Newsweek: On Second Thought ...

[Ilion]

Newsweek (Sharon Begley): On Second Thought ...[^] Scientists are supposed to change their minds when evidence undercuts their views. Dream on.

... Let's end on an up note. Like every other psychology researcher, Harvard's Daniel Gilbert believed that people are happier when they can change their minds. But in 2002 he and a colleague discovered that people are generally happier about irrevocable decisions: once you are locked in to a decision, you tend to focus on its positive aspects and ignore the negative ones. But if you are allowed to change your mind, you ruminate on both the positive and negative aspects of the choice, which makes you less happy. Inspired by his findings, Gilbert proposed to his girlfriend. Since the "till death" vow makes marriage an (almost) irrevocable decision, the result is that "I love my wife more than I loved my girlfriend."