Today we welcome David McRaney. He is a science journalist fascinated with brains, minds, and culture. In 2012, he created the podcast You Are Not So Smart based on his 2009 internationally bestselling book of the same name and its follow-up, You Are Now Less Dumb. David is also an editor, photographer, voiceover artist, television host, journalism teacher, lecturer, and tornado survivor. His most recent book is called How Minds Change.

In this episode, I talk to David McRaney about the science of belief and persuasion. In this day and age of online tribes and echo chambers, changing people’s opinions seems like an impossible task. Instead of arguing over facts, David encourages us to use empathy to understand why we disagree. He explains Piaget's framework behind knowledge building and shares the use of technique rebuttal for sincere conversations.

Website: www.davidmcraney.com

Twitter: @davidmcraney

Topics

02:12 David’s interest in how minds change

08:41 Piaget's Genetic Epistemology

13:49 Focus on motivations, not conclusions

16:35 Why do people see the viral 2015 dress differently? 

23:44 How we produce and evaluate arguments

28:36 We’re living in a post trust world

32:32 How to change minds in large groups

44:33 Cults and conspiratorial communities

52:57 Technique rebuttal