[Neurons] 2021 Neurons #80 DISTINGUISHING FACTS AND OPINIONS

[Michael Hall]

From: L. Michael Hall

2021 Neurons #80

December 13, 2021

Facts #8  

 

DISTINGUISHING FACTS AND OPINIONS

 

There are many different kinds of statements.  Some statements are factual,
some are not.  Given the nature of language, most of the statements that you
make and that you hear are not factual.  Amazing, isn't it?  So what are
they?  Most of the statements that we exchange among ourselves as we
communicate are opinions, evaluations, judgments, beliefs, decisions,
identifications, and on and on.  Further, when it comes to facts as I have
noted, there are real facts and there are pseudo-facts. 

 

What then?  How should we operate in a world where facts are actually pretty
scarce and where there are many kinds of statements that are derivative (or
supposedly) from facts?  The most obvious answer is to aim to make
statements that are true-to-the-facts.  That is a phrase from Alfred
Korzybski in Science and Sanity.  By way of contrast, he spoke about
false-to-fact statements and how they fail to align with reality and
therefore represent false mapping.  Such statements do not accord to the
facts that we can determine or detect in reality.  And doesn't all of that
make sense?  So here is what we have.

           Factual statements.  These are statements that we can
substantiate as true, valid, or confirmed.

           Value statements and belief statements.  These are different
kinds of statements.  Values are what you consider important.  A statement
about value tends to be an ought-something that we ought to do, namely, to
live the value (i.e., honest, truthful, kind, loving, etc.).  Beliefs are
what you have concluded is real and have confirmed.  A belief statement may
not be true, but for the person who believes it, it is true or valid for him
or her.

           Opinion statements.  These are statements that reflect your
thinking and evaluating, your biases and distortions and are not supported
directly by factual evidence.

           Predictions and guesses.  These are statements about the future
and these cannot be considered factual.  Why not?  Because by definition,
because the statement is about something that is not yet existing.  That's
why it cannot be based on a fact (a currently non-existent fact).  At best,
it is a guess or a speculation about something that is yet to be.
Statements about the future anticipate what could happen and even if the
probability of it happening is very high, it is still not about a fact and
should never be treated as such.  All predictions about the economy, the
weather, possibility of war, etc. are not factual statements.

 

David Gilbert argues that facts are conjectures that have met a certain
standard of proof (Stumbling on Happiness, 2005, p. 184).  His test for a
true fact is interesting.  He says if you can express it with a universal
quantifier (i.e., always, never, all, none, etc.).  "This information is
absolutely true, no question, no explanation, no variation."  Otherwise, it
is an evaluation and an opinion.

 

Remind me why facts are so important.  They are important because we humans
gather facts and sets of facts so that our information is grounded in
reality.  Then, from them, we can draw valid conclusions.  Next, these
conclusions, when tested and replicated by others, can then become the
next-level up fact in a given domain, a conceptual fact that we can concern
a legitimate or valid principle.  That's how science works.  To learn and
understand a given domain, you first need to know the facts and what is
considered factual information in that field.  Often what was considered a
fact in a field is discovered to be an opinion, a partial fact, a false
conclusion, etc.

 

When validated facts can give birth to concepts.  As we use the data at our
disposal to conceive of a structure or process that unifies the data, we
come up with and conceive an idea or an understanding.  When certain facts
cannot be explained in a field, that's when we have difficulty inventing
concepts that provide a logical explanation for the field.  At that point,
that field is being readied for a new paradigm-a new explanatory concept.

 

This gives us a brief understanding of a concept.  Because concepts are
based on facts, they are not directly available to us empirically.  To reach
them, we have to reason from facts and construct them.  What that means is
that you have to use your reasoning powers to infer what is implied (or what
you think is implied).  You have to order your thoughts in the search for
truth.  You can order them inductively or deductively.

 

Now you know why critical thinking and reason is so important if we are to
construct mental maps from facts that will be true-to-fact and enable us to
navigate the  territory that we want to explore and experience.  And while
we all reason from facts, we do not all reason the same or with the same
quality.  To the extent that you have not outgrown the inherent cognitive
distortions of childhood, your reasoning skills are not only low, but highly
distorted.  And unless that changes, you will bring upon your lots of
misery.

 

This is where Neuro-Linguistics and Neuro-Semantics comes to the rescue.  If
you want a tool for precision in thinking and communicating, you can do no
better than the NLP Meta-Model of Language.  It's a great tool for clear and
creative thinking, for logical reasoning, and for distinguishing fact from
opinion.  Want more?  Check out The Structure of Magic (1975), Communication
Magic (2001), and Executive Thinking (2018).

 

 

 

 

L. Michael Hall, Ph.D.

Executive Director, Neuro-Semantics

P.O. Box 8

Clifton CO. 81520 USA

www.neurosemantics.com 

 

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134324 NeuroSemantics Inside Out Front Cover

 

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