The people who walk in darkness will see a great light.
As I write this, the last call to prayer of the day is sounding all around me. It is the eleventh day of Ramadan. The majority around me are fasting. They are not drinking, eating, swallowing their sputum, or smoking during sunlight hours (approximately 5:30 am until 7:30 pm). Thankfully, today was not very hot for the sake of those fasting. Last week temperatures soared over 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius). While I do not appreciate the grouchy attitudes, the uninhibited driving patterns, and the mad rush to get home before sunset, I suspect I would react similarly if I too was not eating or drinking in the blazing heat. On a side note, it is rare to find a fully air-conditioned building, so reprieve from the heat is hard to find. All this to say, Ramadan is not an enjoyable season for me. I can recognize that I have some misconstrued perceptions of my world given what I am absorbing from my external environment mixed with my own biases. One of those biases I have is people thinking they know it all, especially concerning faith and religion.
Bobby Duffy addresses these issues in his book Why We Are Wrong About Nearly Everything. He talks about how humans get most things wrong by how we process information in our brains (and our biases) and through what we are told from information gathered around us.[1] Duffy presents data from a large study that confirms people are usually very wrong about things. One of the concluding points was the world is not as bad as we think it is. It has indeed improved over the years.[2] Why then do I, an enthusiastic optimist, still feel frustrated and hopeless as I come to the end of the book?
These emotions are partly from my internal bias that I do not fully believe my world is better, especially in Africa. It is also partly from the information I am receiving from those around me, especially during Ramadan. People who think they are right all the time (perhaps I exaggerated a bit) try to convince me that I am the one wrong. They are blind to the Truth, especially when it comes to faith. Kathryn Schultz says it well, “To be blind without realizing our blindness is, figuratively, the situation of all of us when we are in error.”[3] They are in error and blind.
Duffy addresses this issue of blindness regarding our misconceptions. Through the study presented in the book, three areas were identified to have some correlation concerning misconceptions people have—emotional expressiveness, education levels, and media and politics.[4] Of these three correlations, the education levels most resonated with me and what I experienced in my host culture.
The study showed that the higher an individual’s education, the more accurate his or her perceptions are. This is not necessarily true at a national level but is true from person to person.[5] This resonates with my experience in my host country. Quality higher education here is limited. Last year, just under 15,89% of the students passed the final high school exam[6], le baccalauréat (le bac). This is even slightly higher than the pass rate in 2022.[7] Good education is limited. As this is a discussion on being wrong about nearly everything, I will put in the caveat that in France, the pass rate for students who took le bac in 2023 was about 90%.[8]
The staff I led provided a classic example of the correlation between education and perceptions. Upon becoming clinic director, I learned quickly that those with more formalized training and education understood their limits and gave the most appropriate care. Those with less education and training were confident in what they thought they knew but did not seem to know their limits. The results were wrong diagnostic and treatment choices by those less educated. In a healthcare setting, this can be detrimental. It was vital to recognize and set measures in place. Accountability and scope of practice guidelines helped maintain that everyone worked within their abilities, whether they agreed with it. Duffy identifies this as the “Dunning–Kruger effect” where there is a direct correlation between confidence and inaccuracy.[9]
It is good to recognize biases and how we form perceptions. It is good to know areas that need to change. The world in which I live may not be as bad as I think it is. We may not be as closed-minded as I sometimes perceive. But the world is walking in darkness. The solution is in the words of Jesus, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12b (ESV). As a follower of Jesus, I have the light of life. I can cling to this hope, even when overwhelmed by my own biases and perceptions. Jesus is the hope for this world.
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[1] Why We’re Wrong About Nearly Everything: Professor Bobby Duffy, 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86tfiGCmiNE.
[2] Bobby Duffy, Why We’re Wrong About Nearly Everything: A Theory of Human Misunderstanding (New York: Basic Books, 2019), 189.
[3] Katherine Schultz, Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error (New York City, NY: Haper Collins Publishers, Inc, 2010), Kindle, 68.
[4] Duffy, Why We’re Wrong about Nearly Everything, 196-197.
[5] Duffy, 196.
[6] The term “high school” is used here in English to represent the French secondary school level lycée, which is the final stage before entering University in France and other countries that follow the French education system.
[7] “BAC 2023,” CRIDEM, July 15, 2023, http://www.cridem.org/C_Info.php?article=766837.
[8] “Baccalauréat 2023,” Le Parisien, July 8, 2023, https://www.leparisien.fr/etudiant/examens/bac/baccalaureat-2023-taux-de-reussite-legerement-en-baisse-par-rapport-a-lan-passe-NMITYOWDABGCHOUHVWHN4KKFWY.php.
[9] Duffy, Why We’re Wrong about Nearly Everything, 199.
About the Author
Kari
Kari is a passionate follower of Jesus. Her journey with Him currently has her living in the Sahara in North Africa. With over a decade of experience as a family nurse practitioner and living cross-culturally, she enjoys being a champion for others. She combines her cross-cultural experience, her health care profession, and her skills in coaching to encourage holistic health and growth. She desires to see each person she encounters walk in fullness of joy, fulfilling their God-designed purpose. “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” Romans 12:12 ESV8 responses to “The people who walk in darkness will see a great light.”
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Kari, first of all, I love reading your post as it takes me to such a different context from my own. I enjoy getting to travel through your articles! I admit, I don’t know anything about your NPO. How does Duffy’s work engage potential delusion or misperceptions in your NPO approach?
Hi Chad, Thanks for your comment. If you ever want to experience my life firsthand, I am always open to visitors!
My NPO is focused on implementing servant leadership principles to enhance collaboration and effectiveness of community development projects here. Something I am sure I will encounter is misconceptions about servant leadership in this context. There are cultural (mis)perceptions of what community development and collaboration can look like. I am sure I will be identifying many of my own issues as I move forward in this!
Kari,
If you were to close your eyes and imagine that you are a little girl living in Mauritania, would your current view of life in Mauritania be different now? Would it shed some of the misconceptions that you currently struggle with?
And, do you think there is an intersection with level of education and compassion, especially living in a country that is so different than your birth country? Which one becomes more important?
Hi Nancy, thanks for your comment. I have no doubt that if I were to grow up in this environment I would have a very different perspective.
Education is not viewed the same as in the US and is implemented differently, so it is like comparing apples with cucumbers! I find that those more educated tend to be more generous because they have more resources, but not necessarily more compassionate as that comes from a heart motivation. For me, living in this context has meant having my perceived identity (education, human motivation, etc) stripped down to whom do I put my identity and source of being?
I’m not sure if this is the answer you wanted for your question or not. Feel free to ask for clarity!
Kari, thanks for your blog. I will be praying for you during this season. I’m sure that what you observe is not aligned with Duffy’s conclusion. I’m sure, though, that someone who sees the world through the lens of the gospel sees beyond social issues. You are living in an intense spiritual battleground. How might we incorporate a spiritual worldview with Duffy’s study on social issues?
Thanks for your prayers, Graham! I think a lot of Duffy’s observations can be applied with prayer, discretion, and guidance from the Holy Spirit. I see the one difference is that humans are always fallible, thus our misconceptions, God is not. When we invite Him in we can expect things beyond any human comprehension. I needed that reminder for myself! Thank you.
Kari, you are in a tough situation. Kudos to you for recognizing the dangers in thinking we know more than we actually do, especially in health care. I didn’t know that they aren’t supposed to drink anything during Ramadan either. I can imagine that would make anyone grumpy!
How are you sharing this information about unintentional bias with your staff? How are they taking it?
Hi Debbie,
Thank you for your kind words. I am no longer in that same position with the staff, so my response is from my experience last year. I did share things about unintentional bias in staff meetings and one-on-one. I found a direct correlation between listening and applying the information to the staff education levels. Personally, in this context, education usually means a broader worldview and exposure to different ideas.