COGNITIVE BIAS

Cognitive Bias

  • Definition: A systematic thought process resulting from the brain's tendency to simplify information processing through personal experience and preferences.

  • Introduction: Coined by Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman in 1972; it facilitates navigation in daily life but can lead to irrational interpretations.

  • Characteristics:

    • Decision-making shortcuts known as heuristics.

    • Errors in judgment stem from flawed cognitive processes.

    • Example: Quick decisions (e.g., fleeing from danger) can lead to suboptimal outcomes.

    • Stereotypes are common examples, leading to negative societal impacts.

Key Causes of Cognitive Bias

  • Cognitive Ability: Limited information processing capacity; forgetfulness or disregard for relevant details.

  • Emotions: Personal feelings can skew judgment (e.g., tolerance of abuse from loved ones).

  • Personal Motivations: Decisions based on personal goals, potentially leading to unhealthy choices (e.g., dieting).

  • Societal Pressure: Decisions influenced by social expectations rather than personal beliefs (e.g., marrying for social approval).

  • Time Pressure: Quick decision-making instincts can override optimal reasoning, a remnant of evolutionary survival mechanisms.

  • Effects of Aging: Older individuals may overlook new information, leading to biases.

Cognitive Bias vs. Logical Fallacy

  • Cognitive Bias: Judgment impairment from innate human tendencies (e.g., biases based on personal preferences).

  • Logical Fallacy: Judgment impairment due to reasoning errors (e.g., rejecting a politician's proposal based on unproven allegations).

Types of Cognitive Bias

  • Actor-Observer Bias: Attributing personal situation to external causes and others’ behaviors to internal causes.

  • Affect Heuristic: Emotional states influencing decisions.

  • Algorithm Bias: Discrimination in algorithms affecting certain groups.

  • Anchoring Bias: Relying too much on initial information.

  • Confirmation Bias: Favoring information that supports existing beliefs.

  • Self-Serving Bias: Taking personal credit for successes while blaming external factors for failures.

  • Sunk Cost Effect: Continuing investment in losing propositions to avoid failure.

  • Survivorship Bias: Focusing on successful outcomes while ignoring failures.

Signs and Effects of Bias

  • Attributing personal success to self, while attributing others' successes to luck.

  • Relying on initial information without adapting to new data.

  • Overestimating personal knowledge.

  • Blaming external factors for failures.

  • Attention only to information that confirms personal opinions.

  • Assuming universal agreement with personal beliefs.

  • Awareness of these signs can help mitigate cognitive biases.