No association between numerical ability and politically motivated reasoning in a large US probability sample
Michael N. Stagnaro; Ben M Tappin; David G. Rand · 2023 · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
WASTE classifies this as Negative / Null Result Report · AI classification, approximate
The study found no significant effect — useful as a negative control or null benchmark for your own design.
Abstract
The highly influential theory of "Motivated System 2 Reasoning" argues that analytical, deliberative ("System 2") reasoning is hijacked by identity when considering ideologically charged issues-leading people who are more likely to engage in such reasoning to be more polarized, rather than more accurate. Here, we fail to replicate the key empirical support for this theory across five contentious issues, using a large gold-standard nationally representative probability sample of Americans. While participants were more accurate in evaluating a contingency table when the outcome aligned with thei
Abstract by Michael N. Stagnaro; Ben M Tappin; David G. Rand, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2023) — licensed CC BY 4.0.
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Metadata source: OpenAlex · DOI 10.1073/pnas.2301491120