A nudge is a simple modification that is made to an environment in order to alter people’s behavior in a predictable way, without forbidding any options or changing their incentives on a significant level. For example, if a school has the goal of reducing the amount of soda that students drink, then placing water …
Read moreNudge: How Small Manipulations Can Make a Big Difference
The bandwagon effect is a cognitive bias that causes people to think or act in a certain way, because they believe that others are doing the same. For example, the bandwagon effect can cause someone to adopt a certain political ideology, simply because influential people in their social circle have adopted the same ideology. …
Read moreThe Bandwagon Effect: Why People Tend to Follow the Crowd
The egocentric bias is a cognitive bias that causes people to rely too heavily on their own point of view when they examine events in their life or when they try to see things from other people’s perspective. Essentially, the egocentric bias causes people to either underestimate how different other people’s viewpoint is from …
Read moreThe Egocentric Bias: Why It’s Hard to See Things from a Different Perspective
The familiarity backfire effect is a cognitive bias that causes people to remember misinformation better, and to remember it as being true, after they’re shown corrective information that’s supposed to debunk it, as a result of the increased exposure to the misinformation. For example, if someone is shown evidence that disproves a certain health-related …
Read moreThe Familiarity Backfire Effect: Why Debunking a Myth Can Make People Believe It
Most people use social media in one form or another. While there is nothing inherently wrong with that, and while social media can sometimes be beneficial, it’s important to be aware that social media is associated with a number of issues and potential dangers, including stress, anxiety, loneliness, and depression. Understanding the dangers of …
The empathy gap is a cognitive bias that causes people to struggle to understand mental states that are different from their present state, or to struggle to consider how such states affect people’s judgment and decision-making. Essentially, the empathy gap means that when people are in a certain mental state (e.g. happy or angry), …
Read moreThe Empathy Gap: Why People Fail to Understand Different Perspectives
Flirting is a key part of many social interactions. At the same time however, flirting is also a behavior that few people truly understand. Fortunately, psychologists have conducted quite a bit of research on the topic of flirting. In the following article, you will learn about the different styles of flirting, including the verbal …
The Benjamin Franklin effect is a cognitive bias that causes people to like someone more after they do that person a favor, especially if they previously disliked that person or felt neutral toward them. For example, the Ben Franklin effect could cause someone who disliked you to start liking you after they do you …
Read moreThe Benjamin Franklin Effect: How to Build Rapport by Asking for Favors
The overkill backfire effect is a cognitive bias that causes people who encounter a complex explanation to reject it in favor of a simpler alternative, and to sometimes also reinforce their belief in the simpler alternative. For example, if someone is presented with a complicated scientific explanation for a certain phenomenon, the overkill backfire effect …
Read moreThe Overkill Backfire Effect: On The Danger of Presenting Too Much Evidence
The authority bias is a cognitive bias that makes people predisposed to believe authority figures and obey their orders. Most notably, the authority bias is associated with people’s tendency to obey the orders of someone that they perceive as an authority figure, even when they believe that there’s something wrong with those orders, and …
Read moreAuthority Bias: Lessons from the Milgram Obedience Experiment