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Cognitive Biases
Cognitive bias refer to the organized way of differing from norm or rationality in an individual judgment. There is creation of subjective reality by and individual based on their perceptions of the input. A person’s construction of the reality rather than the impartial input actually dictates their behaviors in the world. Therefore, cognitive bias can sometimes result to inaccurate judgments, distorted perceptions, interpretations that are illogical and it can even lead to individual irrationality.
There are part of cognitive biases that are seemingly adaptive. In a given context, some actions which are more effective may result from cognitive biases. Besides, giving cognitive bias a chance can promote faster decision making. When timely delivery is more valued than accuracy, cognitive bias may lead to desirable decision as shown in heuristics.
On the other hand, there are cognitive biases which are a byproduct of from human processing limitation. They occur as a result of lacking requisite mental mechanism. The biological state or constitution of an individual also impacts their cognitive biases or put in a simple manner, the individuals limited capacity for information processing results to cognitive biases.
Cognitive biases list is continually evolving. This is based on studies on people’s judgments as well as process of decision making covered in cognitive science. The cognitive biases has been observed to have effectual practical results in some areas like entrepreneurship, management as well as clinical judgments. Researches have shown that cognitive biases can be useful. It can speed the scrutiny and improvement on target detection within changing circumstances, aids quick choices of short term practical plans compared to long term. Besides, it also motivates to explore as well as completing problem solving which could have been left earlier.
Potential usefulness of some biases
Implicit biases
Implicit biases forms unconscious attachment of particular characteristics to a person of a particular social group. These biases are molded by experiences or learned associations attached between certain characteristics and social categories. It may be gender or even race. The way a person behaves or perceives things can be affected by implicit biases that such a person holds. This can occur even when the person is aware or unintentionally has those stereotypes. The implicit biases are in part of the implicit social cognition. The stereotypes, attitudes and individual perceptions operates with no conscious intentions. However, in contrast, the end results are conscious, thoughts that are controlled, intentions as well as the beliefs.
Researches have established that many actions a person takes largely occurs without conscious thoughts. This helps people to function within their extraordinary complex world. Therefore, the implicit within an individual helps in predicting their behaviors in a more accurate manner than in their conscious values.
Besides, the implicit bias can be positively used in creating awareness on gender inequities. The idea is featuring in many scholarly inquiries and public discourse in regards to discrimination. This is giving a basis for explorations on why, how as well as what now in regards to gender inequity. The gender gap realized based on implicit biases in academia has attracted attention of many institutions to begin implicit bias training as an intervention. This is a very useful idea informed by implicit bias. Although implicit bias is good promoting gender inequity awareness, the current concentration on implicit biases may risk covering wider political, structural and social impediments to women advancement.
Belief bias
The belief bias enables an individual to look at the strength of a given idea based on credibility of their conclusion instead of looking at the strength of their support to the conclusion. This belief enables us to a chance of accepting an idea which gives strength to a given conclusion aligning with our beliefs, values as well earlier knowledge and at the same time reject other arguments that counter the conclusion. Belief bias may blind us in making wrong decision easily. Studies have shown it has the ability influencing conditional reasoning, relation as well as transitive reasoning.
Backfire effects of cognitive biases
When people are provided with new information that show they are wrong on what they have always perceived to be right, they are likely to accept such information and change their perception regarding that matter. However, there are those who will illogically react. The backfire effect is a result of confirmation bias. People will start giving credibility to any evidence which aligns to their prior beliefs. The bias exhibits a lot of strength such that a person refuses to accept the possibility that they had wrong perception or mistaken. Any information that has no support to what they believe in is not accepted. Even to some extent they see they have been wrong, they continue showing stronger confidence to prove their correctness all along. They may hold extreme position to an issue than before. The cognitive errors like backfire effect is always a problem to analysis of data.
Why do we make bad decisions?
Individuals makes wrong decisions as a result of their cognitive error. Irrelevant information that we may be having before making a decision may sway us in making the wrong decision. The judgment resulting from the information which their mind can recall also has bigger influence into making wrong decision by and individual. The deceptive information tends to come into our minds very fast than the correct information that can help us make good decisions.as a result, we make bad decisions based on the misleading information. We also make bad decisions when we reach to a conclusion by comparing things with what is in our mind. The people who are smart have been found to be more vulnerable into making bad decisions through comparison of things with what their minds have.
There are wrong decisions that people make because biases in predicting the future correctly. The failure to take account into regression mean makes people to make wrong predictions which are based on information that is mis leading. Also, there are people who tends to look back on what happened in past and make adjustments with the view of accommodating unexpected negative outcome. However, there is probabilities of making wrong and right decision based on this bias.
Conclusion
With all the technology, people are involved in selecting inputs, criterion as well as interpretation. Cognitive biases is hard to be avoided. However, the appropriate way of protecting yourself against it is through awareness of its existence and application of critical thinking skills in order to try and avoid it. It is good to explore all the biases. After a thorough understanding of all of them, think critically on the best decision to undertake with carefulness.
Work Cited
Arnott, David. “Cognitive biases and decision support systems development: a design science approach.” Information Systems Journal 16.1 (2006): 55-78.
Blumenthal-Barby, Jennifer S., and Heather Krieger. “Cognitive biases and heuristics in medical decision making: a critical review using a systematic search strategy.” Medical Decision Making 35.4 (2015): 539-557.
Das, T. K., and Bing‐Sheng Teng. “Cognitive biases and strategic decision processes: An integrative perspective.” Journal of management studies 36.6 (1999): 757-778.
Das, T. K., and Bing‐Sheng Teng. “Cognitive biases and strategic decision processes: An integrative perspective.” Journal of management studies 36.6 (1999): 757-778.
Lehner, Paul, et al. “Cognitive biases and time stress in team decision making.” IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics-Part A: Systems and Humans 27.5 (1997): 698-703.