The One-Cause Trap: How The Mind Simplifies Reality (And How You Can Take Advantage of It)

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There are two things you should always remember when trying to convince anyone of anything.

1 - The primary goals of the human brain, and by extension the subconscious, are survival and procreation. And
2 - The human brain is lazy. And when it’s survival isn’t challenged or its need to procreate isn’t stimulated the subconscious will default to the lowest, most energy efficient options.

One way a brain conserves calories manifests as something referred to as single cause bias. This is the cognitive tendency to attribute a single, easily identifiable cause to complex phenomena — The company failed because of "poor leadership." The political movement grew due to "economic anxiety." They broke up because of a "a lack of communication." Simple, direct explanations that bathe us in the comfort of clarity and certainty while ignoring the nuances and complexities of reality.

This is a mechanism has served us well for millions of years. From an evolutionary standpoint single cause bias makes sense. It allowed for quick decision making (the hunter-gatherer who presumes that the rustling in the bushes is a predator rather than stopping to ponder doesn’t get eaten as often). Additionally error management theory comes into play where overestimating risk leads to safer outcomes (a hunter gatherer, or any human really, who presumes "all dark clouds mean a dangerous storm" may overreact occasionally but is less likely to be caught unprepared in life-threatening weather).

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