The 12 cognitive biases that prevent you from being rational

[Maureen]

The 12 cognitive biases that prevent you from being rational

I found this article very interesting.

M.

[annewandering]

After my daughter, Talisyn, posted this on facebook I decided I had to take a look. It really is an interesting article and worth thinking about.

[NeuroTypical]

An excellent article to read while I'm taking a good hard look at myself in the mirror.

[Anddenex]

The 12 cognitive biases that prevent you from being rational

I found this article very interesting.

M.

The anchoring effect reminds me of a book I read. The teacher introduced the same product to two classes. In one class the teacher specified the product cost of $50. In the other class the product was specified to be $80 in cost.

The teacher then asked the class what they would be willing to pay for the product. The interesting result, is that those who were given the higher price, the majority of the class chose around $50.

Those who were given the lesser cost, chose $30. In other classes he decided to give three options, and he discovered, people tended to choose the middle ground, at least the majority of the people in the class.

[ploomf]

Really interesting, thanks for sharing. Gave me lots to think about.

[Guest]

The anchoring effect reminds me of a book I read. The teacher introduced the same product to two classes. In one class the teacher specified the product cost of $50. In the other class the product was specified to be $80 in cost.

The teacher then asked the class what they would be willing to pay for the product. The interesting result, is that those who were given the higher price, the majority of the class chose around $50.

Those who were given the lesser cost, chose $30. In other classes he decided to give three options, and he discovered, people tended to choose the middle ground, at least the majority of the people in the class.

This is so true... I just got back from the grocery where I bought a slew of Mac & Cheese because it was 2 for $1.49. My husband asked me why I bought all these Mac & Cheese and I said, because it was on sale, and my husband says... The Whole Foods version of Mac & Cheese (which is what I usually buy) is regularly $0.75 a box. And I don't see you buying a whole slew of those!

[classylady]

I went yard sale shopping last summer with my daughter-in-law and her mother. Her mother bought a huge fish aquarium, which she had no room for in her house, no prior desire to buy, and a husband that would not be happy with her spending that money, just because it was a good deal. That was just one example. She does this on a consistent basis--buying items at yard sales that she has no need for, simply because it's a good deal.

[dahlia]

In other classes he decided to give three options, and he discovered, people tended to choose the middle ground, at least the majority of the people in the class.

Hal Varian, an early information economist and former dean of Berkeley's Information School (I knew him thru his collaborator, who was my advisor at Michigan), would bring this up in the early days of discussions on pricing electronic information. He suggested you have 3 prices for any good, with most sales happening at the middle price.

He also suggested 'versioning,' in which you pay more for better versions. My take on this as time has passed is that we've become used to versioning - get one version for free, pay more for a premium or 'valued customer' type version.

As to bias, it is a part of who we are. When I teach research methods, I tell students that the idea is to know yourself and what your biases are, it isn't always necessary that you get rid of your biases, but you must learn to see past them so that your research isn't affected.