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Belief Bias

We are more likely to accept the fact of something if it matches our pre-existing beliefs.

Belief Bias

Sophie had always believed in the power of natural remedies over modern medicine. Growing up, her family swore by homemade herbal cures for everything from colds to headaches. She read countless articles and watched videos claiming that a particular herbal tea could cure almost any illness. The idea resonated with her deeply—after all, nature had always provided the best solutions, right?

One day, her friend Ethan, a medical researcher, brought up a study published in a reputable scientific journal. It tested the healing properties of the tea and found no real medicinal benefits—just a placebo effect. Excited to share what he had learned, Ethan sent Sophie the article. But instead of considering the findings, Sophie brushed it off.

“These studies are always biased,” she said. “The researchers must be funded by big pharmaceutical companies trying to discredit natural healing.” She quickly found online testimonials from people claiming the tea had cured their chronic migraines and stomach issues. To Sophie, this was all the proof she needed. “See? I knew it worked!” she thought, completely ignoring the controlled study Ethan had provided.

A few months later, Sophie caught a persistent flu. She doubled down on her herbal remedies, refusing to take modern medicine. Her condition worsened, but she remained convinced that if she just drank more tea, she would recover. Eventually, she had no choice but to go to the doctor, who prescribed her antibiotics. Within days, she was feeling better—but she chalked it up to her body finally responding to the tea.

This is Belief Bias in action. We readily accept information that aligns with our existing beliefs while dismissing contradictory evidence, even when it’s well-supported. This bias can cloud judgment, preventing us from making rational, informed decisions.

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Scarcity Bias

Tendency to value limited or scarce resources more highly than those that are abundantly available.

Small Win Bias – Gratification Bias

Tendency to prioritizes or value short-term rewards over long-term benefits.

The Cheating Bias

Dishonest behavior by getting influenced to do so when observing others, leading to unethical practices.

Sisyphus Effect

Tendency to give up when there is no gratification or visible meaning / output to efforts.

The IKEA Effect

People tend to value an object more if they contribute to its creation.

Dunning Kruger Effect

Overestimating one’s knowledge due to a lack of understanding about the complexity of a subject.

Decoy Option Effect

Influences preferences by introducing a less attractive intermediate option, subtly steering choices towards more profitable alternatives.

Confirmation Bias

The tendency to search for, interpret, favor and recall information in a way that confirms or supports one’s prior beliefs or values.

Spotlight Effect

The tendency to believe that we are being noticed more than we really are.

Anchoring Bias

People rely heavily on the first piece of information (the “anchor”), even if it’s irrelevant.

Current Mood Bias

It is a distortion in cognition and decision making due to the present emotional state.

Prestige Bias

The tendency to favor the opinions of individuals or groups with higher social status or authority even when not in the same field.

Social Desirability Bias

Tendency to respond to or behave in a way that is socially acceptable or desirable, rather than expressing their true opinions or behaviors.

Recency Bias

The tendency to better recall recent information and events while ignoring older information.

Restraint Bias

The tendency to overestimate the level of control we have over our impulsive behaviors.

Survivorship Bias

The tendency to focus on the individuals or things that have “survived” or succeeded, while overlooking data from those that have not.

Response Bias

Tendency to provide inaccurate or false answers during surveys or interviews.

First impression Bias

The tendency to form lasting opinions based on initial experiences.

Omission Bias

Tendency to avoid taking action due to fear or uncertainty, even when not taking action could be more harmful.

Bundling Bias

The tendency of buying things that are sold together, even if we don’t need everything in the bundle. Think of this as the “package deal effect.”

Distinction Bias

In decision making, we tend to overvalue the minor differences between two almost similar options when we examine them together.

Projection Bias

Individuals overestimate the prevalence of their own thoughts, beliefs, preferences, and knowledge in others.

Salience Bias

Our tendency to focus on items or information that are more noteworthy while ignoring those that do not grab our attention.

Diversification Bias

Spreading our resources thinly across numerous options instead of concentrating on a few.

Pessimism Bias

A tendency to believe things will go wrong even when there is no evidence to support it.

Optimism Bias

Tendency to overestimate the likelihood of positive outcomes and underestimate the negative ones.

Bandwagon Effect

It refers to our habit of adopting certain behaviors or beliefs because many other people do the same.

Framing Bias

Equivalent information can be more or less attractive depending on how it is presented, influencing our decisions.

Recall Bias

Individuals do not accurately remember past events or experiences or leave out details while reporting about them.

Group Think Bias

A group of individuals reaches a consensus without critical reasoning or evaluation of the consequences or alternatives, simply doing or agreeing because everyone else is.