Cherry picking is a logical fallacy that occurs when someone focuses only on evidence that supports their stance, while ignoring evidence that contradicts it. For example, a person who engages in cherry picking might mention only a small number of studies out of all the studies which were published on a certain topic, in an …
Read moreCherry Picking: When People Ignore Evidence that They Dislike
Bikeshedding (also referred to as the law of triviality) describes a phenomenon where people spend a relatively large amount of time, energy, and other resources dealing with relatively minor issues. For example, a corporate committee who engages in bikeshedding might spend more time discussing the construction of a small bikeshed compared to the construction of an …
Read moreBikeshedding and the Law of Triviality: Why People Focus on Minor Issues
Parsimony is a guiding principle that suggests that all things being equal, you should prefer the simplest possible explanation for a phenomenon or the simplest possible solution to a problem. For example, if you hear barking from inside your house, and you own a dog, it’s more reasonable to assume that you’re hearing your …
Read moreParsimony: Why You Should Prefer Simpler Explanations
The just-world hypothesis is a cognitive bias that causes people to assume that people’s actions always lead to fair consequences, meaning that those who do good are eventually rewarded, while those who do evil are eventually punished. For example, the just-world hypothesis could cause someone to assume that if someone else experienced a tragic …
Read moreThe Just-World Hypothesis: On the Belief that Everyone Gets What They Deserve
The appeal to emotion is a logical fallacy that occurs when a misleading argument, and particularly one that is unsound or missing factual evidence, is used with the goal of manipulating people’s emotions. For example, a person using an appeal to emotion in a debate might encourage the audience to ignore facts that their …
Read moreThe Appeal to Emotion: Persuasion Through Feelings Rather than Facts
The zero-sum bias is a cognitive bias that causes people to mistakenly view certain situations as being zero-sum, meaning that they incorrectly believe that one party’s gains are directly balanced by other parties’ losses. For example, the zero-sum bias can cause people to think that there is competition for a resource that they feel …
Read moreThe Zero-Sum Bias: When People Think that Everything is a Competition
In many situations, people care more about proving that they are right than they do about doing what’s best for them and for others. This is a problematic mindset, that can hinder you in many areas of life, including in domains such as your professional development and your personal relationships. As such, in the following …
Premature optimization is the act of trying to make things more efficient at a stage when it is too early to do so. For example, premature optimization could involve someone spending a lot of time and money picking out the best possible gear for a certain hobby, despite the fact that they haven’t actually …
Read morePremature Optimization: What It Is and How to Avoid It
The psychologist’s fallacy is a logical fallacy that occurs when an external observer assumes that their subjective interpretation of an event represents the objective nature of that event. For example, the psychologist’s fallacy occurs when a psychologist assumes that their interpretation of why a patient acted the way that they did must be true. …
Read moreThe Psychologist’s Fallacy: Why It’s Wrong to Assume that Your Interpretation is Right
The rhyme-as-reason effect is a cognitive bias that makes people more likely to remember, repeat, and believe statements that contain a rhyme, compared to those that do not. For example, people generally perceive the aphorism “woes unite foes” as more accurate than the aphorisms “woes unite enemies” or “misfortunes unite foes”, despite the fact that they …
Read moreThe Rhyme-as-Reason Effect: Why Rhyming Makes Your Message More Persuasive