A cognitive bias is a systematic error in thinking that affects how we process information, perceive others, and make decisions. It can lead to irrational thoughts or judgements and is often based on our perceptions, memories, individual beliefs, and societal beliefs. Biases can be conscious or unconscious.
A conscious bias is explicit and intentional where we are aware of our attitudes and behaviours resulting from them.
A cognitive bias is an unconscious bias as it is often a result of our brain’s attempt to simplify information processing. Biases often work as rules of thumb that help you make sense of the world and reach decisions with relative speed.
Some biases are related to memory, that is, the way we remember an event can be biased for a number of reasons and that in turn can lead to biased thinking and decision-making. Some biases maybe related to problems with attention – since attention is a limited resource, we have to be selective about what we pay attention to.
How do I know if I subscribe to cognitive biases? To figure this out, ask yourself the following questions:
- Do you assume everyone shares your opinions and beliefs?
- Do you learn a little about a topic and then assume you know all there is to know?
- Do you only pay attention to stories that confirm your opinions?
There are many factors that cause cognitive biases – emotions, individual motivations, societal pressures, mental shortcuts(heuristics), etc. The human brain is powerful but is subject to limitations.
Cognitive biases are often a result of your brain’s attempt to simplify information processing. When we are making decisions, we like to think that we are objective, logical and capable of taking in and evaluating all the information that is available to us. Unfortunately, biases do lead us off track, which causes us to make poor decisions and have bad judgement.
Some of the most common cognitive biases most of us have are the following:
- Confirmation bias – This is favouring information that conforms to your existing beliefs and discounting evidence that does not conform.
- Actor-Observer bias – This is the tendency to attribute your own actions to external causes while attributing other people’s behaviours to internal causes. For example, you attribute your high cholesterol level to genetics while you consider others to have high cholesterol due to a poor diet and lack of exercise.
- False Consensus effect – This is the tendency to overestimate how much other people agree with you.
- Optimism bias – This bias leads you to believe that you are less likely to suffer from misfortune and more likely to attain success than your peers.
- Self-serving bias – This is the tendency to blame external forces when bad things happen and give yourself credit when good things happen.
- The Dunning – Kruger effect – This is when people believe they are smarter and more capable than they really are. An example is when a person is not able to recognize his or her own incompetence.
Remember also, at times, multiple biases may play a role in influencing you. For example, you might mis-remember an event (the misinformation effect) and assume that everyone else shares that same memory of what happened (false consensus effect).
3 steps to unsubscribe from Cognitive Biases:
- Become aware of your biases.
- Challenge your biases – Actively challenge your biases by asking yourself – Am I giving too much weightage to certain factors? Am I ignoring relevant information because it does not support my view?
- Challenge others biases – Respectfully pointing out biases in others can help others think more critically – especially if, they are unconsciously acting out or speaking on their biases.