Resident Loser
08-09-2006, 05:39 AM
...this salient point could apply to nearly everything...from this past Sunday NYT automobile section:
Dr. Carl Haugtvedt, a social psychologist who is an associate professor of marketing logistics at Ohio State University, said that the kind of faith that draws consumers to gadgets like these was actually important to human mental health. Part of the attraction stems from hopefulness and a willingness to trust that something can improve a painful situation. Another factor is self-delusion, which protects the ego by letting a person overlook bad decisions.
“You could admit to yourself that you were wrong, you wasted this money, you burned this money, say ‘I’m an idiot,’ ” Dr. Haugtvedt said. “That’s very tough on the self.”
People who are hopeful enough to try out a fuel-economy enhancer will look for any positive sign they can find to convince themselves that they made a good decision. They may put the device in their car and, at the same time, get a tune-up — something suggested in the installation instructions with many devices. Or, because the owners are paying more attention to their cars, they may realize that their tires are underinflated and add some air. Then, each time they add fuel at the gas pump, they attribute any mileage gain to the device.
Read the entire article here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/06/automobiles/06GIZMO.html
jimHJJ(...snake-oil is snake-oil...)
Dr. Carl Haugtvedt, a social psychologist who is an associate professor of marketing logistics at Ohio State University, said that the kind of faith that draws consumers to gadgets like these was actually important to human mental health. Part of the attraction stems from hopefulness and a willingness to trust that something can improve a painful situation. Another factor is self-delusion, which protects the ego by letting a person overlook bad decisions.
“You could admit to yourself that you were wrong, you wasted this money, you burned this money, say ‘I’m an idiot,’ ” Dr. Haugtvedt said. “That’s very tough on the self.”
People who are hopeful enough to try out a fuel-economy enhancer will look for any positive sign they can find to convince themselves that they made a good decision. They may put the device in their car and, at the same time, get a tune-up — something suggested in the installation instructions with many devices. Or, because the owners are paying more attention to their cars, they may realize that their tires are underinflated and add some air. Then, each time they add fuel at the gas pump, they attribute any mileage gain to the device.
Read the entire article here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/06/automobiles/06GIZMO.html
jimHJJ(...snake-oil is snake-oil...)