How to avoid the overkill backfire effect Trim the content of your argument However, as long as you manage to avoid this upper threshold of complexity, making your argument more complex can sometimes make it more effective this can be the case, for example, if you’re adding supporting evidence that your audience will be able to handle. Rather, the overkill backfire effect simply means that once you reach a certain threshold of complexity, in terms of the amount and type of information that you present, as well as in terms of the way you present it, making the argument more complex will make it too difficult for your intended audience to understand, which in turn can make them more likely to reject it. Nevertheless, it’s important to note that increased complexity, both in terms of content and in terms of form, isn’t always counterproductive. As one paper on the topic states: “simple myths are more cognitively attractive than lengthy, complicated refutations”. In general, this phenomenon is especially an issue when it comes to the refutation of common myths, since many of them offer a simple and compelling truth, which contrasts sharply with the large amount of complex scientific evidence that is often needed to debunk them. Similarly, from a form perspective, presenting someone with 3 complex and technical pieces of evidence is more likely to lead to the overkill backfire effect than presenting them with 3 simple and intuitive pieces of evidence.
#Overkill definition full#
This can happen, for example, if the argument’s main points are badly ordered or if the language used to convey the argument is full of technical jargon.Īn argument can lead people to experience the overkill backfire effect as a result of either type of complexity, and the more complex the argument is overall, the more likely it is to do so.įor example, from a content perspective, presenting someone with 10 pieces of evidence is more likely to lead to the overkill backfire effect than presenting them with 3 pieces of evidence, because an argument containing more evidence will generally be more complex, all things being equal. This can happen, for example, if the argument involves a large number of points or a lot of supporting evidence. There are two main factors that can make an explanation or an argument complex and cognitively taxing: Conversely, in the case of the principle of parsimony, the decision to prefer the simplest explanation is driven by ‘cold’, rational considerations, and specifically by the desire to find the most likely explanation for the phenomenon in question. In the case of the overkill backfire effect, the principle of parsimony is misapplied, because the simplest explanation is preferred, rather than the simplest explanation that can accurately explain the phenomenon in question.įurthermore, in the case of the overkill backfire effect, the decision to prefer the simplest explanation is driven by ‘hot’, emotional considerations, and specifically by the desire to pick the explanation that is the least cognitive taxing and the easiest to understand. Note that an important related concept is parsimony, a guiding principle that suggests that all things being equal, you should prefer the simplest possible explanation for a phenomenon or the simplest possible solution to a problem (a principle that is often conceptualized through Occam’s razor).
The act of evaluating both possible explanations and rejecting the more complex one can, in turn, cause people to reinforce their belief in the simpler, chosen alternative, even if all the information that they were presented with was in support of the more complex explanation. People experience the overkill backfire effect because we have an innate tendency to prefer explanations that are simple and consequently also easy to process from a cognitive perspective.Īccordingly, when people are faced with two explanations for a certain phenomenon, one of which is complex and difficult to process, and the other of which is simple and easy to understand, they can end up rejecting the complex explanation, even if it’s the one that better explains the phenomenon in question. Why people experience the overkill backfire effect
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