The rationality project is kind of built around a bunch of famous psychology experiments that were reported in the book Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahnemann. Since the book was first published, the replication crisis in psychology happened, and a number of famous studies failed to replicate. The most famous example is the priming effect, which was mentioned prominently in TFAS, and Kahnemann has admitted later does not hold up. This week, we're going to look at which among a bunch of rationality or other life advice-adjacent psychology studies actually survived the replication crisis.
Activity
Bring your laptops (or other device that you feel comfortable using the internet and typing on)! We'll first hammer out a research agenda, and then get to work. Here's a list of things that can be included in the research agenda, but feel free to suggest more.
What was wrong with the initial studies that failed to replicate? Was there small sample size, publication bias, p-hacking? What sources and heuristics should we use going forward when evaluating psychology claims?
Which pieces of self-help advice or policy should be abandoned due to failure of replication? Where the evidence is genuinely uncertain, what's the right credence to hold? Are there areas where the replication failures don't matter much for practical advice?
Location
Meet at Holland Village MRT Exit B (underground part) at 3 pm. We will wait for everyone to gather for 10-15 minutes, and then head over to my nearby apartment. If you've been here before, feel free to come directly to the apartment (though you may need to wait to be let in).
Some snacks will be provided. There are many restaurants and a hawker centre nearby, if you want to buy your own food.
The rationality project is kind of built around a bunch of famous psychology experiments that were reported in the book Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahnemann. Since the book was first published, the replication crisis in psychology happened, and a number of famous studies failed to replicate. The most famous example is the priming effect, which was mentioned prominently in TFAS, and Kahnemann has admitted later does not hold up. This week, we're going to look at which among a bunch of rationality or other life advice-adjacent psychology studies actually survived the replication crisis.
Activity
Bring your laptops (or other device that you feel comfortable using the internet and typing on)! We'll first hammer out a research agenda, and then get to work. Here's a list of things that can be included in the research agenda, but feel free to suggest more.
Location
Meet at Holland Village MRT Exit B (underground part) at 3 pm. We will wait for everyone to gather for 10-15 minutes, and then head over to my nearby apartment. If you've been here before, feel free to come directly to the apartment (though you may need to wait to be let in).
Some snacks will be provided. There are many restaurants and a hawker centre nearby, if you want to buy your own food.
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