Choosing to believe

[Clueless Morgan]

choose[/i] a belief as they become (rightly or wrongly) convinced of a belief.

This.

I, for instance, couldn't believe in unicorns just by choice, because I am insufficiently convinced of their existence. That's not to say that I couldn't be convinced that it's possible that they could exist.

I think there is a sliding scale of convincability, as well, and the more you are convinced of something, the less choice you have to believe what you are convinced of.

For example, I am absolutely convinced I am biologically female, and, I think, incapable of actually believing I am biologically male. It's factually and evidentially false and I would always know it.

I am sufficiently convinced that no unicorns exist - sufficiently enough to declare a firm opinion on the matter and profess a strong belief that I am correct in this assessment.

I am insufficiently convinced I am not a brain in a jar, and I see no clear way to make a determination one way or the other so I feel like in this instance my belief is something of a choice in that I get to choose the option I like the best.