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Counterfactual Thinking: The Science of Wondering “What If?”

Are you a daydreamer? Where do your daydreams take you? Sometimes you might picture silly things, like your teacher riding on a teeny-tiny tractor (my apologies if you just did). However, some of your daydreams may seem more realistic. Both adults and kids get swept up imagining how things could have turned out differently in their lives. With a little brain power, we invent and investigate new possibilities for what could have been. This type of imagining, called counterfactual thinking, is common and it usually strikes when we are thinking back on our past experiences. Interestingly, applying counterfactual thinking might spur our scientific reasoning skills and help us make smarter decisions. Let us take a look at what we know about counterfactual thinking and why it may be a unique mental superpower!