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Explaining is not enough: Appealing explanations should also be surprising.

Aurélien Klopfenstein1, Hugo Mercier2

  • 1Paris School of Economics, ENS, PSL University, Paris, France.

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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Appealing explanations are not just good, they are also surprising and useful. This study found that the appeal of an explanation depends on its surprisingness and the phenomenon

Keywords:
AppealCultural diffusionExplanationsInterestingnessSurprisingness

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Philosophy of Science

Background:

  • Philosophers and psychologists have long studied the characteristics of good explanations.
  • The phenomenology of explanations, including the pleasure derived from them, is recognized as a motivator for seeking knowledge.
  • However, many objectively good explanations lack inherent appeal or fail to evoke positive emotional responses.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the factors contributing to the appeal of explanations beyond mere explanatory power.
  • To test the hypothesis that surprisingness is a key component of an appealing explanation.
  • To examine the role of the usefulness of the explained phenomenon in explanation appeal.

Main Methods:

  • Conducted three experiments evaluating explanations.
  • Utilized both pre-existing explanations and novel explanations sourced from the 'Explain Like I'm Five' subreddit.
  • Assessed ratings for explanatory quality, appeal, surprisingness, and perceived prior knowledge.

Main Results:

  • Explanations that are both explanatory and surprising are more appealing.
  • The perceived usefulness of the phenomenon being explained also predicts explanation appeal.
  • Surprisingness is not solely determined by prior knowledge; it is also influenced by whether others know the explanation and potentially internal properties of the explanation itself.

Conclusions:

  • Appealing explanations require more than just being factually correct; they must also be surprising.
  • The appeal of an explanation is a function of its surprisingness and the utility of the concept it clarifies.
  • Future research should explore the internal characteristics of explanations that contribute to their surprisingness.