In Part 1, Aidan and Ash explored the rampant spread of misinformation causing divisiveness and an erosion of trust in the world. In Part 2, they propose a way to reverse this trend, and explore how we might overcome our biases and motivated reasoning – the cause of the divisiveness – by bringing back rational dialogue and critical thinking. All in this week’s episode of Hold Me Back. Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and your other favorite podcast platforms.
Critical Thinking
In Part 1, Aidan and Ash explored the rampant spread of misinformation causing divisiveness and an erosion of trust in the world. In Part 2, they propose a way to reverse this trend, and explore how we might overcome the cause of the divisiveness – our biases and motivated reasoning – by bringing back rational dialogue and critical thinking. How? Ash and Aidan debate the nine key lessons Gen Z needs to learn in order to bring back greater harmony between and within our generations. This one is a little heady, but well worth the trip! This episode covers everything from Stanford studies to GEICO commercials. Here’s a small sample of what you will hear in this episode:
- Why are Motivated Reasoning and Tribalism so relevant now?
- What is The Linda Problem?
- Does Gen Z see what’s happening and want to do anything about it?
- What are the most common biases?
- How much pressure does social media cause?
- What is Confirmation Bias?
- System 1 vs. System 2
- What are Ash’s 9 key lessons Gen Z needs to learn to bridge the gap?
Who was more convincing: Aidan or Ash? Vote at the bottom of this post.
Enjoy the show! Check out the show notes below for much more detail.
Show Notes
- Intro to Overcoming Biases
- [0:24] Welcome to Hold Me Back
- [0:29] Meet Aidan (Gen Z) & Ash (Gen X)
- [0:48] Boomers
- [0:55] Disclaimer from Part 1 with Dr. Alex Lickerman, M.D.
- [1:51] Podcast
- [2:33] What is Motivated Reasoning?
- [2:40] Social Psychology, Leon Festinger, Cognitive Dissonance
- [3:04] Doomsday Prophet Dorothy Martin
- [5:37] What is Tribalism?
- [6:47] Misinformation
- [7:02] Why is this so relevant now?
- [7:20] Critical Thinking
- [7:30] Cancel Culture
- [7:36] David Hume
- [8:20] Millennials
- [8:39] Does Gen Z see what’s happening and want to do anything about it?
- [8:47] FOX, CNN
- [10:43] Why can Gen Z support causes without having a deep understanding?
- [11:51] “Nosedive” Black Mirror episode
- [12:27] How much pressure does social media cause?
- Research: Overcoming Our Biases Through Critical Thinking
- [13:24] Data
- [13:38] Daniel Kahneman
- [13:46] Nobel Prize
- [13:58] Mental Immunity by Andy Norman
- [14:37] System 1 vs. System 2
- [15:14] Tax Form
- [15:29] How do these systems use biases?
- [16:39] What is The Linda Problem?
- [17:14] Feminist
- [19:16] What are the most common biases?
- [19:21] Confirmation Bias
- [19:28] Fundamental Attribution Bias, Actor-Observer Bias
- [20:50] eBay
- [21:39] Michael Thomas
- [21:49] Gambler’s Fallacy
- [22:37] Sunk Cost Fallacy
- [22:56] The Hateful Eight
- [24:00] Bias Blind Spot
- [24:33] Planning Fallacy
- [25:03] Optimism Bias
- [25:32] Anchoring Bias
- [27:03] Availability Bias
- [27:15] Wikipedia
- [28:28] Shark Week, Jaws
- [28:43] Marketer, Ads (Advertisements), Coca-Cola
- [29:21] Media
- [29:29] COVID-19
- [29:54] What is Confirmation Bias?
- [31:17] What is Critical Thinking?
- [32:57] Motivated Ignorance
- [33:34] Why is Confirmation Bias the most important?
- [34:26] Psychologist
- [34:37] Low Self-Esteem
- [35:03] The 11th Thing
- [36:37] Socrates, Plato
- Debate: Overcoming Our Biases Through Critical Thinking
- [38:24] Digital Age
- [40:11] PhD in Philosophy
- [40:32] Bacteria, Parasite
- [41:38] Conspiracy Theories
- [43:16] What are Ash’s 9 key lessons Gen Z needs to learn to bridge the gap?
- [43:38] 1. Don’t trust your intuition
- [45:28] 2. Learn to test yourself for Motivated Reasoning
- [46:38] 3. Listening needs to become part of formal education
- [47:47] 4. Make your kid study Philosophy
- [49:07] 5. All kids should learn Social Psychology and biases
- [49:51] 6. We have to teach our kids the Socratic method of Deductive Reasoning
- [51:33] 7. Learn how to question and avoid ideological thinking
- [54:22] 8. Approach ideas like a scientist, not a lawyer
- [57:30] 9. Sharing opinions in the digital world takes consideration and thought
- [58:08] Constitution
- [58:26] Internet Age
- [1:01:29] The Sixth Sense
- [1:02:01] Thank you for listening! Follow Hold Me Back on HoldMeBack.com
- [1:03:07] Who was more convincing: Aidan or Ash? Vote below

Thank you for listening to Hold Me Back. To hear more episodes, follow Hold Me Back at HoldMeBack.com.
WHAT IS HOLD ME BACK?
Gen X and Gen Z live together, but we occupy different worlds. As the generational gap widens and conventional wisdom on parenting and education fails, is it even possible to understand one another? In this unique son-and-father podcast, Aidan & Ash ElDifrawi hash out a new contract between generations, forcing them to violate comfort zones on today’s most charged topics: social media and screen time, bullying and loneliness, inequality and privilege, sex and drugs, education and etiquette, even politics, religion, and sports. All to uncover a path toward greater harmony and a hopeful future for the next generation.