Dr. Jamil Zaki

If you're a leader, you can collect those data and you can show people to themselves. You can unveil. the core beliefs of your community. And oftentimes those core beliefs are incredibly beautiful and surprising to the people in those communities and give them what I would call not peer pressure, but peer permission to express who they've been all along.

There is so much to say about this. I'm going to try to not give a lecture here, but like so many of the themes in this conversation, I think that the headline for me, when I look at the data on polarization, and I'm going to talk about perceived polarization as well, is twofold. One, it's tragic because we are underestimating one another.

There is so much to say about this. I'm going to try to not give a lecture here, but like so many of the themes in this conversation, I think that the headline for me, when I look at the data on polarization, and I'm going to talk about perceived polarization as well, is twofold. One, it's tragic because we are underestimating one another.

There is so much to say about this. I'm going to try to not give a lecture here, but like so many of the themes in this conversation, I think that the headline for me, when I look at the data on polarization, and I'm going to talk about perceived polarization as well, is twofold. One, it's tragic because we are underestimating one another.

And two, there's a lot of opportunity here because the delta between the world that we think we're in and the one that we're actually in is great. And it's positive as well. So there's a bunch of work on political perceptions. This is work done by folks like Meena Chakara at Harvard, my colleague Rob Willer in sociology at Stanford, our colleague Rob Willer.

And two, there's a lot of opportunity here because the delta between the world that we think we're in and the one that we're actually in is great. And it's positive as well. So there's a bunch of work on political perceptions. This is work done by folks like Meena Chakara at Harvard, my colleague Rob Willer in sociology at Stanford, our colleague Rob Willer.

And two, there's a lot of opportunity here because the delta between the world that we think we're in and the one that we're actually in is great. And it's positive as well. So there's a bunch of work on political perceptions. This is work done by folks like Meena Chakara at Harvard, my colleague Rob Willer in sociology at Stanford, our colleague Rob Willer.

And a lot of this focuses on what people think the average member of the other side is like. So if you're a Republican, what do you think the average Democrat believes? What do you think they're like? If you're a Democrat, what do you think the average Republican is like? And so I'll stop talking about Republicans and Democrats here because a lot of these data are bipartisan.

And a lot of this focuses on what people think the average member of the other side is like. So if you're a Republican, what do you think the average Democrat believes? What do you think they're like? If you're a Democrat, what do you think the average Republican is like? And so I'll stop talking about Republicans and Democrats here because a lot of these data are bipartisan.

And a lot of this focuses on what people think the average member of the other side is like. So if you're a Republican, what do you think the average Democrat believes? What do you think they're like? If you're a Democrat, what do you think the average Republican is like? And so I'll stop talking about Republicans and Democrats here because a lot of these data are bipartisan.

The biases are pretty even across camps. And it turns out that in all cases, we are dead wrong about who's on the other side. We're even wrong demographically about who's on the other side. For instance, Democrats think that 25% of Republicans make more than $250,000 a year. The actual number is 2%. But the stereotype of Republicans that Democrats hold is that they're wealthy, I suppose.

The biases are pretty even across camps. And it turns out that in all cases, we are dead wrong about who's on the other side. We're even wrong demographically about who's on the other side. For instance, Democrats think that 25% of Republicans make more than $250,000 a year. The actual number is 2%. But the stereotype of Republicans that Democrats hold is that they're wealthy, I suppose.

The biases are pretty even across camps. And it turns out that in all cases, we are dead wrong about who's on the other side. We're even wrong demographically about who's on the other side. For instance, Democrats think that 25% of Republicans make more than $250,000 a year. The actual number is 2%. But the stereotype of Republicans that Democrats hold is that they're wealthy, I suppose.

Republicans vastly overestimate the percentage of Democrats who are part of the LGBTQ community, for instance. Again, it's just a cultural stereotype. So we're wrong about even who's on the other side, but we're even more wrong about what they believe and what they want.

Republicans vastly overestimate the percentage of Democrats who are part of the LGBTQ community, for instance. Again, it's just a cultural stereotype. So we're wrong about even who's on the other side, but we're even more wrong about what they believe and what they want.

Republicans vastly overestimate the percentage of Democrats who are part of the LGBTQ community, for instance. Again, it's just a cultural stereotype. So we're wrong about even who's on the other side, but we're even more wrong about what they believe and what they want.

So data suggests that there is perceived polarization, that is what we think the other side believes, is much greater than real polarization. I mean, first of all, we are divided. Let's stipulate that. And those divisions can be really dangerous and are in some cases existential. The division in our mind is much greater than the division that we actually have.

So data suggests that there is perceived polarization, that is what we think the other side believes, is much greater than real polarization. I mean, first of all, we are divided. Let's stipulate that. And those divisions can be really dangerous and are in some cases existential. The division in our mind is much greater than the division that we actually have.

So data suggests that there is perceived polarization, that is what we think the other side believes, is much greater than real polarization. I mean, first of all, we are divided. Let's stipulate that. And those divisions can be really dangerous and are in some cases existential. The division in our mind is much greater than the division that we actually have.

My late friend, Emile Bruneau, collected some data where he gathered Republicans and Democrats' views on immigration. He said, what would you want immigration to look like where zero is the borders are totally closed and 100 is they're totally open? And he plotted the distributions of what that looks like.