Cognitive biases encyclopedia
Understand how your decisions are shaped one bias at a time
An interactive learning space that helps you discover how your decisions and judgments are shaped, by understanding cognitive biases.
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For each bias in the encyclopedia: a definition, real-life scenarios, a short quiz to test your understanding, and practical tips to reduce its effect on your decisions.
27biases explained
5categories
From the encyclopedia
Biases from various categories
Learned Helplessness
العجز المكتسب Members The creeping conviction that effort is pointless — a feeling that takes hold after repeated experiences of failure or frustration. AdvancedProcrastination
المماطلة Members Putting off tasks and decisions despite knowing their importance and the cost of delay. EasyBandwagon Effect
تأثير القطيع Going along with the opinion or behavior of the majority simply because it is the majority — not because the argument is sound. EasyAction Bias
التحيز للفعل Members The impulse to act quickly just to feel that something is being done, even when that action is far from the best available response. EasyCategories
27 biasesHeuristics and Decision-Making Biases
Biases that emerge when we rely on mental shortcuts to make judgments, estimate probabilities, and navigate decisions in both life and work.
10 biases
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Need for Closure
الحاجة للإغلاق The urge to reach a decision quickly in order to escape the discomfort of uncertainty, even at the cost of making a better choice. MediumAmbiguity Aversion
تجنّب الغموض A preference for options that come with clear, readily available information, even when those options are not objectively the best. MediumAction Bias
التحيز للفعل Members The impulse to act quickly just to feel that something is being done, even when that action is far from the best available response. EasyPlanning Fallacy
مغالطة التخطيط Members The tendency to underestimate how much time, effort, or resources a task will actually require. EasyRisk Aversion
النفور من المخاطرة Members Choosing security and a small but certain loss over opportunities that carry higher — if uncertain — returns. MediumAnchoring Bias
تحيز الارتساء Members The tendency to rely too heavily on the first piece of information encountered — the anchor — when making decisions. EasyAvailability Bias
تحيز الإتاحة Members Judging the likelihood of events based on how easily examples spring to mind, rather than on actual statistics. EasyLoss Aversion
النفور من الخسارة Members The tendency to feel the pain of a loss far more acutely than the pleasure of an equivalent gain. MediumStatus Quo Bias
تحيز الوضع القائم Members The tendency to prefer things as they are and resist change simply by virtue of its being change. MediumSunk Cost Fallacy
مغالطة التكاليف الغارقة Members The tendency to press on with a failing endeavor because of the time, money, or effort already invested — even when continuing no longer makes rational sense. MediumSocial and Attribution Biases
Biases shaping how we read other people's behavior, whether we attribute their actions to character or circumstance, and how groups and social impressions color our perceptions.
4 biases
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Bandwagon Effect
تأثير القطيع Going along with the opinion or behavior of the majority simply because it is the majority — not because the argument is sound. EasyImpression Management
إدارة الانطباع Members Shaping decisions and behavior primarily around the impression they will create in other people's eyes. MediumActor-Observer Bias
انحياز الفاعل-المراقب Members The tendency to chalk up other people's actions to their character while explaining away our own behavior as a product of circumstances. MediumHalo Effect
أثر الهالة Members The tendency for a general impression of someone to color our judgments about their specific traits. EasyMotivational and Affective Biases
Biases rooted in the need to protect our self-image, sidestep psychological discomfort, and find emotional relief — even when doing so comes at the cost of clear, accurate judgment.
5 biases
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Style Over Substance Bias
الاستدلال السطحي The tendency to judge the quality of something by how it looks or how it is presented, rather than by its actual content or usefulness. EasyOstrich Effect
تأثير النعامة Tuning out unpleasant or unwelcome information as a way of escaping anxiety or embarrassment. EasyLearned Helplessness
العجز المكتسب Members The creeping conviction that effort is pointless — a feeling that takes hold after repeated experiences of failure or frustration. AdvancedDefensive Pessimism
التشاؤم الدفاعي Members An inflated expectation of negative outcomes, functioning as a shield against disappointment or criticism. AdvancedCognitive Dissonance Avoidance
تجنّب التنافر المعرفي Members The avoidance of situations or information that expose a conflict between what we believe and what is actually true. AdvancedSelf and Metacognitive Biases
Biases concerning how we assess ourselves and our own thinking — our awareness of personal limitations, our blind spots, and our capacity to monitor and correct our decisions.
5 biases
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Cognitive Miserliness
الشح المعرفي The human tendency to reach for the simplest, least effortful solution to a problem rather than a more rigorous one. AdvancedBias Blind Spot
تحيز العمى Members The tendency to spot bias clearly in others while assuming we ourselves are less susceptible to it than they are. AdvancedConfirmation Bias
تحيز التأكيد Members The tendency to seek out and favor information that confirms what we already believe, while ignoring or minimizing anything that contradicts it. EasyOverconfidence Bias
تحيز الثقة الزائدة Members The tendency to overestimate our own knowledge, abilities, or accuracy when predicting outcomes. MediumSelf-Serving Bias
تحيز خدمة الذات Members The tendency to claim credit for our successes while blaming external factors for our failures. MediumSelf-Regulation Biases
Biases tied to self-control and impulse regulation: our pull toward immediate rewards, and the struggle to hold onto long-term goals when short-term emotions and motivations push back.
3 biases
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