{"id":35929,"date":"2024-03-11T12:30:19","date_gmt":"2024-03-11T19:30:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=35929"},"modified":"2024-02-17T02:36:45","modified_gmt":"2024-02-17T10:36:45","slug":"cognitive-bias-and-the-gospel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/cognitive-bias-and-the-gospel\/","title":{"rendered":"Cognitive Bias and the Gospel"},"content":{"rendered":"

Three days ago, I picked up Sway<\/em> by Pragya Agarwal.[1]<\/a> I began reading, and by page 35 I knew what I wanted to write my blog post about. Because I want to keep you in suspense, I\u2019ll come to that in a minute.<\/p>\n

After the first chapter, I intended to continue with an inspectional read, but I kept getting sucked in deeper. In many ways Sway<\/em> is reminiscent of several other books we\u2019ve encountered, namely Why We\u2019re Wrong About Nearly Everything<\/em> by Bobby Duffy and Being Wrong<\/em> by Kathryn Schulz. Agarwal also leans on Daniel Kahneman\u2019s Thinking, Fast and Slow<\/em> which is referenced several times. All these authors would agree, I think, with Agarwal\u2019s own summary of her own work: \u201cOur instincts help us to assess people and situations quickly, determine whether or not we can trust them, and make timely decisions\u2026 The bad news is that in this process, we also form biases that cloud our instincts.\u201d[2]<\/a> However what sets Agarwal apart is her analysis of the intersectionality of implicit biases \u201cand how it creates privilege and opportunities for some but not for others due to an associated attribute that is considered less socially normative or desirable.\u201d[3]<\/a><\/p>\n

As Agarwal explained various biases and prejudices, I began to see my own context a little differently. Agarwal asserts, \u201cHumans are tribal creatures.\u201d[4]<\/a> Tribalism is hard-wired into us for our own good, the negative effects we see in society today notwithstanding. As I read this, I thought of my friends who have grown up in secular French society. Since they were little children, they\u2019ve been taught to reason and discuss using logic and philosophy. In essence their tribe (their extended family, their educational environment, the media outlets around them, etc.) leaves no space for the supernatural or divine. As a result, whenever I mention anything gospel-related their cognitive biases kick into gear. It\u2019s almost like they perceive my spiritual conversation as a threat from an \u201cout-group\u201d. Even if on some level they want to consider the truth of the Bible, it\u2019s like they have internal alarm bells going off due to their cognitive biases.[5]<\/a><\/p>\n

In addition to the \u201cin-group\/out-group\u201d bias my friends are also dealing with confirmation bias. This could come in many forms. Perhaps every time they read about another tragedy in the world, their confirmation bias says, \u201cA good God wouldn\u2019t allow this suffering.\u201d Or every time a church leader is caught in a moral failure, their confirmation bias says, \u201cThis just proves Christians are all hypocrites.\u201d Over time, their negative stereotypes are reinforced, and they get farther and farther away from believing in God. Because of their cognitive biases, it becomes nearly impossible for many of my French friends to believe in God. They simply can\u2019t allow for the possibility of God\u2019s existence because it causes them too much cognitive dissonance.[6]<\/a><\/p>\n

This all may sound terribly negative, but it actually helped me to see my missionary work through this lens. Understanding Agarwal\u2019s analysis has encouraged me in two ways. Firstly, it gives words to our daily experience as missionaries in France. The average person we meet is atheist or agnostic and can\u2019t simply make the cognitive leap to believe in God just because we explain the gospel message clearly. We\u2019ve actually had people go through a process of Discovery Bible Study only to tell us, \u201cI love everything you\u2019re talking about and I like the community I see you living out, but I can\u2019t just make myself believe in something that I don\u2019t think is real.\u201d<\/p>\n

Secondly, all this reinforces what we\u2019ve always known. \u201cNo one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.\u201d (John 6:44). Every single person who decides to follow Jesus is a miracle; it requires both a conscious decision on the part of the individual and the Holy Spirit working supernaturally to prepare the person\u2019s heart. In my context, I am convinced that supernatural work of the Spirit involves breaking down those cognitive biases I\u2019ve mentioned.<\/p>\n

That said, Agarwal also explains how confirmation bias and tribalism can be a powerful force for social change.[7]<\/a> She\u2019s essentially describing what I\u2019ve heard called positive peer pressure. In my context, this has become a significant factor in my ministry. In a society where evangelical Christians are either unheard of or seen as bizarre, I see one aspect of my ministry as simply \u201cnormalizing\u201d a life of faith in Jesus.[8]<\/a> My prayer is that the Holy Spirit would use our simple acts of loving our neighbors to supernaturally break down some of those cognitive biases they hold. May it be so.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> More than most, this author piqued my curiosity; I wanted to know who she is as a person. If you\u2019re looking to go down a rabbit hole, her free-lance journalism work is interesting. For example: https:\/\/www.wired.com\/story\/artificial-intelligence-empathy\/<\/a>, https:\/\/www.news24.com\/life\/relationships\/love\/news\/emotional-labour-what-it-is-and-why-it-falls-to-women-in-the-workplace-and-at-home-20221214<\/a>, https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1735294<\/a><\/p>\n

[2]<\/a> Agarwal, Pragya. Sway: Unravelling Unconscious Bias<\/em>, London: Bloomsbury Sigma, 2020. 36.<\/p>\n

[3]<\/a> Ibid. 408.<\/p>\n

[4]<\/a> Ibid., 43.<\/p>\n

[5]<\/a> Ibid., 47.<\/p>\n

[6]<\/a> For more on the intersection of cognition and faith, I found this article helpful: https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC3968360\/<\/a><\/p>\n

[7]<\/a> Agarwal, Pragya. Sway: Unravelling Unconscious Bias<\/em>, London: Bloomsbury Sigma, 2020. 79.<\/p>\n

[8]<\/a> I\u2019ve blown past my allotted space for this post, but I would be amiss not to mention The Celtic Way of Evangelism<\/em> by George C. Hunter. This book describes how St. Patrick brought Christianity to the Celtic people in large part by living out Christian community among them, inviting them in and letting them see that following Jesus was at the same time \u201cnormal\u201d and beautifully transformational.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Three days ago, I picked up Sway by Pragya Agarwal.[1] I began reading, and by page 35 I knew what I wanted to write my blog post about. Because I want to keep you in suspense, I\u2019ll come to that in a minute. After the first chapter, I intended to continue with an inspectional read, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":186,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2310],"tags":[2535,2244],"class_list":["post-35929","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-doctor-of-leadership-3","tag-dlpg02","tag-agarwal","cohort-dlgp02"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/186"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35929"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35929\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35930,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35929\/revisions\/35930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}