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Cognitive dissonance a myth? April 11, 2008

Posted by Niels in : Life, the universe, and everything , 1 comment so far

After all I’ve written about cognitive dissonance, M. Keith Chen, an economist from Yale, has come along to say that it doesn’t exist. John Tierney summarizes his argument in the New York Times. And I’ll summarize the summary here: a number of past experiments into cognitive dissonance have been plagued by hithertofore unnoticed sample bias and simple ass-backwards statistical mistakes.

I’m not quite ready to write off cognitive dissonance yet. Most psychologists and behavioral economists are saying, “Sure, the experiments were flawed, but that doesn’t mean cognitive dissonance doesn’t exist,” and as silly as it seems, I’m in their camp. For now. I’m interested to see the results of the statistically unflawed cognitive dissonance research that I’m sure will be coming in the near future.

Your thoughts?

Washington district caucus: overwhelming democracy April 10, 2008

Posted by Niels in : Personal , add a comment

What a clusterfuck. I became one of three alternates chosen to represent my precinct at the legislative district caucus. The delegates elected back in early February were granted the responsibility of showing up two months later at another caucus and signing their name at the check in table. If the delegate doesn’t show up to sign their name, the votes cast at the precinct level don’t count, which is why it’s so important that the alternates show up.

So the procedure at the legislative district caucus consists of several hundred people checking in and signing their names. The lists are then tallied and checked for people who don’t show up. This process takes about three hours, at which point alternates are called individually for every delegate who didn’t show up. There were about 150 alternates called at my caucus.

Following all the alternates signing in, the lists are again retallied, and if any alternates didn’t show, second alternates are called. This process is repeated until all either all the delegate spots are filled or there are no alternates left.

I signed in about three hours into the process, at which point my civic duty was fulfilled and I skipped out.

This ass-backwards process will be repeated again at the county conventions, the congressional district caucuses, and finally at the state convention. So, to recap: assuming you knew that your vote in the Washington state primaries didn’t count, you went to your precinct caucus, where you voted for someone to sign their name on a form two months later, at which point someone else is chosen to sign their name on a different form another month later, at which point your vote actually counts. Assuming none of the delegates decided to change their mind along the way.

Democracy, gotta love it.

Your thoughts?

Short-term cognitive dissonance and smoothies April 8, 2008

Posted by Niels in : Life, the universe, and everything, Personal , 3 comments

Since going on a smoothie kick and discovering that I can drink an entire bag of spinach in one fruity cup, I’ve been eating much healthier. The interesting thing is that the healthier living is mainly confined to those times when I’m actually drinking a smoothie. My other meals aren’t more nutritious, I don’t eat more salads, and I don’t eat less junk food.

But I still brainstorm how to get more nutrition into a single smoothie, whether it’s increasing the vegetable-to-fruit ratio, or adding protein or wheat germ, or blending a variety of different vegetables. I also remember to take my vitamins most often when I’m drinking a smoothie. I hear the same thing from my friends, who are actually blending their vitamins and fish oil capsules into theirs.

So I wonder, what is it about the smoothie that makes us so intent on maximizing nutrition during that 15-minute blending and drinking timeframe? There’s some cognitive dissonance at play here. You may be familiar with the study in which having signed a petition three weeks beforehand made people three times more likely to agree to have a huge and poorly lettered “safe driving” sign installed in their yard. Apparently signing the petition caused people to think of themselves as more civic-minded and they changed their actions to agree with this self-image.

Perhaps the action of making a vegetable smoothie causes people to think of themselves as healthier, and hence they look for more vegetables and vitamins to consume. Or maybe we’re all maximizers in a never-ending quest for the “optimal smoothie”. Or maybe it’s just easier to be healthy once I’ve already “context-switched” out of my normal routine. I do find smoothies particularly satisfying right after I exercise.

Your thoughts?

No, dammit, I don’t recognize you! April 7, 2008

Posted by Niels in : Personal , 5 comments

As I walked into a bar last Friday, I heard a woman’s voice behind me. “Niels?” I had no idea whether she recognized me from TV or whether we’d actually met. As a result of my faceblindness, the fact that I don’t recognize someone isn’t any kind of indicator of whether or not we’ve met.

“You don’t recognize me?!” she asked. Ah, apparently I do know her. And I noticed she had a distinctive mole on her face - I remembered the mole, so I definitely had met her before, I just couldn’t place where.

“I’m sorry,” I said, “I forgot your name.”

“I can’t believe you don’t remember me!” she said. Uh-oh. It seems that I must know her pretty well. Did we hook up? That would be embarrassing.

“Where did we see each other last?” I tried.

“You really don’t remember me?! Come find me when you remember who I am!” she told me as she walked off. Aargh. It’s like asking a blind man to find you when he realizes how many fingers you were holding up. Fortunately, she made a joke about “sexy furniture” as she walked off, and I remembered the inside joke from a potluck the last week. I’d met her twice in the past two weeks with lengthy conversations both times.

The night wasn’t over, either. Sure enough, as I walked into the next bar… “Niels!”

Sure enough, another girl I didn’t recognize.

“We took a photo together… It was Halloween…”

I eventually figured it out, but it’s a rough existence. I wonder how many people I unintentionally snub each time I go out. If you’re one of them, you have my most sincere apologies, that was not my intention.

Your thoughts?

Microsoft usability study April 3, 2008

Posted by Niels in : Personal , add a comment

Odd job for today: I’m participating in a usability study at Microsoft for blogging software. It’s fairly straightforward, and I get free software! On the other hand, it’s the longest commute I’ve had in a long time. It’s a neat experience, with cameras and microphones to see whether I can figure out new software. One day I hope to have a company with enough money to actually do my own market research…

Your thoughts?