Cognitive-Distortions
Living Under the Same Roof: Part III
In Part I and Part II, I explored how moral performance thrives in our hyper-connected world, and how cognitive distortions fuel “righteous” anger. To close the series, I want to shift from spectacle to substance: what we can actually do to restore understanding in the spaces we share.
We’re wired to explain others’ behavior by their character (“she’s careless,” “he’s malicious”) and our own behavior by circumstances (“I was rushed,” “the system failed”). That bias, _the fundamental attribution error, supercharges moral performance. It flattens people into villains and snips away context, making outrage feel justified and dialogue feel pointless.
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Living Under the Same Roof Part II
In the first part of this series, we examined moral performance and how it contributes to outrage culture.. In this installment, we will take a closer look at that outrage and how it is fueled by cognitive biases and errors.
Fuse, Flame, Fire, and Fallout
We are wired to assign blame. It gives us a sense of control in moments of frustration, as if naming a culprit relieves the tension of not knowing what, or who, to fault. Neuroscience shows that anger is not only emotional, but chemical: it delivers a dopamine surge that feels rewarding, even energizing. Online platforms amplify that surge, because outrage keeps us scrolling, sharing, and arguing. Anger becomes less about truth and more about the payoff of feeling right.
Read more →
Living Under the Same Roof Part II
In the first part of this series, we examined moral performance and how it contributes to outrage culture.. In this installment, we will take a closer look at that outrage and how it is fueled by cognitive biases and errors.
Fuse, Flame, Fire, and Fallout
We are wired to assign blame. It gives us a sense of control in moments of frustration, as if naming a culprit relieves the tension of not knowing what, or who, to fault. Neuroscience shows that anger is not only emotional, but chemical: it delivers a dopamine surge that feels rewarding, even energizing. Online platforms amplify that surge, because outrage keeps us scrolling, sharing, and arguing. Anger becomes less about truth and more about the payoff of feeling right.
Read more →
You’ve probably heard of the law of attraction, the idea that whatever you focus on intensely enough will eventually show up in your life. Want to be rich? Visualize the money. Want your dream home? Picture it, believe it, and the universe will supposedly handle the rest.
This law of attraction critique isn’t about tearing down optimism or mocking hope. It’s about taking a closer look at what this philosophy promises — and what it quietly demands in return. There’s value in thinking positively. But there’s also danger in mistaking thoughts for guarantees.
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