Show Medically Reviewed by Melinda Ratini, DO, MS on August 31, 2021 Confirmation bias is a psychological term for the human tendency to only seek out information that supports one position or idea. This causes you to have a bias towards your original position because if you only seek out information that supports one idea, you will only find information that supports that idea. This is in opposition to doing more comprehensive research that would expose you to opposing ideas. There are a few different types of confirmation bias. Biased search. This type of bias occurs when you do research and only look for information that supports your theory or hypothesis. In our modern era, search engines help us with this biased tendency. For example, if you search for a question with two variables such as "Is renting better than buying?" you will be served search results that support renting a home over buying one. If you search the opposite question: "Is buying better than renting?" you will get search results that support buying. Biased interpretation. This type of bias explains why you may tend to interpret data and information in a way that supports your opinion or hypothesis, regardless of the position supported by the data. Studies show that people tend to stick to their beliefs, even when presented with new data, because they interpret this new data in a way that supports their original opinion. Biased memories. This refers to a biased recall of memories. Studies show that you may remember events that support an idea you have more than ones that disprove it. Some experts believe your brain may even store information that agrees with your views more frequently than information that disproves them. This type of bias is part of what maintains stereotypes. Even if an individual person doesn't fit every stereotype of their cultural group, you might be more likely to remember things about them that support existing stereotypes. Experts have several different theories about why people tend to have confirmation bias. Helps to process information. Some people believe that confirmation bias helps you sort efficiently through the large amount of information you see every day. Builds confidence. Other experts think that people seek out information to support their opinions to preserve or build their self-esteem. Finding information that supports their ideas makes them feel more confident. Reduces mental conflict. Another theory about why people use confirmation bias is that it reduces the risk of mental conflict, also called cognitive dissonance. When someone holds or has information about two opposite ideas, they may experience psychological stress. Confirmation bias may lower the risk of feeling the negative emotions from this stress. It's important to recognize confirmation bias, especially in this modern internet era, where people are constantly faced with more information than ever before. Confirmation bias has the potential to shape your view of the world. It can affect everything from political views to hiring practices in workplaces. To diminish the effects of confirmation bias, you can do more thorough research. When searching for information, make sure to: Confirmation bias is not the only psychological tendency that can affect your worldview. The backfire effect. This theory states that when you are presented with an opposing opinion, you may double down and strongly commit to your position. Luckily, research shows that while this phenomenon may affect individual people, it does not have an effect on fact-checkers. These are people whose job it is to verify information found in the media. The halo effect. This psychological phenomenon occurs when you allow one trait of something, whether it is a person, a brand, or something else, to overshadow a more nuanced impression of the entity in a positive manner. For example, if you perceive someone as generous, you may automatically assume they are also a caring person. Group attribution bias. This type of bias occurs when you assume a member of a cultural group has stereotypical qualities of that group. The qualities include general preferences and political views. For example, you might incorrectly assume that someone who belongs to a specific political party voted for that party's presidential candidate. Confirmation bias is the tendency to seek out and prefer information that supports our preexisting beliefs. As a result, we tend to ignore any information that contradicts those beliefs. Confirmation bias is often unintentional but can still lead to poor decision-making in (psychology) research and in legal or real-life contexts. Example: Confirmation biasDuring presidential elections, people tend to seek information that paints the candidate they support in a positive light, while dismissing any information that paints them in a negative light.This type of research bias is more likely to occur while processing information related to emotionally charged topics, values, or deeply held beliefs. What is confirmation bias?Confirmation bias is a type of cognitive bias, or an error in thinking. Processing all the facts available to us costs us time and energy, so our brains tend to pick the information that agrees most with our preexisting opinions and knowledge. This leads to faster decision-making. Mental “shortcuts” like this are called heuristics. When confronted with new information that confirms what we already believe, we are more likely to:
On the other hand, if the new information contradicts what we already believe, we respond differently. We are more likely to:
Types of confirmation biasThere are three main ways that people display confirmation bias:
Biased search for informationThis type of bias occurs when only positive evidence is sought, or evidence that supports your expectations or hypotheses. Evidence that could prove them wrong is systematically disregarded. Example: Selective searchBiased search for information occurs in real life more often than we realize. For example, if you type the question “are dogs better than cats?” into an online search engine, articles that argue in favor of dogs will appear first.If you reverse the question and type “are cats better than dogs?”, you will get results in support of cats. This will happen with any two variables: the search engine “assumes” that you think variable A is better than variable B, and shows you the results that agree with your opinion first. Instead, try typing the question “which one is better, A or B?” This is more likely to yield a balanced mix of results. Biased interpretation of informationConfirmation bias is not limited to the type of information we search for. Even if two people are presented with the same information, it is possible that they will interpret it differently. Example: Selective interpretationLet’s suppose two people read the same news story about the need to cut down on fossil fuel emissions in order to combat climate change. One reader is a climate change doubter, while the other believes that climate change is a real threat.The reader who doubts climate change may interpret the article as evidence that climate change is natural and has happened at other points in history. Any arguments raised in the article about the negative impact of fossil fuels will be dismissed. On the other hand, the reader who is concerned about climate change will view the information as evidence that climate change is a threat and that something must be done about it. Appeals to cut down fossil fuel emissions will be viewed favorably. The two readers have very different opinions on the same subject, formed prior to reading the article. Their interpretations are based on their preexisting beliefs. Even though they read the same story, their bias shapes how they evaluate the information, further reinforcing their existing beliefs. Biased recall of informationConfirmation bias also affects what type of information we are able to recall. Example: Selective recallLet’s revisit the previous example on the climate change news story. The article presents arguments in favor of cutting down fossil fuel emissions.A week after encountering the story, the reader who is concerned about climate change is more likely to recall these arguments in a discussion with friends. On the contrary, a climate change doubter likely won’t be able to recall the points made in the article. Due to confirmation bias, we tend to memorize and recall information that is more in line with our existing ideas. Confirmation bias examplesConfirmation bias has serious implications for our ability to seek objective facts. It can lead individuals to “cherry-pick” bits of information that reinforce any prejudices or stereotypes. Example: Confirmation biasA 55-year-old man arrives at the ER at 3 a.m. complaining of severe back pain. The man has visited the hospital several times already that week, always with the same complaint. It is a busy night, and no rooms are available. The staff suspect that he is seeking prescriptions for painkillers.An overworked physician, believing this is just drug-seeking behavior, examines him hastily in the hall. The physician confirms that all of the man’s vital signs are fine: consistent with what was expected. The man is discharged. Because the physician was only looking for what was already expected, she missed the signs that the man was actually having a problem with his kidneys. Relying on a preliminary hunch in this manner is an example of confirmation bias, and a potential pitfall in medical decision-making. Confirmation bias can lead to poor decision-making in various contexts, including interpersonal relationships, medical diagnoses, or applications of the law. Example: Confirmation biasYou are researching whether playing memory games helps delay memory loss in people with Alzheimer’s disease. You have high expectations that memory games can help people.Due to this, you unconsciously seek information to support your hypothesis during the data collection phase, rather than remaining open to results that could disprove it. At the end of your research, you conclude that memory games do indeed delay memory loss. Due to confirmation bias, a systematic error is introduced in your research, making the impact of memory games appear greater than it actually is. This leads to false conclusions. How to avoid confirmation biasAlthough confirmation bias cannot be entirely eliminated, there are steps you can take to avoid it:
Other types of research biasFrequently asked questions about confirmation biasWhat’s the difference between confirmation bias and recall bias?
Confirmation bias is the tendency to search, interpret, and recall information in a way that aligns with our pre-existing values, opinions, or beliefs. It refers to the ability to recollect information best when it amplifies what we already believe. Relatedly, we tend to forget information that contradicts our opinions. Although selective recall is a component of confirmation bias, it should not be confused with recall bias. On the other hand, recall bias refers to the differences in the ability between study participants to recall past events when self-reporting is used. This difference in accuracy or completeness of recollection is not related to beliefs or opinions. Rather, recall bias relates to other factors, such as the length of the recall period, age, and the characteristics of the disease under investigation.
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What is it called when people seeking information tend to prefer sources that support rather than conflict with their existing opinions?
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