Archive | Bias

Two Steps to Better Design Decisions

By Eric Olive on July 9, 2015 in Availability Bias, Bias, Confirmation Bias, Decisions, Design, Design Decisions

While the human brain is our greatest design resource, it also erects barriers in the form of cognitive bias, or brain quirks. Sadly, such brain quirks are legion and include the optimism, overconfidence, availability, and confirmation biases. The confirmation bias presents an especially difficult challenge because it causes us to seek evidence that supports our […]

Anchored in Good Design

By Eric Olive on June 4, 2015 in Anchoring Bias, Bias, Design, User Experience

In a previous post, we outlined the anchoring and adjustment bias, the fact that an uninformative number can easily influence our judgment. In other words, we are surrounded by facts and figures meaning that we rarely make decisions in a vacuum. We must, therefore, remain cognizant of the possibility that our choices can be influenced […]

Messy Minds and Mangled Communication

By Eric Olive on March 5, 2015 in Ambiguity, Bias, Communication Problems, Illusion of Transparency

Mangled Communication: How and Why It Occurs “You know, that guy in that movie we saw last month! I can’t think of the actor’s name. I know you know it. Please tell me,” pleads her husband. “What are you talking about?” replies his spouse. “You know, that guy, in that movie…” “Honey, I have absolutely […]

Perilous Predictions: Why You Might Be Happier in Topeka than Hawaii

By Eric Olive on February 26, 2015 in Bias, Decisions, Predictions

“Lottery Loser!” A term so common we’ve heard it on the formerly popular TV show “House.” A lottery loser is someone who wins a great deal of money only to end up miserable and financially worse off than before winning the money. But, wait, this can’t be! While we know that money doesn’t buy happiness, […]

Decision Drivers: What Really Influences Your Decisions And Why You Should Care

By Eric Olive on February 12, 2015 in Bias, Decision Drivers, Decisions

Decision Drivers We are often unaware of significant and unconscious decision drivers. The five posts summarized below offer insight into the mysterious workings of the human brain and what truly drives our decisions. Are Human Decisions Eminently Rational, Hopelessly Irrational, or Neither? In this intriguing post, influence guru Robert Cialdini outlines the traditional poles in […]

Cognitive Biases—The Confirmation Bias

By Eric Olive on February 5, 2015 in Bias, Confirmation Bias, Decisions

The confirmation bias refers to the tendency to favor information that reinforces our existing beliefs. As Andrew McVagh cleverly puts it in his post about the confirmation bias, “Did you know your brain is a yes-man, telling you only what you want to hear? He’s right, and we witness this bias in the current, highly […]

Anchored in Bias: How One Number Can Sink Your Career

By Eric Olive on January 29, 2015 in Anchoring Bias, Bad Decsions, Bias, Decisions

Imagine how you might answer the following questions: Is the height of the tallest redwood more than 180 feet? What is your best guess about the height of the tallest redwood? Participants who were asked these questions in a study by psychologist Richard West answered, on average, 118 feet. West ran this experiment several times […]