Pluralistic Ignorance

(also see Wisdom, confirmation bias and other keywords)

A collective delusion

Pluralistic ignorance is when the majority view gets mistaken for the minority view, or vice versa. It is a phenomenon in which people have a mistaken belief that their private beliefs are out of step with that of others. When this happens they may support or endorse a view they do not hold in order to side with what they believe to be the majority view.

An example

• Research found that 80–90% of Americans underestimate the prevalence of support for major climate change mitigation policies and climate concern among fellow Americans.
  • e.g. Americans estimate the number of fellow Americans concerned about climate change to be 37–43% of the population.
  • In fact, the number is closer to 66–80%.

Further reading

Miller, D.T. and McFarland, C., 1987. Pluralistic ignorance: When similarity is interpreted as dissimilarity. Journal of Personality and social Psychology, 53(2), p.298.