Cognitive Biases: A Friend or Foe?

READ WITH CAUTION: YOU MAY BECOME EXTREMELY SELF-AWARE

Imagine that our brains are made up of a huge network of roads diverging and converging in all directions, with each road leading to different decisions. It can be really confusing for our racing thoughts to know which way to go. In order to avoid the long winding roads, our mind likes to take shortcuts through the help of cognitive biases. To be exact, cognitive biases are systematic errors in thinking that influence our thinking. 

Don’t be scared by the word “error” - cognitive biases are not wrong. But they’re not always right either. Pretty much all the time, you just don’t realise their influence on you. Getting into a heated argument with no evidence or buying what everyone else buys even if you like something else are all examples of cognitive biases manifesting in your life.

Although cognitive biases can simplify decision-making, they can also cloud your judgement and lead you down a path of poor choices and decisions. 

Even now, I remember watching Disney’s Frozen when I was 5. In my head, Prince Hans was charming, well-mannered, finished other people’s sandwiches and seemed like Anna’s perfect match. Then plot twist – He was the bad guy! If you were surprised too, then you probably were susceptible to the halo effect. This is when you judge someone based on their appearance and your first impression. If you think someone looks good and was nice to you initially, you're likely to believe that they are generally kind all the time. Contrary to this, when the horn effect is in play, someone who looks intimidating or was rude to you would seem like a horrible person all the time. Old Disney movies were also prey to these biases when designing characters – villains looked horrific and unnatural while the heroes/heroines were beautiful, kind and charming. And that is why the betrayal of Prince Hans was a huge shock to everyone (if you weren’t shocked then you probably weren’t biased or you just prefer dudes who talk to reindeers). 

Confirmation bias is something I see almost everyday. Imagine you’re arguing with your friend about whether or not coffee is good for you. You pull out your phone and google “Benefits of drinking coffee” to back up your argument. Meanwhile, your friend searches for how coffee is bad for you. Essentially, both of you are only seeking out information that aligns with your pre-existing belief and opinion. Even if you come across an article that says coffee is bad, you wouldn’t remember it. This is the phenomenon of confirmation bias. Spoiler alert: You and your friend are going to be arguing for a really long time…

Here’s another bias – When we fail a test or get a bad grade, we just love blaming the assessment schedule and grade boundaries. But how many people will admit they simply didn’t study? But when we do get a good grade, and someone else doesn't, we instead like to say that we’re really smart and they’re not. This is known as the self-serving bias. Personally, even after learning about this, I still “self-serve” because it makes me feel good about myself – and I’m sure you do too. But this cognitive bias can make you blind to the real reason why you failed…not just on a test, but in other contexts too. 

While there are many types of biases, these are just a few of the most common ones that I’ve noticed in my life. Even though the examples I’ve described sound negative, it’s important to note that there is some good. For instance, the bandwagon effect, a bias that leads you to go along with the majority, can sometimes help us adopt healthier and positive habits – like chia seed pudding!

Although these are a few common biases, our little mind has endless shortcuts – optimism bias, anchoring bias, framing effect, gender bias and the list just goes on. But if reading this article made you feel more conscious about your thoughts and reactions, you’re on the right track to becoming the master of your own mind. So the next time you find yourself in an argument, failing a test, or making a risky decision, hit pause and take a moment to reflect. Although your brain might be tempted by the shortcuts, you now know what lies in the bushes.