Are you cynical?

[jeremyp]

This Jesus and Mo cartoon came up in my RSS feed and I found its point quite interesting.

https://www.jesusandmo.net/comic/cynical/

People who are cynical are often seen as more intelligent than those who aren't and in the linked video, the interviewee gives examples from TV that reinforce the stereotype.

However, a large study was done to test the hypothesis and it found the opposite was true. They advanced the counter hypothesis that cynicism is a defence mechanism to allow you not to think and therefore more likely to be used by less intelligent people.

Of course, they would say that: they just want grant money to do further studies.

[SteveH]

Cynics always say that they are realists, not cynics, ad tat trusting people are naive, but one can be naively cynical as well as naively trusting. The wisest position is somewhere in the middle, and involves thought and analysis. I agree about it being an alternative to thought: the old cliche about politicians being "all as bad as each other" is a classic example.

[jeremyp]

Cynics always say that they are realists, not cynics, ad tat trusting people are naive, but one can be naively cynical as well as naively trusting. The wisest position is somewhere in the middle, and involves thought and analysis. I agree about it being an alternative to thought: the old cliche about politicians being "all as bad as each other" is a classic example.

I was going to use the "politicians are all as bad as each other" cliché as an example.

[Nearly Sane]

Cynics always say that they are realists, not cynics, ad tat trusting people are naive, but one can be naively cynical as well as naively trusting. The wisest position is somewhere in the middle, and involves thought and analysis. I agree about it being an alternative to thought: the old cliche about politicians being "all as bad as each other" is a classic example.

I'm presuming that the people in the study describe themselves as cynical?