Anchoring Bias

Decision making biases played a devastating role in the Deepwater Disaster. The biases that were present are; representativeness heuristic, overconfidence bias, confirmation bias and escalation of commitment bias. Based on my findings, to some extent, each of the following biases contributed to the Deepwater Disaster.

Another prominent issue with people today is the judging of one’s character based solely on their appearance. People are harsh with their words and quick to judge on another. This problem is especially seen with the younger generation of society, though is common amongst all people. Most people do not give others the honest chance to become well-acquainted because they have already judged the person

Two phenomena- hindsight bias and judgmental overconfidence- illustrate why we can’t rely solely on intuition and common sense.

People of all ages are taught about the importance of having a good first impression—look clean, talk clearly, use good manners. It is especially hammered into young students minds as they prepare to enter adulthood and begin job interviews. However, what some people do not realize is the true impact that first impressions have on their decision making ability. Whether it be the impression of a person, place, or event, the human brain establishes an impression within the first two seconds. This impression, when trusted, can save someone countless energy that they would spend attempting to create a seemingly well throughout and thorough decision. The problem is, many times people overlook their instincts and trust methodical options which take much more time and are not always reliable sources. Malcolm Gladwell believes that the intuition you gain within the first few seconds of observation can be just as useful as well thought out and cautiously made decisions. Throughout the pages of Malcolm Gladwell’s Blink, the message of trusting one’s instinct is conveyed through the use of anecdotes, rhetorical questions, and schemes.

Availability bias: the tendency for people to base their judgments on info that is readily available to them

INTRO: The phrase “do not judge a book by its cover” is a widely recognized idea the majority of people keep in their peripheral mind when introduced with a new idea. The initial perceptions we make solely on someone’s outward appearances are out of our control, as it is a natural connection our brain makes between presentation and character. Though we cannot control what we instinctually comprehend, keeping an open mind is important, especially when meeting someone new.

When humans make a decision, it often turns out to be “predictably irrational” (Ariely, 2009). They always deviate systematically from expected decision rather show an inclination towards a certain way of thinking. This consistency of behavioral or decision bias can be very helpful to identify consequences or outcomes in a different

Looking Past Appearances People are susceptible to making faulty assumptions about others. Intentionally and unintentionally, judgments upon an unfamiliar face is made swiftly. In less than a second, a snap judgement that is “surprisingly hard to budge” is formed in the mind (Highfield, Wiseman, Jenkins). In a phenomenon known as the halo effect, “the perception of positive qualities in one thing or part gives rise to the perception of similar qualities in related things or in the whole.” (Dobrin)

In order to master critical thinking, the ability to question information and solve problems must be present. The crucial steps that lead to successful decision-making is not based solely on our skills and abilities, but on the strategies that help us get there. All these steps combined allow us to make solid and intelligent decisions. Research on understanding how the mind works is a continuing project at best, but the progress we have made is substantial in the areas of understanding problem-solving and decision-making.

Every day we have to make decisions. Some of the decisions are small and some of them are life-changing. Some of the decision we make, sometimes, is pretty simple. We have to wait longer to see if our decision was the correct one or not. We might have found the right solution to our problem or maybe we will have to go through the whole decision-making process again until we find the perfect solution to our problem. Decision making is not always simple. Many times, we think that we have made the best decision ever and later on we realize that it was not. As humans, we tend to answer with our heart and feelings. We tend to answer right away without thinking. The understanding that critical thinking and decision making hand and hand is an important key. Many times, time and perseverance will be the key to the best result

The first one I would say may not come from the most reliable source, but one that is consistent with the background material of Anchoring. It is a great example as you see this all the time when considering purchasing cars. One will look for a specific item instead of putting together a list of ones thoughts and basing the decision off multiple items.

Being tilted towards on side of thinking. We are all a little biased on one or more subjects. I don’t believe that bias has to do with race. Bias is to lean heavy on one side or another side of an argument.

In Chapter Six, the topic of decision making biases and errors was examined. This section examines several bias and errors individuals make when attempting to excuse a decision. In addition to confirmation bias, availability bias was explored in this chapter. According to the text, available bias is defined as an individual’s tendency to make judgement on information that is readily available. To clarify, availability bias is a cognitive bias that make it seems like vivid events are more likely to occur. We can contribute the reason for individuals to overestimate the chances of unlikely events to the media, due to the magifaction of specializing events (memorable and vivid) on a larger societal level.

People often judge or misperceive others appearances in a less than equal manner before they even know the true nature of the person. Every day we make assumptions by what we can see physically. Even in the supermarkets, we distinguish good products from bad products based on how they look. We are apt to choose good-looking products because they don’t have flaws, cracks, and bruises. Moreover, we assume them to have good qualities and good tastes. Actually, taste doesn’t deal with its looking. However, we bias in favor of assuming human nature. Since people judge human beings based on how they look, it is called prejudice. In fact, prejudice just disadvantage

It has been previously proven, that in the first few moments of meeting someone, we form an opinion of them. The problem with this idea is stereotypes. One of our society's biggest mistake is that we judge people based on what they look like, or how they act.