How the ‘Western mind’ was shaped by the Medieval Church

Most research on human psychology focuses on Western societies, but the way people in the West think can be traced to changes in family structures in the Middle Ages.U

Upon entering a psychology laboratory, you and a small group of other participants are tasked with matching a line to one of three other lines of varying lengths. Participants are asked in succession to state aloud which of these line segments have the same length. Sometimes the others’ choices are the same as yours. But occasionally they all seem to agree with each other but not with you.

When it’s your turn to voice your judgments, do you go along with your peers, or stick with your initial assessment?

It could depend a great deal on where you are from. …

By Joe Henrich, BBC