Category Archives: Human Behavior

Human Behavior

‘Nobody is apathetic this year’: CT turnout at 50 percent by noon – The Advocate

Connecticut Secretary of the State Denise Merrill speaks during a webinar on voting Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020 hosted by Fairfield County's Community Foundation. On Election Day, Merrill announced few problems reported to her office by midday and a voter turnout of 75 percent across the state by noon.

Connecticut Secretary of the State Denise Merrill speaks during a webinar on voting Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020 hosted by Fairfield County's Community Foundation. On Election Day, Merrill announced few problems

Photo: John Breunig /Hearst Connecticut Media /

Connecticut Secretary of the State Denise Merrill speaks during a webinar on voting Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020 hosted by Fairfield County's Community Foundation. On Election Day, Merrill announced few problems reported to her office by midday and a voter turnout of 75 percent across the state by noon.

Connecticut Secretary of the State Denise Merrill speaks during a webinar on voting Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2020 hosted by Fairfield County's Community Foundation. On Election Day, Merrill announced few problems

Nobody is apathetic this year: CT turnout at 50 percent by noon

Secretary of the State Denise Merrill said in a noontime news conference in West Hartford that turnout is already 50 percent, about equal to the states voting in the 2016 presidential race.

Twenty five percent are absentee ballots and the rest are people who crowded the states nearly 800 polling places since the predawn.

She said that the more than 2.3 million registered voters is a couple hundred thousand more than usual, and its the largest pool of electors the state has had heading into an election.

There are quite a few people here to vote, she said outside the Charter Oak International Academy. We are hearing all across the state a really, really large turnout.

So clearly people are voting and voting in big numbers. We have had very few problems that have been reported to us. I think its wonderful. I can throw away all those speeches I used to make about the apathy of voters because nobody is apathetic this year thats for sure.

Merrill said that the only problems that have been reported were a few power outages caused by the high winds that were quickly restored. In New London there was a problem with some voters getting the wrong ballots for their state House of Representative districts, and local officials were contacting voters to give them a chance to vote for the correct candidates.

I think these were absentee ballots that went out and there were two districts that got mixed up for a group of voters, but we can rectify, so were going to allow them to vote for all the offices except for the one thats in question, she said. And that would be two different state rep districts, and they are working right now on calling them all, finding out who they are and allowing them to vote on just that office, but their vote will count for everything else.

Asked to describe the turnout, she said: This is one of these deals where you have to figure out what human behavior is going to be. I think a lot of people asked for absentee ballots thinking, Well, Ill keep them and decide at the last minute if I want to go in person, because we did allow them that option. So it just shows, I guess, when you give people options, you dont know exactly which one they are going to take.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated 75 percent of voters in Connecticut had voted by noon, including the 25 percent who cast absentee ballot. The actual turnout was 50 percent, including the absentees.

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'Nobody is apathetic this year': CT turnout at 50 percent by noon - The Advocate

Human Behavior

Author Ted Scott invites readers to witness ‘The Making of a Master’ – GlobeNewswire

ROCKHAMPTON, Australia, Nov. 04, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A unique blend of timeless wisdom set in the entertaining context of an adventure story, The Making of a Master (published by Balboa Press AU) by Ted Scott narrates the moral and spiritual development of a young man who has to endure hardship and privation on the way to gaining wisdom and insight.

Qiang is a peasant farmers son and in his early years, he receives instruction from two Buddhist masters who come to him in different guises where he learns the basic tenets and practices of Buddhism. A great drought forces Qiangs parents to flee the farm with him and his young sister. On their journey Qiangs father, Chao, commits suicide, which leaves Qiang to guide his family. Fortunately the family is adopted by a regional governor, Ruan Xiu, on the basis that Qiang must serve the governor. The governor, a rather austere man aided by Buddhist adepts, sets Qiang a series of trials, which he finally completes to earn his own place as a master and the title Takygulpa Rinpoche.

The Making of a Master is a parable demonstrating in an accessible way what are essentially timeless truths. The book contains important philosophical content embedded in an action story revolving around well-developed characters.

When asked what he wants readers to take away from the story, Scott says, A clearer understanding of how to attain personal serenity and fulfilment.

Visit https://www.balboapress.com/en-au/bookstore/bookdetails/810749-the-making-of-a-master to get a copy of the book.

The Making of a Master

By Ted Scott

Softcover | 6 x 9in | 402 pages | ISBN 9781504322584

E-Book | 402 pages | ISBN 9781504322744

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author

Ted Scott has an extensive background in management in the electricity industry. His career in that industry culminated with his appointment as the CEO of Stanwell Corporation. He received an Order of Australia in the General Division for his contribution to industry and in 2001was nominated as one of Australias top 30 business leaders. He has also served as chairman or director on numerous boards. Since resigning his post in the electricity industry, he pursued a career as an executive coach helping more than 80 executives improve their skills. His principal interest is people and human behavior. As a result, he is well versed in psychology and spirituality. While Scott is not a Buddhist, he found some elements of Buddhist philosophy useful in engaging with his coaching clients on various aspects of spirituality, and consequently has read widely on Buddhism. He is the author of Augustus Finds Serenity, Yu the Dragon Tamer, Froth and Goblets and The Myth of Nine to Five (originally titled Humanity at Work, coauthored with Dr. Phil Harker).

Balboa Press Australia is a division of Hay House, Inc., a leading provider in publishing products that specialise in self-help and the mind, body and spirit genre. Through an alliance with the worldwide self-publishing leader Author Solutions, LLC, authors benefit from the leadership of Hay House Publishing and the speed-to-market advantages of the Author Solutions self-publishing model. For more information or to start publishing today, visit balboapress.com.au/ or call 1-800-844-925.

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Author Ted Scott invites readers to witness 'The Making of a Master' - GlobeNewswire

Human Behavior

University of Texas: Weather does not play significant role in COVID-19 spread – WWLP.com

CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP) Its something thats been studied since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic: how the virus spreads inwarm, humid weather comparedto cold, dry conditions. There was a hope cases in the summer would plummet as the virus itself transmits more easily in cold and dry conditions,but cases continued to increase.

Now, a University of Texas at Austin study confirms that its human behavior, rather than the weather, thats overwhelmingly affecting the spread of COVID-19.

They studied counties, states, countries, and world regions.

At the county scale, the weathers relative importance was less than 3 percent.

This is in contrast to the top contributing factors to COVID-19 growth: taking trips and spending time away from home, as well as population and urban density.

Relative importance of COVID-19 growth:

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University of Texas: Weather does not play significant role in COVID-19 spread - WWLP.com

Human Behavior

Election infection | News, Sports, Jobs – Lock Haven Express

Anyone who spends any amount of time online, and on social media in particular, cannot help but become bombarded by news stories, opinion posts, expert video breakdowns of whats really happening all around us.

So much of this shared virtual space seems dedicated to breaking down and reconstructing the political structure, to shared and re-shared monologues on the state of the nation, long chains of opinions and facts blurred together and passed again and again throughout the information network, facsimiles of facsimiles of facsimiles

I am reminded in all of this of a famous quote, one I found online, by president Abraham Lincoln: Dont believe everything you read on the internet.

Misinformation tactics, fake news on social media, political propaganda networks bent on pressuring the publics vision of reality consistently enough that they cant help but start conforming: these are not new subjects.

Get people to start using your words, and they will start sharing your vision, a strategy as old as political cynicism.

We probably dont need this reminder.

We certainly dont need to be told that social media is bursting with dubious content.

And yet

As has been variously reported and consistently suffered anecdotally, online misinformation spikes during election seasons.

Both internationally and domestically, bad faith actors fill the various media ecosystems with deceptive, self-serving informational junk food.

The kinds of stories and reports that push on the pleasure centers of our brain, exploiting our worst instincts and clogging the bloodstream of our democracy.

When given the option to consume easy media narratives that prove us right and them wrong and that taste like sweet retribution and savory political comeuppance, we often cant help ourselves; or rather, we dont know any better than to say no.

Online media literacy is the kind of skill that has only existed for several decades and has been widely important for even fewer.

The phrase fake news entered the public discourse sometime during the previous presidential election cycle, but instead of keying us into a heightened awareness of the way we consume media, it largely did the opposite, giving us permission to reject information we dont like as fake in favor of information we do.

Social media platforms like Facebook, meanwhile, have been designed specifically to cater to these impulses.

To a large extent, its not anyones fault that the majority of the population doesnt have this newly necessary skill of digital media literacy.

How could we?

Not that media literacy (i.e. the ability to evaluate the context and trustworthiness of things like news stories and published opinions) is something weve never cared about.

But the scale of the issue online takes proportions and evolves at rates that are difficult to fathom.

You cant blame someone for never being taught to swim, but in a world quickly filling with water, we will survive or perish depending on our ability to learn.

And thats just it, isnt it?

The existential threat of it all. This is an issue that affects the stability of our democracy, of our global ecosystem.

But perhaps most tangibly important, it threatens our local community.

One thing everyone can probably agree on is that the divisions between us and our neighbors are higher, more personal, more spiteful.

We feel like were all out to get each other, and we often are. Those political gotchas on Facebook, the pit in our stomach when someone we care about signals support for the other side, these small moments have the ability to consume entire days at a time.

We can turn away from the issue entirely, get off the social media grid, go offline.

This feels like an increasingly appealing solution, something Facebook has recently mimed with its decision to ban all political advertising on the platform up through the presidential election.

But this seems unlikely to be effective as a widespread solution. Its hard to change the course of history by appealing to the past.

The other option, then, is widespread learning.

Schools across the country have increasingly focused on these kinds of skills, and I can say from my own experience teaching college composition courses, digital media literacy has taken a central role.

Recent studies have indicated that younger age groups are less likely to share false or misleading news stories.

But in a world verging on ecological collapse, we ought to worry whether this improvement is happening quickly enough.

What else can be done to address this issue?

One helpful shortcut Ive found is to turn inward rather than outward, that is, to acknowledge the three proverbial fingers pointed back at us whenever we point out the shortcomings of others. In practice, this means recognizing when a political news story makes us feel good.

Its always a good literacy practice to learn to be especially skeptical of the ideas we most agree with.

This is how misinformation thrives and spreads, packaged and presented as exactly what we want to hear.

Were naturally less skeptical of things we agree with because, well, we already know were right.

And because we know were right, we tend not to worry if we might be wrong.

Instead of immediately sharing that news story, that monologue from the expert, repeating the opinion we heard on our favorite talk radio show, we might want to reflect on this reflex and realize just how little thought we put into the matter.

It usually isnt all that much.

We come to see how much more were focused on winning the argument than getting to the truth or resolving the issue at hand.

We realize the world is a bit more complicated than wed like it to be, and though that can be scary and paralyzing, we ought to know and try better.

It goes without saying that, though digital media literacy is an issue within contemporary politics, it is not a political issue.

This is a human behavior issue, and as we are all human, this is an issue we all face.

It is wrapped up in instincts we cannot eliminate but can at least monitor and keep in check.

Personal awareness of our media habits might seem like a small solution in the face of such large, existential problems, but its one of the few ways to make a direct and individual impact.

On its own, it probably isnt enough, but its something.

Von P. Wise II is a freelance writer formerly of Lock Haven. He can be contacted at vonpwise@gmail.com

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Election infection | News, Sports, Jobs - Lock Haven Express

Human Behavior

Benson Show Gentle Rant: ‘How’d Things Ever Get This Crazy?’ – wkfr.com

The actual lyric is "She wonders how it ever got this crazy". It's a line from an old Eagles song (Lyin' Eyes). Maybe you thought it, too. You look around you and it's hard not to think "this is nuts."

There's also another gleaming platitude: "Those who don't pay attention to history are doomed to repeat it." I think of that a lot, too. The comforting thing about history is having the knowledge that it's been crazy like this plenty of times before in our past. Dirty elections are as old as this earth. It's the other stuff that's scary. Yes, we'll finally get it right eventually but that path is long and difficult. And what's even more troubling is we never seem to learn.

It doesn't matter whether it's the lessons taught in school about respect, or loving your fellow human - lessons taught in Sunday School, or even something as basic as The Golden Rule, it just seems like the system broken down. It's as if all the rules about decent human behavior went away. Between the pandemic and the election, suddenly it's been open season on friends, neighbors, strangers, anyone who doesn't think exactly like we do.

I could tell you what I think are some of the problems, but I'm not sure I'm right, and I'm even more sure I don't want the push back from everyone who thinks I'm wrong.

I'm old enough to remember the turbulent times of the late 1960's and early '70's. Everybody preached peace, love and brotherhood, getting along. Looking back, it's obvious those were nothing but empty words. It simply fooled some of us into thinking that things would get better. But we don't treat each other better. We are more polarized, more angry, more everything than ever before. And coupled with that, is that "I'm smarter than you" attitude that permeates.

Many people talk about the days after 9-11 when for a few short weeks we were all Americans, united. That was another mirage.

The point of all this wasn't to be depressing, even though it sure does sound like it. It's just the end of a long, depressing election season, coupled with a virus that is making a return appearance, maybe even more deadly than the first time.

I hope you can still hug and kiss your loved ones, that you are healthy and at least somewhat prosperous, and that you can enjoy your favorite bevy with friends who you like and who like you back, even if you don't agree on things. (I'm very lucky to be able to say yes to that.).

And Dear God, please save us from ourselves.

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Benson Show Gentle Rant: 'How'd Things Ever Get This Crazy?' - wkfr.com

Human Behavior

The future of grizzlies comes down to the choices we make – Explore Big Sky

By Todd Wilkinson EBS Environmental Columnist

The confirmed sighting in October of a grizzly in the lower reaches of Bear Canyon just southeast of Bozeman is yet another reminder of how close the big bruins are now living near peoplein this case within the exurban outskirts of the fastest-growing micropolitan city in America.

Not only is that considered extraordinary for Westerners entering the third decade of this new millennium, but such a happening was believed unthinkable 45 years ago when the Greater Yellowstone population of grizzlies was given federal protection as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act.

For decades, the only grizzlies that came close to busy four-lane Interstate 90 connecting Bozeman with Livingston over Bozeman Pass were captive bears residing at a roadside zoo.

But in mid-October, bow hunter Dash Rodman was sitting in a tree when he saw what he believed to be a grizzly strolling beneath his perch high above the ground along the riparian corridor of Bear Creek.Later, Bear Canyon resident Renee Thill posted a short video of the bruin by Rodman and a photo of a paw print in the snow.

Called to investigate, Kevin Frey, a longtime bear management specialist with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, paid a visit to Bear Canyon on Sunday Oct. 18, finding a strand of ursid hair on a fence but no tracks in the mud. Still, upon reviewing Rodmans film, he said,Yes, definitely a grizzly; it looked to be a subadult. The thing is that if the archery hunter hadnt been there when the bear passed through, the world probably would never have known the bear had come down the creek corridor and then probably went back up into the mountains.

While not surprising to Frey, the sighting created a sensation of speculation on social media. Bear Canyon is a drainage with a road that dead ends and along the way are homes and two busy trailheads leading across state lands and the Custer-Gallatin National Forest. Indeed, this place-name lives up to its moniker.

Seeing a grizzly only a few miles, as the crow flies, from Bozemans Main Street is a big deal even for old-timers. But Frey says grizzlies, in fact, have been wandering the northern front face of the Gallatin Range where it meets the Gallatin Valley for a few years and most people are unaware.

Many bruin navigations have largely happened without incident because the grizzlies have done a good job of avoiding people, Frey says, though he is concerned that close and potentially dangerous encounters could occur as more outdoor recreationists pour into the Gallatins, venturing off established trails and increasing the likelihood of bumping into a bear.

As far as bears go, I call it a waltz, Frey said. They are dancing in a forest full of obstacles and people sometimes behaving like chickens with their heads cut off. The bears are doing their best to avoid us. They are not seeking trouble, Frey says, noting that its human behavior that will determine if bears have a future there.

Frey is amazed at how growth in the human population of Bozeman and greater Gallatin Valley is quickly affecting (negatively) how wildlife are using landscapes and how they mightor might notmove through them in the future.

Frey says theres no doubt in his mind that the Greater Yellowstone grizzly population is healthy and has met criteria that determines whether it is biologically recovered. He believes the population can be delisted.

From a population that dipped to around 130 grizzlies or fewer in this entire massive ecosystem, equal in size to New England, and with bears mostly clustered 50 years ago only in Yellowstone Park, the regional population today is more than 700. Recovery has happened only because humans changed their lethal behavior and made habitat protection a priority.

While indeed bears are showing up in places where they havent been in a century or more, theyre paradoxically facing shrinking and more fragmented habitat from more development and rises in recreation users, he said.

Bear Canyon represents kind of a microcosm for pondering the challenges of human-wildlife coexistence in Greater Yellowstone, he notes, and thinking about what wildnessis. Lots of weedy, highly adaptable species, such as white-tailed deer, coyotes and maybe half-tamed elk and moose can navigate the wildland-urban interface, but having grizzlies is a test of human smarts and responsibility.

Given the inundation of COVID-19 refugees and transplants occurring in Bozeman, as expressed in a recentWashington Poststory, its clear that many in the drove, drawn to what they perceive to be paradise, have little wherewithal when it comes to coexisting with a rare caliber of wildness far beyond anything they had previously known.

Irrational fear about bears and other carnivores like mountain lions is what historically led to a lack of human tolerance for those species and eventually left them rubbed out of the landscape. Can they learn to be bear wise? Will even local Bozemanians and residents of Big Sky realize the miracle that it is to have grizzlies present in the citys public lands backyard? Time will tell, Frey says.

Todd Wilkinson is the founder of Bozeman-basedMountain Journal and is a correspondent for National Geographic. Hes also the author ofthe book Grizzlies of Pilgrim Creek, featuring photography by Thomas D. Mangelsen,about famous Jackson Hole grizzly bear 399.

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Human Behavior

Amplifire Secures Patent for Analytics Regarding the Confidence of Learners – BioSpace

BOULDER, Colo., Nov. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Amplifire, an eLearning company, announced today the award of an additional patent by the United States Patent Office. Amplifire holds patents issued in the US, EU, Australia, Canada, Japan, South Korea, and other countries and jurisdictions worldwide. The new patent is titled Display and Report Generation Platform for Testing Results.

"Our customers view knowledge as a strategic way to compete."

The new patent, US Patent No. 10,803,765, is directed to aspects of Amplifire's learning platform, which includes unique Answer Key and Reporting Dashboard features. The Answer Key allows learners to signify both their confidence and answer choice in one click, which fosters greater metacognition. The Reporting Dashboard builds visual analytics displaying a learner's misinformation, uncertainty, and struggle in bar charts and heatmaps. Search and sorting features allow managers or instructors to see their organization's knowledge at any scale, from individual to team to division, and across the enterprise.

Confidence measures shown in the reporting dashboard are essential because confidence is the precursor to human behavior. It appears as internal thoughts such as, "I've got this," or, "I haven't a clue what to do." The Amplifire dashboard reports and sorts using the confidence a learner displayed when they answered questions in the assessment phase of learning and subsequent refreshers. The most dangerous form of confidence occurs when a learner is sure but incorrect, referred to as confidently held misinformation, driving them towards a mistake.

The ability to see how confidence is bound to knowledge gives learning officers, administrators, and instructors a window into the risk of future mistakes in their workforce. Visualizing human fallibilities such as misinformation, uncertainty, and struggle lends unprecedented guidance to managers and instructors. For the first time, they can see the people who improve in the platform, where pockets of risk lie, and who needs at-the-elbow help.

Amplifire CEO, Bob Burgin, noted, "We are proud that the US Patent Office noticed our reporting dashboard's unique features and awarded our efforts with a patent. Amplifire's product development team regularly thinks up new ways to help people overcome the knowledge problems inherent in the human condition. Our customers view knowledge as a way to compete. They understand it's strategically in their interest to help their people reach new levels of performance."

About AmplifireWith over 2.4 billion learner interactions, Amplifire (www.amplifire.com) is the leading adaptive learning platform built from discoveries in brain science that help learners master information faster, retain knowledge longer, and perform their jobs better. It detects and corrects the knowledge gaps and misinformation that exist in the minds of all humans so they can better attain their real potential. Healthcare, education, and Fortune 500 companies use Amplifire's patented learning algorithms, analytics, and diagnostics to drive exceptional outcomes with a significant return on their investment.

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Human Behavior

What can we learn from failed attempts to change people’s behavior? – Trading U

By Layal Liverpool

Failed behavioral interventions often share common characteristics

cienpies

A study of interventions to modify human behavior suggests that those who fail share common characteristics.

Identifying these traits could help predict possible avenues in which future interventions could fail and provide an opportunity to prevent it from happening, says Magda Osman of Queen Mary University of London.

Osman and her colleagues analyzed 65 articles published between 2008 and 2019 that identified failed behavioral interventions, including nudges subtle suggestions for influencing people's behavior.

They found that behavioral interventions based on social comparisons and social norms, such as encouraging people to adopt a behavior by pointing out that it is general or normal behavior in society, made up the majority 40 percent of the failed interventions examined.

Other strategies that emerged among the failed interventions were those that sent messages through letters or texts (24 percent) or by labeling products (12 percent), and those that relied on default settings, such as opt-in or opt -Out strategies (15 percent).

The researchers also categorized different ways in which interventions failed, such as by having no effect at all or by backfiring and causing an undesirable side effect. Considering both the type of behavioral intervention and the possible ways in which interventions might fail beforehand could help in designing more successful interventions, says Osman.

Osman and her team develop models that, based on their analysis of failed interventions, can predict how a particular behavioral intervention could play out. "You can simulate different outcomes before doing a behavioral intervention that might fail," which could save time and money, she says.

Journal reference: Trends in Cognitive Sciences, DOI: 10.1016 / j.tics.2020.09.009

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What can we learn from failed attempts to change people's behavior? - Trading U

Human Behavior

To Build It Back Better, Rethink Human Nature – NationSwell

For #BuildItBackBetter, NationSwell asked some of our nations most celebrated purpose-driven leaders how theyd build a society that is more equitable and resilient than the one we had before COVID-19. We have compiled and lightly edited their answers.

This article is part of the #BuildItBackBetter track The Relational Era: Building a Culture of Connection, Bridging and Belonging presented in partnership withEinhorn Collaborative.

Because people suck.

Thats the campaign slogan of Oliver, a Massachusetts goldendoodle who is running a long-shot bid for the White House against two more well-known human opponents: President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden.

Anyone who has been following American politics for the past four years really, anyone who has even glanced at cable news or their social media feed might be inclined to agree with Olivers campaign. Racism, xenophobia, greed, and polarization all seem to be the norm, peppered with casual violence and hateful speech. Its enough to make you downgrade your views of humanity and cast your lot with (if not your ballot for) a goldendoodle.

But that would be a serious mistake, especially for workplace and educational leaders. Because while its easy to feel discouraged these days, things will get even worse if we succumb to the notion that people suck and that our species and our country is beyond redemption.

Thats because our assumptions and expectations about human nature actually seem to dictate human behavior. For instance, a study from the University of Wisconsin-Madison published recently found that having a more optimistic view of human nature actually influences more positive behavior in real life. But the opposite seems to be true as well: When children believe that aggressive, antisocial behavior is the norm, theyre more likely to behave badly as they get older.

This means we need to guard against the assumption that people are born bad. It also means we can encourage better behavior by designing our institutions, from our schools to our workplaces, to spread more positive messages about humanity.

To build a culture that values honesty and cooperation over, say, back-biting and divisiveness research offers a few important lessons and strategies.

1. Language matters. The words we use to describe our world actually influence how we behave in the world. When we convey that we expect people to cooperate and look out for each other, we increase the odds that theyll actually do so.

In one study, for instance, Stanford University researchers had people play a game where they could either work together to achieve a common goal or compete with their partner. When people were told they were playing the Community Game, they were more than twice as likely to cooperate with their partner than when they were playing the Wall Street Gameeven though it was actually the same game.

2. Images matter. In case you had any doubt about the power of images, consider this study: Toddlers were shown a series of pictures, then encountered an adult who needed help with a task. When they saw images that had dolls facing each other in the background of each image, the kids were three times more likely to help the adult than after seeing single dolls, or dolls facing away from each other, in the image backgrounds.

In other words, humans are so primed for connection that even just the mere hint of affiliation between people is enough to dramatically change our behavior for the better. The dynamics in an office or a classroom can be transformed, then, when we recognize this human drive for kindness and connectionand surround ourselves with images that evoke it.

3. Actions matter. We typically associate copycat behavior with crimes. But evidence suggests people, especially kids, emulate the good as well as the bad. A study in the Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, for example, found that kids as young as two years old are much more like to help people in need when they see other people do so first.

So dont assume humans are inexorably immoral, and nothing you do matters. Theres no telling how your own good behavior might inspire others to follow suit. In fact, a study published in theProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that when one person behaves generously, it inspires observers to behave generously later, toward different people. In fact, the researchers found that kindness could spread by three degrees across a social network. As a result, they write, each person in a network can influence dozens or even hundreds of people, some of whom he or she does not know and has not met.

None of this is to suggest that the violence and conflict we see around us is an illusion; but it does mean that its not inevitable. By changing the story we tell about human nature, and designing our institutions around the deep human potential for goodness, we can build a world that makes us proud.

Jason Marsh is the Executive Director of the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley and the founding editor-in-chief of the centers online magazine, Greater Good.

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To Build It Back Better, Rethink Human Nature - NationSwell

Human Behavior

Here’s how to prevent the spread of misinformation – Virginia Mercury

A version of this articleoriginally originally appeared in theBehavioral Scientist,a magazine that examines the world through the science of human behavior.

By Elizabeth Weingarten and Rosii Floreak

If you were trying to picture a misinformation spreader, your first step probably wouldnt be to look in the mirror. But inour workexamining the psychology of misinformation, we discovered something surprising: Not only are we all susceptible to becoming misinformation spreaders, but the methods many of us are using tostopthe spread of falsehoods could be inadvertently propagating them.

Addressing this behavioral blindspot is urgent. With days left until Election Day and millions of Americans already heading to the polls, election officials, journalists, social media companies and concerned citizens are working overtime to tighten the misinformation spigot. But without a deeper understanding of how people start to believe and share misinformation, many well-intentioned people could unwittingly accelerate the flow of falsehoods.

Its vexingly easy to be a spreader of misinformation, but becoming someone who instead inhibits its spread is intuitive, too, once you have a better understanding of the role that psychology plays. Below, we share three research-backed tips to be a smarter sharer of election information on social media the equivalent of wearing a mask or physically distancing online.

Lets take media outlets as an example. Journalists are dedicated to finding and sharing facts. And yet, even well-intentioned reporters can inadvertently spread misinformation, even as they seek to raise awareness around its dubiousness. For instance, the Associated Press produces Not Real News, a weekly roundup which consists of some of the most popular but completely untrue stories and visuals of the week. None of these are legit, even though they were shared widely on social media.

Another common strategy to squelch misinformation, used by all kinds of communicators, is myth-busting, where myths are often bolded and highlighted, and the facts are detailed less colorfully (and prominently) below. Even more pernicious are the statements that attempt to negate a myth, such as you shouldnt vote twice.

When misinformation circulates, its tempting to repeat the same falsehood, interact directly with the post, or to harvest it for an eye-catching tweet. In both cases, these good intentions can backfire. These strategies risk bumping the misinformation up in social media algorithms and exposing more people to the lie, or exposing them more than once. And that repeated exposure can be dangerous: Behavioral science research suggests that people aremore likely to believe, and alsoshare, false claims after hearing them once or even remember them as true.A sense of familiarity can be mistaken for veracity.

Instead of staying anchored to myths (which we know spreadfasterthan facts) or attempting to negate them, rewrite posts and communications to focus on the facts, avoiding any repetition of falsehoods. In other words,rebuild a narrative around the truth. You shouldnt vote twice becomes You should vote one time.

Another example is thisguide to voting at home developed by the National Vote at Home Institute with our support. The guide acknowledges misinformation without repeating it, explaining that There are many myths about the vote-by-mail process, and information voters hear from politicians may not always be true. The truth is that voting by mail is safe, secure and reliable.

Another well-intentioned strategy that can backfire: general warnings about misinformation.Research suggeststhat when voters lack a clear understanding of where misinformation can come from or what it might look like, they begin to distrust all sources of information. Instead, communicators can get more specific, including in their messages about the specific falsehood theyre warning against.

For instance, a warning about misinformation around when and where to vote on Election Day could be replaced with posts that clearly share you guessed it the facts onwhere and when to voteon Election Day. They can also go beyond the misinformation warning by sharing where voters can find facts, or by sharing tools to help voters recognize not only that misinformation exists, but also how it works.

This tweetfrom the city of San Rafael, California, which pairs a warning about misinformation with a link to where voters can go to find the truth, is a great example. So isthis game, created by researchers at the University of Cambridge and the U.K. government, which shows people how misinformation metastasizes, and how all of us are vulnerable to spreading it.

Part of learning how to fight misinformation more effectively could also mean putting certain social media best practices on a brief hiatus. Chances are, if youre a social media user, youve been taught to vary the framing and language of your posts even if youre saying something similar. Creativity is king, and drives more engagement. But in the fight against misinformation, redundancy reigns.

The key is repeating the facts with the same language over and over, across different platforms. One easy way to do this: Retweet official information from election administrators who dont have large social media followings. That way, you can help reduce the chances that voters will get conflicting messages from different sources.

Most of us, of course, arenot misinformation spreaders. But some of us may be more like a little kid who sneezes in the face of an adult: They arenttryingto spread their germs. They just havent learned that most crucial form of etiquette: Cover your nose.

Its not too late for all of us to learn how to be more responsible stewards of information online. The health of our democracy depends on it.

Elizabeth Weingarten is managing editor of the Behavioral Scientist and a senior associate at ideas42, one of the Behavioral Scientists founding partners. Rosii Floreak is a senior associate at ideas42, applying insights about how people make decisions to make government, cities, and social services work better for people.

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Here's how to prevent the spread of misinformation - Virginia Mercury