D148

Dogmatism

BD13 Philosophical & Meta Traits
Derived LayerMML-1

Version v1.2.4

Definition

Rigid attachment to beliefs and resistance to revision despite new evidence; low openness to updating one’s model of reality.

Poles

Each HES element is a spectrum, not a category: the Low and High poles describe how it presents at its two extremes, while the Reference marks the typical, everyday middle. The poles map variation across the range — neither end is inherently better or worse.

Low Pole

Low dogmatism: updates beliefs when evidence warrants; tolerates complexity and uncertainty.

High Pole

High dogmatism: beliefs are “frozen”; counter-evidence is rejected, reinterpreted, or framed as hostile.

Reference

Flexible on many topics, closed on “sacred” ones.

Measure

Primary: Update Resistance — resistance to belief change when confronted with strong counter-evidence.
Secondary: Certainty-Confidence Gap — discrepancy between subjective certainty and objective correctness.

Measuring Methods

Belief-updating tasks (pre/post) + ability to articulate conditions under which one would change one’s mind.

Empirical Anchor

Dogmatism (Rokeach, 1960); closed-mindedness; authoritarianism — cognitive rigidity.

Notes

Not the same as Principled Consistency (D043): principles can be stable while beliefs remain evidence-responsive.

Citation

APA

Human Elements System. (2026). Dogmatism (HES Passport D148, v1.2.4). hestable.com. https://hestable.com/passport/D148

BibTeX

@misc{hes_D148, author = {{Human Elements System}}, title = {{Dogmatism}}, year = {2026}, note = {HES Passport D148, v1.2.4}, howpublished = {\url{https://hestable.com/passport/D148}} }