Confirmation Bias

Concept

Confirmation bias is the tendency to seek, interpret, and remember information in ways that confirm existing beliefs or expectations, while discounting or ignoring contradictory evidence.

Key Points

• Influences how evidence is gathered (selective exposure).
• Shapes how evidence is interpreted (biased reasoning).
• Affects memory by making confirming information more salient and retrievable.
• Reinforces belief persistence, even when confronted with stronger counter-evidence.

Example

• A manager who believes a new hire is talented may interpret mistakes as “learning opportunities” while highlighting successes as confirmation of talent.
• In politics, people selectively watch news outlets that align with their ideology, reinforcing pre-existing views.

Related Ideas

• Echo Chambers: structural environments that amplify confirmation bias by filtering information.
• Group Polarization: confirmation bias contributes to why groups adopt more extreme views.
• Cognitive Dissonance: discomfort from conflicting information often motivates confirmation bias.