paper for this concept. The reference material provided did not contain the quote, but independent verification confirms the claim.
- Confidence
- Well replicated
Related
One of these every day, and every one names the study it came from. When a finding is contested, it says so.