What Are Cognitive Biases, and How to Identify Your Blind Spots?

Cognitive biases are mental shortcuts that the brain takes to simplify complex information. While they are built into human cognition and can make information processing more effective, they can also distort your perception of reality and affect your judgment, impairing your ability to make sound decisions.

In this article, we’ll dissect the question “What are cognitive biases?” by analyzing their types, causes, and connection to personality. Even more importantly, we’ll share practical tips to help you avoid these quick-thinking patterns and improve your decision-making process. Let’s begin!

13 Types of Cognitive Biases

There are numerous types of cognitive biases, or systematic errors in thinking, that occur when the brain processes information. Regardless of their type, cognitive biases can interfere with our ability to process information, think critically, interpret reality, and make decisions. It’s essential to learn how to recognize them, as this is the first step to reducing them.

Below is a list of common cognitive biases along with examples of how they may manifest in real life:

#1. Confirmation Bias

Confirmation bias is one of the most common perception biases that leads individuals to seek out information that supports their existing beliefs. Instead of evaluating situations objectively, people who fall prey to this bias focus solely on evidence that aligns with their point of view, ignoring anything that may challenge it.

While confirmation bias can help you feel more certain and in control, it can distort your perception of reality. A common example of this cognitive bias is only following social media accounts that match and validate your worldview, political beliefs, etc., thereby creating an echo chamber.

#2. Anchoring Bias

Anchoring bias is the tendency to excessively rely on the first piece of information you encounter when making judgments or decisions. This piece of information is known as the anchor, and once your mind sets it as a reference point, it clings to it, even when it’s inaccurate, arbitrary, irrelevant, or outdated.

This decision-making bias prevents you from evaluating situations from a neutral standpoint, limiting objectivity and hindering your ability to see the full picture. The anchoring effect is commonly applied in pricing, sales, and marketing to influence consumer behavior.

For instance, a real estate agent may offer you a house that’s way out of your budget before showing a more affordable option so that you’d perceive it as a great deal, even if the second house is still overpriced.

#3. Halo Effect

The halo effect occurs when you make an overall favorable impression of a person or a thing based on a single positive trait.

Even when this trait isn’t related to other attributes, your brain may assign positive qualities without any evidence, which can make you overlook flaws and risks. For example, you may automatically assume that an attractive person is trustworthy or kind, even when they’re not.

The opposite of the halo effect is the horn effect, which is a cognitive bias in which one negative trait of a person or an object causes you to form a poor overall judgment. For example, unappealing packaging can lead consumers to perceive the product as low quality.

#4. Attribution Bias

Attribution bias is the tendency to misinterpret the causes of your own or other people’s actions. In other words, this cognitive bias happens when you assume you know why people act the way they act, even when it’s incorrect.

Most people engage in attribution bias when they blame other people’s behavior on their character or excuse their own behavior by shifting the blame onto external circumstances.

For example, you may assume that a coworker who procrastinates is simply lazy. However, you may also excuse your own procrastination by blaming it on chatty coworkers or other distractions.

#5. Status Quo Bias

The status quo bias happens when people insist on keeping things as they are, even when there are better alternatives. This cognitive bias can cause you to resist change by making you perceive it as a risk or danger. Although sticking with familiar routines, decisions, or habits can make you feel safe and comfortable, it may prevent growth and positive change.

For instance, you might stay in a job position or a relationship you’ve outgrown long ago because it is far less daunting than stepping into the unknown.

#6. Spotlight Effect

The spotlight effect occurs when you believe others are paying more attention to you, and especially your flaws and mistakes, than they actually are. Since this cognitive bias can make you feel as if you’re being examined under a magnifying glass, it can lead to insecurity and social anxiety.

For example, in public speaking scenarios, you may feel as if everyone’s judging you for every pause you make, even when the audience perceives them as intentional.

#7. Authority Bias

Simply put, authority bias refers to the tendency to trust experts blindly. It leads you to perceive the opinions and advice of authority figures as valid and credible, even in matters in which they have little knowledge.

Examples include trusting a doctor’s recommendation without hearing a second opinion and following diet advice from a social media influencer with no background in nutrition.

#8. Choice Overload

Also known as the paradox of choice, choice overload occurs when being presented with too many options makes it harder to make decisions. This phenomenon can lead to overthinking, procrastination, anxiety, avoidance, and regret; you may think you’ve made the wrong decision, even when it’s not the case.

For instance, you may delay accepting a job offer because you’re overwhelmed as a result of having several options to choose from. And when you do accept one, you may feel as if you should’ve chosen another option, even when the job you chose is perfectly fine.

#9. Overconfidence Bias

The overconfidence bias causes people to overestimate their knowledge or abilities. While it’s great to be self-confident, thinking that you’re better in some areas of life than you actually are can be detrimental. This is because it can cause you to underestimate potential risks and challenges, leading to suboptimal decisions.

For example, if you think you’re an excellent driver, you may drive more dangerously because you assume you’re capable of avoiding risky situations on the road. Similarly, you may take financial risks because you overestimate your understanding of market trends, which can lead to economic loss.

#10. Negativity Bias

The negativity bias is the tendency to pay more attention to negative experiences than positive ones. It can lead you to dwell on negative information and events, making you disregard the good things happening around you. If, for example, a manager at work criticizes you once, you may feel like a failure, no matter how much praise you’ve received.

This cognitive distortion can also contribute to emotional reasoning, where you assume that something is true because it feels true. For example, you may focus on one disagreement with a friend to the point where you believe they no longer value your friendship, even though they’re generally supportive.

#11. Curse of Knowledge Bias

Also known as the curse of expertise, the curse of knowledge bias occurs when you assume that others have the same level of understanding as you do on a given topic. This cognitive bias happens when we struggle to remember what it was like not to know something. As such, it can make it challenging for you to empathize and communicate with others.

A common example of this cognitive bias is using jargon outside a group that understands it. For instance, a lawyer may use legal terminology around their friends, assuming they know what it means, even when they aren’t familiar with it.

#12. Illusion of Control

The illusion of control is a cognitive bias that happens when you overestimate your influence over the outcomes of uncontrollable events. For example, a gambler may think that they can beat the odds by being strategic, even when the house always has an edge.

Believing that you have more control than you actually do creates a false sense of power, which can backfire. A study done by Fast et al. suggests that the illusion of control can, in fact, lead to a loss of power by making you more likely to make poor decisions.

#13. Ostrich Effect

The ostrich effect is a cognitive bias in which you “bury your head in the sand” upon coming across negative information, i.e., you avoid hearing anything that makes you feel uncomfortable or threatened. It occurs because the mind would rather choose avoidance as a coping mechanism than face discomfort.

Although it can bring temporary relief, the ostrich effect causes you to ignore potentially useful information, which can lead to more stress and discomfort in the future. For example, you may avoid seeing the doctor because you’re scared of bad news, which can only worsen your health condition.

Now that you know what cognitive biases are and how they manifest, let’s find out what causes them.

What Causes Cognitive Biases?

Cognitive biases are typically caused by faulty reasoning that stems from the brain’s tendency to simplify information processing through mental shortcuts. They are especially common when you need to make a decision with limited information or under time pressure.

Analyzing every possible option can be exhausting, as it requires lots of energy. If you’re short on time, it can even be impractical. Therefore, the brain uses shortcuts to make quick judgments, even if they aren’t always correct.

Other common causes of cognitive biases include:

• Emotions. Strong feelings can impair your reasoning, making some details seem more or less important than they actually are.
• Memory limitations. The brain has a limited amount of memory, so you may first notice information that aligns with your preexisting beliefs. Memory errors (e.g., only recalling certain aspects of an event) can also contribute to cognitive biases.
• Social conditioning. Social norms and stereotypes can influence our judgment by causing us to form automatic assumptions instead of analyzing the situation thoroughly, leading to cognitive biases.

How to Recognize and Reduce Cognitive Biases

To recognize and reduce cognitive biases, pause and bring your attention to your thought process. Your brain resorts to mental shortcuts unconsciously, which can make it challenging for you to notice when you’re falling prey to cognitive biases. Therefore, awareness and self-reflection are key to overcoming them.

Here are some other effective tips on how to avoid cognitive biases:

• Educate yourself. Understanding what cognitive biases are and what they look like in real life increases your awareness and enables you to recognize the thinking shortcuts your brain relies on.
• Expand your horizons. Seeking new information rather than relying on what you already know is key to seeing the broader picture. Talking to people with diverse experiences and backgrounds can also expose you to different viewpoints, expanding your worldview.
• Develop cognitive flexibility. Cognitive flexibility allows you to consider multiple perspectives instead of adhering to a single one. Simply asking yourself, “How might someone else interpret this situation?” can help you practice this skill.
• Question your assumptions. Jumping to conclusions often leads to cognitive biases, which is why you want to challenge your own beliefs instead, especially if you’re prone to black-and-white thinking. Arguing against your own beliefs is also an effective way to assess their validity.

Enneagram and Cognitive Biases: The Blind Spots of Each Type

Each Enneagram type is prone to different cognitive biases due to the differences in their core motivations, fears, and traits.

Here’s an overview of the most common biases in each type:

• Enneagram 1. Ones are ethical and detail-oriented individuals who constantly strive for improvement. Their desire to be correct can make them prone to confirmation bias, whereas their tendency to focus on flaws often leads to negativity bias.
• Enneagram 2. Twos are kind-hearted individuals who seek love and acceptance. Their tendency to idealize others can make them susceptible to the halo effect.
• Enneagram 3. Ambitious Threes are highly prone to the overconfidence bias; they often believe that they’re guaranteed to succeed, even when the odds are against them.
• Enneagram 4. Fours seek to understand themselves but often feel like something within them is missing, making them susceptible to both negativity bias and the spotlight effect.
• Enneagram 5. Fives strive for competence, which is why many of them are no strangers to the curse of expertise; they often assume others are as knowledgeable as they are.
• Enneagram 6. Sixes desire security and often rely on others to feel safe. As such, they may fall prey to authority and status quo biases.
• Enneagram 7. Fun-loving Sevens are prone to FOMO. So, it’s no surprise that they often struggle with choice overload and worry whether they’ve made the right decision.
• Enneagram 8. Eights are bold, intense, and often power-hungry, making them susceptible to the illusion of control and overconfidence bias.
• Enneagram 9. Nines seek peace and harmony, so they often avoid conflict and change, making them prone to the ostrich effect and status quo bias.

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Key Takeaways

Now that you know what cognitive biases are, you’re equipped to recognize these errors in your own thinking. Hopefully, this will help you sharpen your judgment and refine your decision-making.

Before you leave, let’s summarize what we’ve learned today:

• Cognitive biases are systematic errors in thinking that arise when the brain attempts to simplify information processing.
• Some common types of cognitive biases include confirmation bias, authority bias, the spotlight effect, overconfidence bias, and the ostrich effect.
• To reduce cognitive biases, it’s critical to become aware of them, seek diverse information and perspectives, question your assumptions, and improve cognitive flexibility.

What Are Cognitive Biases FAQ

#1. What are the three most common cognitive biases?

The three most common cognitive biases are confirmation, anchoring, and attribution biases. The first two can severely impact your decision-making by preventing you from seeing the situation fully, whereas the last one often leads to misunderstandings.

#2. Can I remove cognitive biases completely?

No, you cannot remove cognitive biases completely, as they are a natural part of human cognition. However, you can reduce them by improving your awareness, challenging your assumptions, and exposing yourself to diverse perspectives.

#3. Can personality influence cognitive biases?

Yes, personality can influence cognitive biases by making you more prone to some than others. For example, people with neurotic traits are likely to fall prey to negativity and status quo biases because they tend to focus on negative experiences and resist change. Meanwhile, confident and optimistic individuals may be more prone to the illusion of control and overconfidence bias.

#4. Are cognitive biases bad?

Cognitive biases aren’t inherently bad, but they can lead to bad outcomes. Although the brain takes mental shortcuts to process information more efficiently, this can distort your perception and judgment, leading to poor decisions.