Falling for Bullshit

Abstract “Bullshit receptivity” is a newly validated psychological construct defined as the tendency to perceive meaning in statements that sound profound on the surface but are actually meaningless. Researchers focusing on bullshit receptivity distinguish between persuasive bullshitting intended to “impress and persuade” and “evasive bullshitting” used to cover up lack of knowledge. Although each type has its own psychological underpinnings, various forms of bullshit are pervasive in the world, whether within the pseudoscience of the wellness industry, postmodernism thinking that rejects the premise that objective truths exist, or politics that substitutes bullshit for honest explanations and debates about policy. Although Brandolini’s Law, also known as the “bullshit asymmetry principle,” holds that the amount of energy needed to refute bullshit is an order of magnitude bigger than what’s needed to produce it, immunity to bullshit can be cultivated through analytical thinking.