Ever wonder why the big influencers can get high engagement with the most mundane posts?
Turns out we have ourselves to blame
Ever wonder why the big influencers can get high engagement with the most mundane posts?
Authority Bias. They have a lot of followers, so they must be saying something good.**
While ridiculous, it's real. It’s how we’re wired. Deep down, we want people to look up to. We listen to people of perceived authority.
And when we combine that with Confirmation Bias - they say things we already agree with - look out. All the damn likes.
The real downside: dissent starts to disappear. Ideas get stale. Those same influencers fall into a positive reinforcement trap. If anyone challenges them, their minions swarm.
And that’s how we wind up with bland echo chambers.
Point being: it’s in everyone’s nature to be a follower. We’re literally called “followers” by the social networks. But that doesn’t mean we have to stop using our heads.
Fight your own authority bias. When things smell like bullshit, disagree and disconnect.
(**Also because of engagement pods. Cheaters gonna cheat.)
Gil Cohen (an actual expert in this area, unlike myself) had a more detailed post on Authority Bias recently, here.
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