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Eliezer Yudkowsky Illusion of transparency: Why no one understands you online People often mistakenly believe that others will understand their words in the same way that they do, leading to misunderstandings. This illusion of transparency is due to the ease with which we understand our own words, which can guide our interpretation of others’ words, even when they are ambiguous. As a result, we may underestimate how often others misunderstand us. This bias can be reduced by considering how others might interpret our words, especially when using ambiguous language. – AI-generated abstract.

Illusion of transparency: Why no one understands you

Eliezer Yudkowsky

LessWrong, October 21, 2007

Abstract

People often mistakenly believe that others will understand their words in the same way that they do, leading to misunderstandings. This illusion of transparency is due to the ease with which we understand our own words, which can guide our interpretation of others’ words, even when they are ambiguous. As a result, we may underestimate how often others misunderstand us. This bias can be reduced by considering how others might interpret our words, especially when using ambiguous language. – AI-generated abstract.

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