Man possesses unique cognitive abilities. However, we fail to realise it is as much a bane as a boon.
The Illusion of Transparency is simpler: we overestimate how much others can perceive our internal states (emotions, thoughts, intentions). A good example would be public speaking. We frequently think anxiety is somehow ‘written all over our face’ when in reality, the guy watching cannot tell the difference between the last guy and you. So why doest his overestimation occur? Psychologists argue that it’s a combination of three things: Egocentric bias, Anchoring Effect, and the lack of feedback.
Egocentric bias is the idea that we tend to think of everything from our perspective. For example, if you watch a movie and declare it a superb watch, you will be outraged to think your friend didn’t like it, even though from a third person view, that is a fair and acceptable view; it’s just an opinion. Your anger stems from Egocentric bias. There’s a common experiment you can do to prove this. As little children, we often find it hard to rationalise other perspectives, so if you have or know a small child, ask them what their mom or dad would want for Christmas. They would probably reply that they would want a toy or a doll. Why? It’s because that’s what they want.
Tomorrow, we’ll talk about anchoring effect, lack of feedback, and some closing remarks on the illusion of transparency.
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