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In our everyday lives we are subject to biases that influence our behaviours and decision making. Interestingly, we have these biases because we seek mental shortcuts to help us make decisions easily. However, they sometimes lead to undesirable outcomes that we would rather avoid!
Below are five common types of biases and what you can do to avoid them:
| Bias | How to avoid |
| Confirmation bias: consuming information and points of view that conform to your existing beliefs and ignoring evidence that challenge your views. Examples: Twitter! Only engaging in discussions with people who hold the same view as you. | Always ask yourself – what is the strongest argument against your view? Make sure you consume and consider opposing evidence. Play devils advocate to yourself. |
| The Dunning-Kruger effect: lack of knowledge and skills in a certain area leads to a tendency to overestimate your own competence. Similarly, those who excel in a given area to think the task is simple for everyone. Examples: Me taking on a DIY project 😀 Not accepting help from others  | Get feedback from others! 360 feedback at work will help identify areas where you need improvement. It may be something you thought you do well! Compare your own performance to others to identify your weaknesses – e.g. record a video of yourself presenting and see how good you really are compared to your favourite public speaker! |
| Anchoring bias: being overly influenced by the first piece of information that we hear. Examples: The first number mentioned in a price negotiation. Our first thought on something e.g. a doctor’s first thought on a diagnosis. | Building a step into the decision-making process that is specifically dedicated to exposing the weaknesses of a plan. Come up with reasons why that anchor is inappropriate for the situation. Get independent estimates of values and counter offers when bargaining with a new low point to reset the anchor. |
| Self-serving bias: the tendency to attribute success to our own doing and failure to external factors. Examples: Blaming others for our own mistakes. I got the job because I was the best candidate / I didn’t get the job because of discrimination. | Reflect over the factors involved in successes and failures in a journal – this deliberate reflection will help you draw out the most influential factors more accurately. Don’t make quick judgements. |
| In-group bias: the unfair favouring of someone from your own group and perceiving the same behaviours differently among different people. Examples: Treating people differently based on different teams within an organisation, different organisations, race, socio-economic background, which football team they support etc. | This one is very difficult to overcome, because it works at a sub-consciousness level. Exploit people’s self-interest – in general this is a great tactic to overcome a range of biases, as it provides an incentive to change someone’s behaviour! Collaboration between groups – the more different groups work together the less likely they are to think of others as the out-group. |
Further reading:
https://thedecisionlab.com/ – covers a range of biases in great detail with lots of evidence.
Cognitive Bias List: Common Types of Bias (verywellmind.com)
12 Common Biases That Affect How We Make Everyday Decisions | Psychology Today United Kingdom