Why Cognitive Biases Happen
Attention is a limited resource. This means we can’t possibly evaluate every possible detail and event when forming thoughts and opinions. Because of this, we often rely on mental shortcuts that speed up our ability to make judgments but sometimes lead to bias.
Types of Cognitive Biases
The following are just a few types of cognitive biases that have a powerful influence on how you think, how you feel, and how you behave. Examples include:
Only paying attention to information that confirms your beliefs about issues such as gun control and global warming Only following people on social media who share your viewpoints Choosing news sources that present stories that support your views Refusing to listen to the opposing side Not considering all of the facts in a logical and rational manner
There are a few reasons why this happens. One is that only seeking to confirm existing opinions helps limit mental resources we need to use to make decisions. It also helps protect self-esteem by making people feel that their beliefs are accurate. People on two sides of an issue can listen to the same story and walk away with different interpretations that they feel validates their existing point of view. This is often indicative that the confirmation bias is working to “bias” their opinions. Some examples of the hindsight bias include:
Insisting that you knew who was going to win a football game once the event is overBelieving that you knew all along that one political candidate was going to win an electionSaying that you knew you weren’t going to win after losing a coin flip with a friendLooking back on an exam and thinking that you knew the answers to the questions you missedBelieving you could have predicted which stocks would become profitable
The hindsight bias occurs for a combination of reasons, including our ability to “misremember” previous predictions, our tendency to view events as inevitable, and our tendency to believe we could have foreseen certain events. Prior to the Senate vote, 58% of the students thought Thomas would be confirmed. The students were polled again following Thomas’s confirmation, and a whopping 78% of students said they had believed Thomas would be confirmed. The effect of this bias is that it causes us to overestimate our ability to predict events. This can sometimes lead people to take unwise risks.
The first number voiced during a price negotiation typically becomes the anchoring point from which all further negotiations are based. Hearing a random number can influence estimates on completely unrelated topics. Doctors can become susceptible to the anchoring bias when diagnosing patients. The physician’s first impressions of the patient often create an anchoring point that can sometimes incorrectly influence all subsequent diagnostic assessments.
While the existence of the anchoring bias is well documented, its causes are still not fully understood. Some research suggests that the source of the anchor information may play a role. Other factors such as priming and mood also appear to have an influence. Like other cognitive biases, anchoring can have an effect on the decisions you make each day. For instance, it can influence how much you are willing to pay for your home. However, it can sometimes lead to poor choices and make it more difficult for people to consider other factors that might also be important. For example:
Research has shown that simply asking questions about an event can change someone’s memories of what happened. Watching television coverage may change how people remember the event.Hearing other people talk about a memory from their perspective may change your memory of what transpired.
There are a few factors that may play a role in this phenomenon. New information may get blended with older memories. In other cases, new information may be used to fill in “gaps” in memory. When the witnesses were then questioned a week later whether they had seen any broken glass, those who had been asked the “smashed into” version of the question were more likely to report incorrectly that they had seen broken glass. The effects of misinformation can range from the trivial to much more serious. It might cause you to misremember something you thought happened at work, or it might lead to someone incorrectly identifying the wrong suspect in a criminal case. When it comes to our own actions, we are often far too likely to attribute things to external influences. For example:
You might complain that you botched an important meeting because you had jet lag.You might say you failed an exam because the teacher posed too many trick questions.
When it comes to explaining other people’s actions, however, we are far more likely to attribute their behaviors to internal causes. For example:
A colleague screwed up an important presentation because he’s lazy and incompetent (not because he also had jet lag).A fellow student bombed a test because they lack diligence and intelligence (and not because they took the same test as you with all those trick questions).
While there are many factors that may play a role, perspective plays a key role. When we are the actors in a situation, we are able to observe our own thoughts and behaviors. When it comes to other people, however, we cannot see what they are thinking. This means we focus on situational forces for ourselves, but guess at the internal characteristics that cause other people’s actions. The problem with this is that it often leads to misunderstandings. Each side of a situation is essentially blaming the other side rather than thinking about all of the variables that might be playing a role.
Thinking that other people share your opinion on controversial topicsOverestimating the number of people who are similar to youBelieving that the majority of people share your preferences
Researchers believe that the false consensus effect happens for a variety of reasons. First, the people we spend the most time with, our family and friends, do often tend to share very similar opinions and beliefs. Because of this, we start to think that this way of thinking is the majority opinion even when we are with people who are not among our group of family and friends. This can lead people not only to incorrectly think that everyone else agrees with them—it can sometimes lead them to overvalue their own opinions. It also means that we sometimes don’t consider how other people might feel when making choices.
Thinking people who are good-looking are also smarter, kinder, and funnier than less attractive peopleBelieving that products marketed by attractive people are also more valuableThinking that a political candidate who is confident must also be intelligent and competent
One factor that may influence the halo effect is our tendency to want to be correct. If our initial impression of someone was positive, we want to look for proof that our assessment was accurate. It also helps people avoid experiencing cognitive dissonance, which involves holding contradictory beliefs. This cognitive bias can have a powerful impact in the real world. For example, job applicants perceived as attractive and likable are also more likely to be viewed as competent, smart, and qualified for the job. Some examples of this:
Attributing good grades to being smart or studying hardBelieving your athletic performance is due to practice and hard workThinking you got the job because of your merits
This bias does serve an important role in protecting self-esteem. However, it can often also lead to faulty attributions such as blaming others for our own shortcomings.
After seeing several news reports of car thefts in your neighborhood, you might start to believe that such crimes are more common than they are. You might believe that plane crashes are more common than they really are because you can easily think of several examples.
It is essentially a mental shortcut designed to save us time when we are trying to determine risk. The problem with relying on this way of thinking is that it often leads to poor estimates and bad decisions. Smokers who have never known someone to die of a smoking-related illness, for example, might underestimate the health risks of smoking. In contrast, if you have two sisters and five neighbors who have had breast cancer, you might believe it is even more common than statistics suggest. For example, we may assume that negative events won’t affect us such as:
DivorceJob lossIllnessDeath
The optimism bias has roots in the availability heuristic. Because you can probably think of examples of bad things happening to other people it seems more likely that others will be affected by negative events. There is good news, however. This tendency toward optimism helps create a sense of anticipation for the future, giving people the hope and motivation they need to pursue their goals.
Status quo bias reflects a desire to keep things as they are.Apophenia is the tendency to perceive patterns in random occurrences.Framing is presenting a situation in a way that gives a certain impression.
A Word From Verywell
The cognitive biases above are common, but this is only a sampling of the many biases that can affect your thinking. These biases collectively influence much of our thoughts and ultimately, decision making. Many of these biases are inevitable. We simply don’t have the time to evaluate every thought in every decision for the presence of any bias. Understanding these biases is very helpful in learning how they can lead us to poor decisions in life.
