Three Men Make A Tiger: Why You Believe Popular Myths

Three men make a tiger is a Chinese proverb. It refers to our tendency to accept absurd information as long as it is repeated by enough people. Unfounded premises and urban legends can be taken as the truth, and all it takes is a bunch of individuals to parrot it. This happens due to a cocktail of cognitive biases, primarily from social consensus and motivated reasoning. That is, we want to believe what confirms our opinions, and we want to believe things others believe.

The proverb comes from a story of a speech by Pang Chong, a state official in the Warring States period of Chinese History. According to the record, Pang Chong asked the King whether he would believe what one civilian reported to him: a tiger was roaming the markets in the capital. The King said no. Pang Chong then asked what he thought if two people reported the same thing. The King said he began to wonder. Pang Chong then asked, “what if three people claimed to have seen a tiger?” The King replied that he would believe in it. This was a cautionary tale to the King: a live tiger in a crowded market is, of course, absurd.

The core idea is that repeated claims, even if initially understood as clearly false, can transform into widely held beliefs if they are socially reinforced enough. The more often you hear something, the more likely you are to believe it is true. When multiple people assert the same thing, it creates a sense of consensus that overrides your natural skepticism. This is because your memory functions this way: the more something is repeated, the more familiar and therefore true it seems. Hence marketing messages and news headlines that are repeated shape public perception. It’s also how false stories or rumors on social media go viral: once something is shared by enough people, you are compelled to join the bandwagon, regardless of how factual the post is.

Real-world instances of three men make a tiger:

• Media and Public Opinion: a sensational story or rumor is published and shared repeatedly by various news outlets and social media platforms. The outcome: over time, even skeptical viewers start believing the story, resulting in widespread public commotion or panic.

• Political Propaganda: a political group repeatedly disseminates false claims about an opponent. The outcome: with enough repetition, the narrative enters the minds of many voters, affecting the election even if the claim is entirely fabricated.

• Consumerism: advertisements emphasize how beneficial a product or service is through repeat messaging. The outcome: consumers come to believe the benefit is significant and/or unique simply because they are fed the information over and over, influencing their purchasing decisions.

• Workplace: a rumor about potential layoffs can spread among employees, repeated by several coworkers during water cooler conversations. The outcome: even without any official backing, the repeated rumor can trigger anxiety and reduce productivity in the workforce.

How you might use three men make a tiger as a mental model: (1) put on the skeptic’s shades — when encountering repeat claims, pause and seek objective data rather than accepting the claim at face value; (2) access more perspectives — diversify your information sources to avoid the trap of social consensus, such as multiple news outlets, experts, or academic papers before you judge something true or false; (3) stay aware of the illusion — know that merely repeating something makes you believe it due to familiarity, so remain skeptical; (4) combat misinformation — when you find a rumor or claim is false, consider correcting it or at least equip those who could be harmed by it with the facts.