We tend to believe things that fit in with our prior beliefs and reject those that don’t –
Confirmation Bias
The third area of filtering is with logic and arguments. This is where you place deletion, distortion, and generalization into the argument for your position.
| Situation | You | Partner | ||
| Ad Hominem | Assume the Character of the person sets the quality of the argument |
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| Ad Populum | Just because it is popular it doesn’t mean that it is right | |||
| Anecdotal Evidence | Unrepresentative exceptions. “If it’s fine with Fred it’s okay for all” | |||
| Appeal to Authority | My Professor, whom I admire, likes it so it must be right (experts do disagree?) | |||
| Biased Evidence | Select only those who agree with you | |||
| Euphemisms & Jargon | Use of phrasing to hide or exaggerate – using emotive language or technical words | |||
| Repetition | Repeat until they believe | |||
| Strawman / False Dichotomy | A position is misrepresented in order to create diversionary debating point that is easily destroyed |
(Source: Kathleen MacMillan)
See Also