Cognitive bias: the 10 main impacts on our rationality

One cognitive bias represents a deformation in the process of processing information, where the term biases describes a gap between logical and rational thinking and reality.

These biases cause the individual to value identical facts differently, revealing their presence when we observe paradoxes or inconsistencies in our reasoning or judgments.

In this article, we'll explore the 10 main effects of cognitive biases on our rationality, in other words, on our ability to think and act logically and effectively. We will also discuss the methods for counteract these cognitive biases, thus improving our ability to assess and make decisions. But before we dive into these themes, we'll introduce you to cognitive biases, explaining how they form and how they're ubiquitous in our psyche.

Understanding cognitive biases

What is cognitive bias?

One cognitive bias represents a deviation in the thought process, hindering our ability to interpret information logically and rationally. These deviations cause us to privilege certain facts disproportionately over others, leading to biased judgments and reasoning.

The origins of cognitive biases

Cognitive biases result from various sources. Some stem from the inherent limitations of our cognitive system, which is unable to process all the information that comes to us. Others come from heuristics, Mental shortcuts that our brain adopts to save time and energy. Finally, some biases are influenced by our emotional state, our social context, or our motivations.

How biases influence our thinking

Our thinking is shaped by cognitive biases in a variety of ways. They can alter our perception, bias our memory, distort our judgment and reason, and even influence our decision-making and behavior. These deviations can lead us to make mistakes, maintain illusions, prejudices, stereotypes, and other forms of distortion of reality.

However, they also have benefits, helping us adjust our thinking to our environment, simplify complexity, solve problems, build connections, and more.

The 10 main impacts on our rationality

Decision making and availability heuristics

THEavailability heuristic is a cognitive bias that leads us to assess the probability of an event based on how easily examples come to mind. This bias makes us give priority to information. Outstanding, Recent or widely disseminated, to the detriment of objective facts or statistics.

It has a significant impact on our decisionmaking, leading us to either overvalue or underestimate the risks, opportunities or impacts of our actions.

Judgment and anchoring effect

THEanchoring effect is a cognitive bias that causes us to give excessive importance to the first piece of information we receive. In doing so, we are less receptive to the things that come to us next, even if they are more relevant or reliable.

This phenomenon can bias our judgment by causing us to place excessive trust in an initial idea, perception, or information, at the expense of a more nuanced or critical assessment.

Risk perception and confirmation bias

The confirmation bias is a cognitive bias that leads us to favor information that confirms our preconceptions and to ignore information that contradicts them. This bias limits our openness to new information or to questioning.

It affects our perception of risks by causing us to overlook or underestimate warnings, contrary evidence, or alternative opportunities.

Learning and the Dunning-Kruger effect

THEDunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias characterized by a poor evaluation of our skills or knowledge in a certain field. This bias stems from a lack of metacognition, or lack of awareness of our own mental abilities.

It influences our learning by making us believe that we know a subject more or less well than reality, thus preventing a fair assessment of our strengths and weaknesses.

Interpersonal relationships and sympathy biases

The Sympathy bias is a psychological phenomenon that pushes us to favor people or groups who are close to us, similar to us or with whom we share an affiliation. Conversely, we tend to distance ourselves from those who seem distant or different to us. This bias, motivated by our quest for belonging and social validation, can influence our relationships by leading us to adopt more positive or negative attitudes towards others, depending on our level of sympathy or antipathy.

Uncertainty Management and Risk Aversion

THErisk aversion is a cognitive bias that encourages us to favor options that are perceived as safer or more predictable, at the expense of those considered uncertain or risky. This behavior, rooted in a fear of failure or change, can compromise our ability to embrace opportunities or adapt by avoiding anything that involves risk.

Assessments and projection biases

The Projection bias leads us to believe that others share our thoughts, feelings, or motivations, thus ignoring their diversity and complexity. This bias impacts how we evaluate others, making us judge people by our own standards and experiences without considering their uniqueness or circumstances.

Response to change and status quo effect

THEStatus quo effect refers to our preference for keeping things as they are, even when advantageous alternatives are available to us. This penchant for stability, often at our own expense, limits our ability to change or progress in the face of situations that no longer suit us.

Memory and recency/selectivity bias

The recency bias makes us give more importance to recent information, by hiding older information. In addition, the selectivity bias directs us to information that is in line with our expectations or beliefs, and pushes us to ignore information that contradicts them. These selective memory mechanisms, influenced by our attention and emotions, unevenly shape the recall of our experiences and knowledge.

Impulsiveness and hyperbolic discounting bias

The Hyperbolic discounting bias Represents a cognitive bias Who pushes us to focus on rewards immediate and certain compared to those that are delayed and less secure, even when the latter are objectively more meaningful or desirable.

This trend is often associated with keenness, a impulsiveness, or a form of Temporal myopia. It affects our ability to make decisions, by encouraging us to opt for spontaneous actions, without taking into account long term consequences or our future goals.

Strategies to counter cognitive biases

Awareness and education

La first step to counter cognitive biases is to Recognize them at home and with others. Accepting that we are all influenced by biases, regardless of our intelligence or education level, is essential.

You also need to learn about the different types of biases, understand their origins, their effects and when they occur. Education plays a major role in developing critical thinking and questioning our beliefs, opinions and decisions.

Development of critical thinking

La critical thinking is our ability to analyze, evaluate, and synthesize information objectively. It helps us not to be overly influenced by our emotions, prejudices, or personal interests. To sharpen our critical thinking, it is vital to question, look for subtleties, be open to diverse opinions, check our sources of information, and practice self-evaluation.

Techniques for informed decision making

Informed decision making allows choosing the best option, considering the objectives, criteria, available information and potential impacts. It is advisable to use methods that limit the effect of bias, such as the six hats method, the rational decision model, brainstorming, and weighted voting. These approaches guide us to organize our thinking, examine diverse perspectives, weigh the pros and cons, and justify our decisions.

Conclusion

Les cognitive biases represent discrepancies in the way we process information, influencing our perception, memory, judgment, reasoning, reasoning, decision, and behavior. They play a critical role in our rationality, in other words, our ability to think and act in a coherent and effective manner.

These biases can lead us to errors, illusions, prejudices, stereotypes, and distortions. Paradoxically, they can also be beneficial in helping us adapt to our environment, simplify the complexity of situations, solve problems, and build relationships.

In order to counter the effects of cognitive biases, it is recommended to adopt strategies focused on increasing our consciousness, our education, our ability to critical thinking and our ability to make informed decisions. These methods help us process information objectively, logically, and rationally, reducing the influence of our emotions, prejudices, or personal interests.

They encourage skepticism, the search for nuances, exposure to diverse perspectives, the verification of sources and evidence, and the ability to question yourself.

We invite you to apply these strategies in your personal and professional life and to share this article with your family, colleagues and friends. By acting together, we can improve our rationality and our well-being.

Thanks for reading us!

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