The phrase "existing belief" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when discussing beliefs that are currently held or accepted by individuals or groups.
Example: "The existing belief among scientists is that climate change is primarily driven by human activity."
Alternatives: "current belief" or "prevailing belief".
And you may amalgamate those with your existing belief system.
There is fame to be found in overturning existing belief and finding counterintuitive effects, so people are biased towards attempting studies where the null hypothesis represents existing belief.
(That's the tendency to interpret any new development or evidence as an affirmation of an existing belief or way of thinking).
This setting fosters intuitive reasoning and political learning that help to rationalize and institutionalize existing belief bias and foster routinized behavior and policy stability (Zafonte and Sabatier, 2004).
So in a dangerous physical encounter the brain is going to filter in information that reinforces what you already believe, and it's going to filter out information that conflicts with your existing belief system," Rahr said.
The study found that these grasshoppers prefer a lower portion of nitrogen, or protein, than any other species studied, challenging the existing belief that insect herbivores are limited by the amount of protein found in plants.
Therefore, people will seek information that supports their existing beliefs.
People apply motivated reasoning processes to selectively accept the information that supports their existing beliefs.
"The evidence suggests that events like "climategate" tend to reinforce existing beliefs," he said.
But instead of helping us challenge existing views, the digital information bubble confirms existing beliefs, making us more narrow-minded.
For effective knowledge communication, new information should always match the recipients' existing beliefs and misbeliefs.
