" Me? Never! " - Thesis Project

“Me? Never” is a series of illustrations that question the existence of free will by looking at behavioural brain processes, biases and effects.

“Does free will exists?” is the eternal question asked by humanity and the starting point for this thesis project. Free will is the ability to choose different possible courses of action free of obstructions. It is closely related to the feeling of guilt, sin, moral responsibilities, as well as praise, pride and sense of achievement. If it exists, then we are fully responsible for our actions, both positive and negative, and so we are to blame for our successes and failures. If it doesn’t exist, then we should be neither proud nor guilty of the way we live and behave.

For the purpose of this thesis, I’ve decided to take a stand on the opposite side of free will and argue that it’s merely an illusion.

Illustration #1: Choice-Supportive Bias

Choice-supportive bias 👉 is the tendency to retroactively ascribe positive ☺️ attributes to an option one has selected and/or to demote 🙅‍♀️ the forgone options. It is part of cognitive science, and is a cognitive bias that occurs once a decision is made. ✅

To show the choice-supportive bias, let’s look at the idea of buying a dog 🐶. No matter the consequences, the decision is always justified, even if it costs you 💲😵💲…

[ click on any image to expand it, and double tap to zoom in! 🙂 ]

Illustration #2: The Backfire Effect

The backfire effect 👉 is one manifestation of confirmation bias, the tendency of people to give more credence 🙌 to evidence that supports their preexisting beliefs 🤓.

To show this effect in action, let’s look at the common belief that little boys 👦 are messier 💩 than little girls 👧. That’s a pre-existing belief, and it’s shown here through this somewhat light-hearted and silly scenario.

[ click on any image to expand it, and double tap to zoom in! 🙂 ]

Illustration #3: The Decline Bias

The Decline bias 👉 is the belief that a society or institution is tending towards decline 📉. Particularly, it is the predisposition, possibly due to cognitive bias, such as rosy retrospection, to view the past more favourably 👍 and future negatively 👎.

This work illustrates the Decline Bias as it relates to elderly 🤶 reminiscing of “the good old days”, that were “so much better”. While actually suggesting that they probably weren’t 🤷‍♀️.

[ click on any image to expand it, and double tap to zoom in! 🙂 ]

Illustration #4: The Bystander Effect

The Bystander effect, or bystander apathy, 👉 is a social psychological claim that individuals are less likely to offer help to a victim when other people are present 🤦‍♀️; the greater the number of bystanders, the less likely it is that one of them will help.

The idea is to show the Bystander Effect in action as it relates to the homeless people we so often pass by on the streets thinking that someone else, not I, will help them. ⚖️

[ click on any image to expand it, and double tap to zoom in! 🙂 ]

Illustration #5: Dunning-Kruger Effect

Dunning–Kruger effect 👉 is a cognitive bias in which people mistakenly assess their cognitive ability as greater than it is. 👩‍🏫

It is shown here in a scenario where we laugh at others for doing silly things 🤪, while in reality, we are no different. 😳

[ click on any image to expand it, and double tap to zoom in! 🙂 ]

Illustration #6: FOMO

Fear of missing out, or FOMO, 👉 is “a pervasive apprehension that others might be having rewarding experiences from which one is absent”. 😤

FOMO often shows through obsession with social media updates, messaging, and watching/reading news constantly. ⌚️📱💻 📺🗞

[ click on any image to expand it, and double tap to zoom in! 🙂 ]

Illustration #7: Barnum Effect

Barnum Effect 👉 is the phenomenon that occurs when individuals believe that personality descriptions apply specifically to them (more so than to other people), despite the fact that the description is actually filled with information that applies to everyone. 🌍

This effect often works in sync with horoscopes and zodiac signs. Final concept includes two RAM (as in Aries ♈️) trucks fighting for not the most favourable parking spot in an empty parking lot.

[ click on any image to expand it, and double tap to zoom in! 🙂 ]

Illustration #8: Conformity Bias

Conformity bias 👉 is a tendency to behave similarly to the others in a group 🙌, even if doing so goes against your own judgment.

The idea is to show someone who gets something, even thought they are the last person to need it. Like this guy 🧔 getting a swimming pool because his neighbours have it, while he is terrified of swimming! 😱

[ click on any image to expand it, and double tap to zoom in! 🙂 ]

Contact

Email: anna@yourartpath.com

I usually respond within 24-48 hours!

Send this to a friend