Member-only story
Who you (think you) are shapes what you think
We have multiple identities, and see the world accordingly
Say you spent your youth in Scotland, but have been living in London for over 20 years. Are you a Scots person living in London, or a Londoner with Scottish roots? That may matter more than you might think.
The renowned British sitcom Yes, Minister and its successor Yes, Prime Minister remain, more than 30 years after the last episode aired for the first time, an example not just of superb comedy, but also of splendid depictions of cognitive phenomena in the wild. One of the finest illustrations of framing (the way in which a particular piece of information or proposition is formulated in order to elicit a given response) is an exchange between the cunning civil servant Sir Humphrey Appleby and PM Jim Hacker’s Principal Private Secretary Bernard Woolley.
It concerns the possible reintroduction of military conscription or national service. An opinion poll commissioned by his party has convinced the PM it is popular with the electorate. Sir Humphrey explains how a new opinion poll would produce the opposite result, simply by framing the key question…
