Naïve Cynicism
We expect others to have more selfish motives than they actually do.
Naïve cynicism is a form of cognitive bias identified by Justin Kruger and Thomas Gilovich in which a person fails to recognize their own bias, instead assuming they see the world objectively. They then expect more egocentric bias from other people than there actually is. This is different from healthy skepticism — naïve cynics assume others are always acting from selfish motives even when they are not, creating unnecessary conflict.
What it looks like in the wild.
- Everyday life Political Distrust Partisans assume all actions by opposing politicians are self-serving, even when they align with stated long-term values.
Recognising a definition is not the same skill as spotting it.
Two scenarios from the app, with distractors drawn from the same family of biases — which is what makes them hard.
River is offered a taste of a new recipe by a friend but suspects they are just fishing for compliments on their cooking skills.
Maria's neighbor offers to water her plants while she's away, but she suspects he just wants to check out her house.
Biases rarely arrive alone.
Understand more. Assume less.
188 biases, 18,869 scenarios, and a record of how you actually decide.
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