The Cognitive Reflection Test Measures the Tendency to Override Intuition
The Cognitive Reflection Test Measures the Tendency to Override Intuition
The Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT) is a short test designed to measure a person's tendency to override an incorrect, intuitive "gut" response and engage in the further reflection needed to find the correct answer.
It is not a test of mathematical ability; the problems are simple. Instead, it measures a specific cognitive style: the willingness to question one's own intuition.
Example Question:
A bat and a ball cost $1.10 in total. The bat costs $1.00 more than the ball. How much does the ball cost?
- Intuitive (but incorrect) answer: 10 cents.
- Reflective (and correct) answer: 5 cents.
People who score low on the CRT tend to go with their first instinct. People who score high tend to pause, check their initial answer, and correct it.
CRT and Misbelief
A lower score on the CRT is correlated with a higher level of belief in conspiracy theories and misinformation. This suggests that a key personality trait of misbelievers is a strong trust in their own intuitions and a disinclination to engage in the effortful cognitive work of verifying those intuitions.
They "feel" that something is true and take that feeling as sufficient evidence, without engaging in the kind of critical self-reflection that would reveal the flaws in their initial judgment.
Tags: #psychology #cognition #crt #intuition #reflection #bias #misbelief