# Confirmation Bias



## Money172375 (Jun 29, 2018)

....wonder how much of this is going around these days.....





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Confirmation bias - Wikipedia







en.wikipedia.org





I think with all the information we have available to us these days, we’re probably all perpetrators at times.

Personally I think more study and Education should be done in this area. I’ve tried to encourage my children to focus on negotiation, compromise and active listening. These will likely become ever important skills to have in the workplace......the “old” days of trusting the “smartest” person in the room are long gone. I started to see the effects as “group-work” changed my former workplace. The “influencers” (not always the ones with the new and best ideas) rose to prominence.


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## off.by.10 (Mar 16, 2014)

Lots and lots and lots and lots. Thanks to all the choices we have for information, we can easily find someone to validate pretty much any idea. As with most things, I suspect the extremes in how information flows are not good for society.


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## sags (May 15, 2010)

I have long accepted that you never convince anyone by discussion or debate, nor are you ever convinced by anyone else.

The concept does raise some interesting issues.

How does the concept apply to parenting, rehabilitation, counseling and similar concepts. I suspect all the "instruction" has little impact.

People learn by experience and sometimes that is the hard way to learn.


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## Longtimeago (Aug 8, 2018)

I would say it is endemic among those whose world consists primarily of the internet and social media.


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## Beaver101 (Nov 14, 2011)

Longtimeago said:


> I would say it is endemic among those whose world consists primarily of the internet and social media.


 ... particularly those whose speak or use the buzz words of "IOT" and the use of "AI" to self-advance ... 'cuz they can't think for themselves. Brainwashed overzealous wannabes.


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## Beaver101 (Nov 14, 2011)

Money172375 said:


> ....wonder how much of this is going around these days.....
> 
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> 
> ...


 ... nothing news. It's not "what" you know but "who" you know or better yet (reality), whose butts you can kiss.


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## andrewf (Mar 1, 2010)

Longtimeago said:


> I would say it is endemic among those whose world consists primarily of the internet and social media.


Not cable news? 

I get the vibe that you think this is a young person problem. Old people are just as bad or worse (convinced that their experience is correct and quick to dismiss new ideas).


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## Longtimeago (Aug 8, 2018)

andrewf said:


> Not cable news?
> 
> I get the vibe that you think this is a young person problem. Old people are just as bad or worse (convinced that their experience is correct and quick to dismiss new ideas).


Fair enough andrewf, I should have said that confirmation bias has always been around with people of any age. Today, it is more prevalent than ever thanks to the internet and social media.

I do not by the way connect the internet and social media only with younger people. There are plenty of older people who are Facebook, etc. fans as well.

Funnily enough, before the internet, I would have said that confirmation bias was found primarily in older people because of fixed beliefs and unwillingness to accept change or new ideas, etc. as you suggest. But nowadays, people of any age can be equally as likely to have confirmation bias PARTICULARLY if their world consists primarily of the internet and social media.

Those of any age who do not spend their lives 'connected' are I believe less likely to only interact with people and blogs etc. that agree with their viewpoint. If you think about it, being able to 'unfriend', 'block' or hit an 'ignore' button are all ways to strengthen confirmation bias and all built right in to most social media platforms.

Compare that to say a LIVE meeting of people for whatever reason, where you can't ignore someone who stands up and voices something you don't want to hear. No button you can push then.


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## Plugging Along (Jan 3, 2011)

Money172375 said:


> ....wonder how much of this is going around these days.....
> 
> 
> 
> ...


There's some really interesting studies our already and there is a lot of work being done in the this field. The are some on line 'test' out there to test if what bias you may have. I think the one I have used is a test/study done by Harvard. It's very eye opening. I will see if I can find it again and post. The bias that quiz did was focused on gender, race, age, and few other things that you can test. 

Noticed I said WHAT bias one may have verses if one has a bias. The research shows that everyone has some sort of bias. The goal is not necessarily to eliminate all bias, as they are often subtle and it's impossible, but rather be aware of what bias you have, and working to ensure those bias do not cloud your decision making. I try to teach my kids this by practicing critical thinking, empathy, and most importantly trying to come up with the other reasons or views. People who think they are right all the time (even if they are), tend to be more biased and inflexible. Tools to reduce confirmation bias include trying to find as many views that are different than yours. Then trying to really understand the nuisances on where they are coming from, even if you don't agree. Flexible thinking and growth mindset thinking are great ways to combat confirmation bias. 

When doing subjective research (which much of it is), I try to get the most extreme and opposing views and further probe to understand. That's actually why I don't 'ignore' or block people and show these views to my kids. If my kids are making an argument or negotiating, they must bring equal amounts of 'points' on the other view show they see both sides. It helps with my parenting too.


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## Longtimeago (Aug 8, 2018)

Simple bias and 'confirmation bias' are not one and the same thing. You can be biased against wearing red, but you don't look for 'confirmation' that no one should wear red and ignore anyone who says red is OK to wear.

Confirmation bias is about seeking out only 'confirmation' of your bias and ignoring anything to the contrary. Studies on simple bias will tell you nothing about 'confirmation bias.'


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## MrMatt (Dec 21, 2011)

Longtimeago said:


> Simple bias and 'confirmation bias' are not one and the same thing. You can be biased against wearing red, but you don't look for 'confirmation' that no one should wear red and ignore anyone who says red is OK to wear.
> 
> Confirmation bias is about seeking out only 'confirmation' of your bias and ignoring anything to the contrary. Studies on simple bias will tell you nothing about 'confirmation bias.'


Lots of confirmation bias out there.
Trump Derangement Syndrome is a pretty clear cut example of this.


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## off.by.10 (Mar 16, 2014)

Longtimeago said:


> Funnily enough, before the internet, I would have said that confirmation bias was found primarily in older people because of fixed beliefs and unwillingness to accept change or new ideas, etc. as you suggest. But nowadays, people of any age can be equally as likely to have confirmation bias PARTICULARLY if their world consists primarily of the internet and social media.


Yes, very much this. The modern internet has created a lot of echo chambers where people can settle in a comfortable feedback loop which amplifies beliefs. It's like talking to yourself all day long without realizing it. It's troubling to see otherwise smart people completely loose perspective on some issues because of it.

The sad part is the internet used to be a way to be exposed to a greater diversity of ideas. Then social media and algorithms happened.


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## Rusty O'Toole (Feb 1, 2012)

I wonder if too much education is the problem. We are all taught in school to accept uncritically whatever the teacher says and whatever is in the text book and to repeat it back verbatim. Don't go getting ideas of your own, and don't drag in any outside information that contradicts what you are told, if you don't want to get in trouble.

After 15 or 20 years of this it is no wonder people are incapable of questioning authority, or going against the mainstream consensus. I have heard teachers say, that their brightest most inquisitive students are usually at the bottom of the class for marks and discipline because they don't follow the rules and find it impossible to go along with things that make no sense to them.


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## Prairie Guy (Oct 30, 2018)

Rusty O'Toole said:


> I wonder if too much education is the problem. We are all taught in school to accept uncritically whatever the teacher says and whatever is in the text book and to repeat it back verbatim. Don't go getting ideas of your own, and don't drag in any outside information that contradicts what you are told, if you don't want to get in trouble.
> 
> After 15 or 20 years of this it is no wonder people are incapable of questioning authority, or going against the mainstream consensus. I have heard teachers say, that their brightest most inquisitive students are usually at the bottom of the class for marks and discipline because they don't follow the rules and find it impossible to go along with things that make no sense to them.


It's not too much education...it's the wrong type of education. Is critical thinking even taught anymore? Is any thought that doesn't follow the progressive agenda allowed?


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## Rusty O'Toole (Feb 1, 2012)

Prairie Guy said:


> It's not too much education...it's the wrong type of education. Is critical thinking even taught anymore? Is any thought that doesn't follow the progressive agenda allowed?


No it isn't. Not just students, tenured professors who threaten the politically correct line, even inadvertently, can expect to be slapped down hard.


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## Longtimeago (Aug 8, 2018)

Anyone remember when someone suggesting the world is not flat was ridiculed by the majority. History teaches us that nothing ever really changes when it comes to human behaviour.


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## sags (May 15, 2010)

Prairie Guy said:


> It's not too much education...it's the wrong type of education. Is critical thinking even taught anymore? Is any thought that doesn't follow the progressive agenda allowed?


Critical thinking doesn't involve creating a bias against a particular agenda (either progressive or conservative).

It is a fact guided search for truth in any proclamation or agenda. Is the statement true ? Is it supported by known facts ? Is there evidence of untruth ?

Example......Did Donald Trump talk about injecting disinfectant inside people ? The answer supported by the facts (video and transcript) is yes he did.

Example......Did Donald Trump tell people they should jump off the Brooklyn Bridge ? There is no factual support that he ever did.

Critical thinking doesn't mean to be critical of all ideas. It means to be critical of those ideas with no basis in fact.

I think education does teach critical thinking. It is based on the best known science at the time. Any other theories are purely conjecture.

The higher the level of education, the more important critical thinking becomes towards the final product of the education.

I think of examples of lawyers and doctors, both professions that require a high level of critical thinking.

Or in the simple terms of my wise grandma.......the ability to separate the wheat from the chaff.


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## andrewf (Mar 1, 2010)

Prairie Guy said:


> It's not too much education...it's the wrong type of education. Is critical thinking even taught anymore? Is any thought that doesn't follow the progressive agenda allowed?





Longtimeago said:


> Anyone remember when someone suggesting the world is not flat was ridiculed by the majority. History teaches us that nothing ever really changes when it comes to human behaviour.


This is a bit of a misconception. Most educated people have known the world is round for thousands of years. Flat earth theory is a relatively new phenomenon.


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## :) lonewolf (Feb 9, 2020)

Money172375 said:


> ....wonder how much of this is going around these days.....
> 
> 
> 
> ...





Prairie Guy said:


> It's not too much education...it's the wrong type of education. Is critical thinking even taught anymore? Is any thought that doesn't follow the progressive agenda allowed?


Have to laugh the catholic schools in my area advertise on the radio they teach critical thinking & brag about how they teach kids to tell fact from fiction. Yet they teach about man causes global warming & about talking snakes.


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