How Do You Know What You Think You Know?

By Karen Sternheimer

One of the core principles of sociology is the idea that what we know about the world around us is socially constructed; in other words, the meanings we ascribe to our social worlds are mediated through collective cultural narratives. These narratives might come from our involvement with social institutions, such as education, religion, families, government, and the economy.

The task of sociology is two-fold: to learn about the world around us through collecting empirical evidence via systematic observation, and also to think critically about how we view and understand what we observe, based on our cultural narratives.

We observe cultural narratives in our everyday lives, from going to school we learn what counts as important information, based on what is or isn’t included in our course curricula, to attending religious services, preparing to or participating in the workforce, for instance.

These all come together in a variety of ways: we might choose to major in a subject because we think it will be valuable in the workforce, we might find a certain commodity valuable because of its price and who purchases the item, or narratives might reflect the values and beliefs of those we know best.

Cultural narratives can also be found in media sources, most notably news media. These narratives aren’t invented by media sources; they also reflect the worldview created by social institutions. In the U.S., most media sources come from large, for-profit conglomerates, so the narratives tend to reflect their interests (mostly what will help them stay in business or earn a profit).

In the twentieth century, how we knew what we thought we knew often came from journalists, professionals who sought to gather information that would be broadcast to thousands if not millions of consumers through newspapers, magazines, radio, and television. Once called the “fourth estate,” journalists and the organizations they worked for were once powerful gatekeepers of information. Famed CBS anchor Walter Cronkite was famously called “the most trusted man in America” during his on-air tenure in the 1960s and 1970s, and his 1968 critique of the Vietnam War after a visit is often considered a major turning point in public opinion.

But today, most of us get our news from a barrage of different sources, less likely from professional gatekeepers like journalists and news producers and more likely from the people we follow on social media: friends, family members, and like-minded others. According to a Pew Research Center study, in 2022, about half of Americans said that social media was a news source at least some of the time.

It might not be the main reason people use Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or X, but the vast majority see at least some news content from these sources. According to the Pew report, “Facebook outpaces all other social media sites as a news source for Americans, with 30% of U.S. adults saying they regularly get news there.” The sources on Facebook are likely friends, family, and acquaintances rather than journalists.

This means that what we think we know is less likely to be vetted, more likely to be opinion-based, and less likely to be factually accurate. Social science research based empirical observations has never been more important. And it has never been more important to critically examine the lenses through which we make sense of information.

Recent protests and events at universities around the country—including my own—are a great example of the need to consider how we know what we think we know. Friends and family have asked me about my experiences of the protests over the war in the Middle East. Their questions revealed a lot about the sources through which they knew what they thought they knew.

Much of the news coverage focused on the most dramatic moments when police came to campus to remove protesters. This was an isolated incident, and from talking to students who were there they noted being more disappointed that the police were there than feeling that they were in danger. A colleague who hadn’t been aware of the police activity walked right through it without feeling unsafe.

Of course, this is a small sample and not an empirical analysis of the events of the day. To do that, we might conduct a survey, focus group, or interviews with students who were on campus that day to share their experiences.

Some friends and family members clearly had information from their friends and acquaintances on social media. One family member reported that he saw a social media post from an acquaintance who said it was so unsafe on my campus that faculty regularly needed police escorts to and from their offices (the acquaintance lives hundreds of miles away and likely has never been to our campus).

I shared this claim with colleagues during a recent meeting, after people commented on how quiet the campus was during summer break, especially since the university limits access to students, staff, and faculty. I got a lot of puzzled looks in return.

In the echo chamber of social media, we tend to hear about the world around us in ways the verifies specific cultural narratives that we already embrace. It has never been more important to use the tools of social science to reconsider how we know what we think we know.

Comments

[Emily]

Hi, I'm so happy to see your article again! As a sociology student before, I love what you shared! Thank you!

[Art]

"In the echo chamber of social media, we tend to hear about the world around us in ways the verifies specific cultural narratives that we already embrace."

Confirmation Bias?