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Game Theory Research Suggests We Can’t Ever Fully Learn From Our Mistakes
We like to think we’re superior rational creatures, but research reminds us that we’re also selfish and emotional animals that don’t always learn from our mistakes.
The Enlightenment, which occurred during the 17th and 18th centuries, led us to believe that humans are, by nature, rational creatures. And that our rational, logical mind separates and elevates us from the rest of the animal kingdom. There may be a seed of Truth buried in there somewhere, but just because we’re capable of rational thinking doesn’t mean we utilize it.
We can be compassionate and ambivalent toward others, but we can also be apathetic or even cruel when it serves us. Similarly, thinking about things with a strictly logical lens is shockingly tricky when emotions are involved.
Still, we tend to focus on the qualities we take pride in, like rational thinking, while keeping our more animal instincts in the shadows. Consequently, many social theories about Human behavior rely on these assumptions, but a growing pile of scientific research is holding up a mirror.
