That's why when you hear someone say "I do my own research" you don't think "this person must be highly educated" but rather "this person listens to 'alternative' media."

Just because you consume a different kind of propaganda, doesn't make you wiser, it makes you have a different set of biases.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 7 months ago (1 children)

It's also important to remember that being aware of the psychological effects of something does not make you immune to those effects, or even consistently lessen them in a measurable way.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Placebo works even when the subject knows it's a placebo.

[–] [email protected] -3 points 7 months ago (1 children)

There's a difference between placebo and plain ignorance

[–] [email protected] 1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

https://www.health.harvard.edu/mental-health/the-power-of-the-placebo-effect

A study led by Kaptchuk and published in Science Translational Medicine explored this by testing how people reacted to migraine pain medication. One group took a migraine drug labeled with the drug's name, another took a placebo labeled "placebo," and a third group took nothing. The researchers discovered that the placebo was 50% as effective as the real drug to reduce pain after a migraine attack.

The researchers speculated that a driving force beyond this reaction was the simple act of taking a pill. "People associate the ritual of taking medicine as a positive healing effect," says Kaptchuk. "Even if they know it's not medicine, the action itself can stimulate the brain into thinking the body is being healed."

[–] [email protected] -2 points 7 months ago (1 children)

But pain is a different context to sociology

[–] [email protected] 1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Yeah, pain is more tangible and actually experienced, whereas what society actually looks like is 99% vibes and personal biases.

So this applies even more to sociology than to painkillers.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Take how many people think they can't be racist. Pain is also a psychological effect.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 7 months ago

What the fuck are you talking about? These two things aren't even remotely alike.