Cognitive Bias
Mental shortcuts our brains use to save energy, sometimes leading to systematic and irrational judgments.
Cognitive Bias
Why Do Our Mental Shortcuts Often Go Astray?
Our brains are lazy. To conserve energy, they have evolved numerous "mental shortcuts" (Heuristics) to deal with a complex world. While these shortcuts are effective most of the time, they can sometimes lead us into systematic, irrational errors of judgment, which are known as Cognitive Biases.
Understanding these biases is like getting the "factory settings manual" for our brain. It helps us better understand ourselves and others, and make more rational decisions.
The concept was first proposed by psychologists Amos Tversky (Israeli, 1937-1996) and Daniel Kahneman (Israeli, 1934-) in 1972, giving rise to the important field of Behavioral Economics.
Common Types of Cognitive Biases
Here are some common cognitive biases, some of which are explored in other notes:
- Confirmation Bias: We tend to seek out information that confirms our existing beliefs and ignore contradictory evidence.
- Dunning-Kruger Effect: Novices often overestimate their abilities, while experts may be more modest.
- Anchoring Bias: Our decisions are heavily influenced by the first piece of information we receive (the "anchor").
- Availability Heuristic: We tend to believe vivid examples that are easily recalled from memory, ignoring statistical data.
- Bandwagon Effect: Our opinions and behaviors are easily influenced by group pressure to "go with the flow."
Recommended Reading
- (Book) Thinking, Fast and Slow
- (Book) Nudge