Collective opinions should speak and reveal truth.
But opinions in their nature are not the benchmark for truth.
What does it mean to have an opinion?
Although not often obvious, it is undeniable that individual school of thoughts shared on social media platforms, now sits very easily on our consciousness as truths even without proof or evidence. But Opinions, Opinions! That is what they are, and should be treated as such first, except proven beyond doubts.
The habit of airlifting opinions as facts or equating them to truths, should be avoided at all cost.
“An opinion is simply a view or judgement, a believe system formed about something, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge.” The nature of opinion is that they are often advice, suggestions given or proposed by informed or uninformed perceptions, feelings and as such they do not always imply fact or truth (they are often subjective and sometimes false factually). Scattered across various timelines in human history are testaments of the devastating effects of uninformed opinions, either given or taken.
For example, in 2014, someone, somewhere felt or thought that drinking large amount of salt water would cure Ebola, this idea (opinion) was shared around without any sort of verification or confirmation of this idea. Lots of people heard it and just took off with it. It is said that in some places more people died from drinking this salt water than they did from the Ebola disease itself.
Since opinions in their nature are often what you think or believe about something, some work is required to efficiently hold one. And some work is also required to take the opinion of others and be influenced by it.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion
Seeing the distressing effect of uninformed opinions in the past and the current trends, especially on social media platforms, makes it very paramount for us to remind ourselves that having or taking an opinion requires work!
Everyone is rightly entitled to their opinion. But not all do the work required to hold one and we seem to often forget this. Social media has made it very easy to widely share opinions. And “social media figures”, especially, now have their opinions considered as facts. People consider these opinions tantamount to facts without doing any work.
Every man has a right to his opinion, but no man has a right to be wrong in his facts.
— Bernard Baruch
The work required to hold an opinion
To do the work required to have an opinion means to have an argument for something, to test that argument and to consider the opposing argument too. Opinions hardly change without the introduction or acceptance of new argument and the willingness to consider new perspectives.
The work required to hold an opinion is not always easy (which is why a lot of people don’t do it)1, it involves intellectual rigorosity and fluidity. You have to be intellectually honest, humble and be able to argue the opposite view. The responsibility that comes with holding an opinion is often underrated and taken for granted.
To be intellectually rigorous in this context would mean to have a thought process that is thorough, consistent with a standard or facts and often without fallacies. Considering a wide range of available knowledge on a topic. While to be intellectually fluid here refers to the quality or ability to be intellectually flexible, honest, and humble enough to challenge your idea. To consider a new or opposing argument. The willingness and eagerness to learn.
To be intellectually rigorous and fluid is to do the research, set up the arguments for a believe system or judgment, to be humble and honest enough to consider the opposing view and accept new data, listen to argument that could change your previous conclusion.
Hurdles on our thought paths.
In our thinking, we all have the tendency to filter our thoughts through certain biases which can prevent us from seeing things objectively or the true state of a thing. These biases are like hurdles on a track. They affect our thought process thereby influencing our conclusions.
Here are the common cognitive biases that keep us from doing the work required to hold an opinion or before taking one.
Confirmation Bias:
This is the cognitive bias where we find evidence that only confirms or support what we already believe. We go out looking for facts, but we look for the information or data that only confirms our previous suspicion. We interpret even new information in such a way that our preconceived idea/prior believes, or conclusions remain intact and fundamentally unchanged.
eg: if you hold the opinion that something was intentionally designed to cause the Coronavirus, then it is easy to immediately see 5G as the cause. Even when it does not make sense scientifically or logically.
We should be ready and willing to doubt what we previously know to avoid this bias, and this usually require intellectual honesty and humility; to consider new arguments.
Often times these preconceived ideas comes from the story we’ve told ourselves or the story we choose to believe and as such we interpret everything through the lens of that story.
Another way to avoid it is breaking out of your echo chamber. To engage with people of different opinions and be willing to listen to their views. Intentionally looking for evidence or idea that disproves your preconceived idea or conclusions.
Authority Bias:
This is the tendency to attribute greater value, accuracy, and weight to the opinion of an authority or a public or social media figure, and be more influenced by that opinion. This happens when we, by default (without reason), put down our own opinion for theirs.
Of course, many public authorities and social figures share opinions that are true and credible, but the truth of such opinion is not a function of their popularity or person. So, because your pastor or favourite social media influencer says 5G causes Coronavirus doesn’t make it true.
Dunning-kruger:
This is the type of bias where we think that we know more than we do or underestimating what we don’t know. True knowledge humbles you, not out of fear of error but in the awareness of how much more there is to know about a topic. To be conscious of this can allow you listen to views different from yours. If you know there is a lot you still do not know, then you might be more willing to listen to a different side of the story.
How can we treat handling/having opinions better?
The simple answer is commit to doing the work required to hold an opinion. This means having a researched facts upon which you build an opinion and being open to examine a contrary fact and argument when you are presented with them. With an open mind to shift what you know for what is true.
It requires intellectual rigor, intellectual honesty, and fluidity.
Test your arguments against logic and make sure your arguments are filtered from multiple biases.
Learning/training to hold opinions that are based on truth, logic and facts, it does not happen in one day, it is a deliberate habit you grow into with daily efforts. I will list other ways that can help
- Read. Read. Read widely. Education is the ability to meet life’s situation.
- Disagree with respect. Oppose opinions but do not attack people.
- Do not take difference in opinions personal or as an attack.
- Understand what opinions are. When it is about a personal preference or taste. And when they are not. For example If someone says “I like this music band because of the consistency in the style of their music over the years” and it happens you don’t like the same band because you feel a bit of assortment in style will add a sense of novelty to their music and make it more enjoyable. You should understand the difference of/in this opinion, personal preferences, and be able to respect such difference.
- Have less opinions on most things, instead know the facts. For most things it is now easy to find the facts as opposed to having strong opinions about them.
- Try not to be quick in sharing an opinion on topics you are ignorant of.
- Listening to someone’s opinion does not mean you should discredit yours.
- Listen to professionals and experts in a field you are forming an opinion on.
- Listen to people with credible track record, people who show intellectual honesty and humility, willing to change their mind with the introduction of new data, argument or evidence.
Finally, refrain from saying the first emotional reaction that pops into your head like they are facts, because by so doing, beyond the possibility of offending those with which you are conversing, other people listening might believe what you are saying is true, thereby misleading people.
If you are in a position of authority where people rely on your opinion, I hope you take that responsibility seriously by doing the work required to hold and share an opinion.
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Sources and credits:
The ideas and opinions expressed in this post about opinions reflects what I have been thinking about lately, some researched ideas, personal reflection, and observations. This post was also motivated and inspired by farnam street’s blog.
Image credit: Emmanuel Okpanachi
hello Isaac!
I really appreciate your work and this particular article. You are helping a lot explaining the “simple” word opinion. Politics should read it!!! I always feel like there are not more real debates in our society… because we are all closed within our “cognitive bubble” socializing only with people who think like us… so yes, your article is SO important! Thanks!