What causes people to ignore obvious, rational, and good advice?

CaspianXI@lemmy.world to Ask Lemmy@lemmy.world – 0 points –
7

The belief that the advice somehow conflicts with their identity

We confuse the fact that brains can be rational with the belief that brains are always rational. Mostly we just rationalize our beliefs rather than generate rational answers.

The allure of an easier or more comfortable alternative. It's never nice being forced out of your confort zone, but like any exercise worth doing, mental or physical, you never regret it in hindsight.

There are a lot of reasons you might, here’s a decent article on it:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/strategic-thinking/201303/why-we-ignore-good-advice?amp

Fascinating article -- thanks for sharing!

According to Gino “we are trying to make a good impression on others, and show them we are knowledgeable and competent individuals.” Taking advice somehow feels like admitting that we don’t really deserve our high status.

Oh, the irony... since ignoring obvious advice only makes us look even more stupid.

Context is everything. I don't want a doctor asking me what we should do, I do want my manager to ask me for input.