Gonna riff on this because it& #39;s goes to one of my favorite questions: How do people come to believe what they come to believe, esp during periods of high uncertainty when they HAVE to make a decision—ie, voting in an election, or deciding on how to behave during a global plague? https://twitter.com/MattGrossmann/status/1312374092444598273">https://twitter.com/MattGross...

I think we can be honest that most people& #39;s behavior right now is a blend of:

a) scientific semi-comprehension
b) social mimicry
c) socio-political motivated reasoning
d) prior values

... with different emphasis given to various parts of that portfolio, depending on the person

My (a)-thru-(d) is something like:

a) COVID is airborne, thrives in unventilated spaces
b) my friends/contacts are pro-mask
c) most ppl who disagree with a/b are from another tribe, so I discount their views
d) i trust scientists, not the white house

I& #39;d guess many Trumpers/WH workers have a different set:

(a) COVID isn& #39;t serious, doesn& #39;t affect most ppl
(b) everyone around me says we& #39;re overreacting
(c) most ppl who disagree with a/b are from another tribe, so I discount their views
(d) Trump& #39;s my guy, liberals are annoying

Our decisions in uncertain periods flows from a portfolio of social advertising and political motivations and defensive maneuvers to preserve our identity. The tragedy is that the right has built an identity that& #39;s so antagonized by appeals to science and social thinking.