In many areas, algorithms make fewer mistakes than humans. But new research suggests that we distrust algorithms when they make mistakes, in ways we do not distrust humans who make mistakes.
This feels like a time – doesn’t it? – when we might want to consider how much computers direct our lives. Computer programs, or algorithms, decide so much for us already. An algorithm is basically this set of instructions for a computer, kind of like the one in your thermostat. If the temperature falls below, say, 68, turn on the heat. And they can be more complex. If you make a wrong turn, your GPS redirects you. If you’re sick, an algorithm might tell you whether to have surgery. Well, one very important decision remains, and that’s whether to trust these algorithms. NPR’s social science correspondent Shankar Vedantam spoke to my colleague Steve Inskeep.
