Have you heard of a phenomenon called cognitive bias? It is defined as ‘a systematic deviation from the norm or rationality in judgement’. This happens when an individual’s belief is altered based on their subjective perceptions and this may prevent the conscious rationalisation of objectivity. It’s been a hot topic throughout the pandemic, surfacing various strong views about lockdowns, vaccines, face masks and many other issues.
Within cognitive bias there are several specific types of bias which can be explained by the factors affecting them. Here are a few key ones:
- Implicit bias – a tendency to attribute positive or negative bias towards a certain group. This could be as severe as racism or it could be less so, such as looking more fondly on friends or family.
- Priming bias – a tendency to be influenced by the first set of information presented. For example, supporting the first football team you went to go and see as a child.
- Self-serving bias – a tendency towards what has the best response for the individual.
- Hindsight bias – tendency to base beliefs on previous events.
We all have bias and experience bias every day to varying degrees. because of this, it’s worth asking yourself each time you make an important decision about, for example, your health, ‘am I minimising my biases or choosing to construct my reality in a way that suits me but doesn’t necessarily help me?’. Try to look at things objectively and be aware of the biases that influence you.
Now for Valentine’s day-related study of cognitive bias!
In 2017, a US study looked at how well red roses and chocolates were received by individuals across the Valentines period. The study followed almost 15,000 individuals in the two weeks leading up to 14th February and then beyond. The team collected data on relationship status, sex, orientation, age and gender.
The study found that chocolates were generally better received than flowers, particularly in women, and generally the more someone liked one of the gifts the more they liked the other… the interesting point on bias comes as the study found that there was a strong correlation between how well roses were received and how closely they were given to Valentine’s day. In other words, the roses were better liked the nearer to Valentines day they were given, regardless of how much the recipient had liked the flowers in the first place. This was also the case no matter what the relationship status, sex, age or orientation of the individual was.
This is a great – particularly for the romantic cynics out there – positive, example of priming bias. The external circumstances altered the belief of the individual as to how much they liked roses.
“Science is the search for the truth, that is the effort to understand the world; it involves the rejection of bias, of dogma, of revelation, but not the rejection of morality” – Linus Pauling
Photo by Albert Dera on Unsplash