Cognitive biases vs. Logical Fallacies

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AgnosticBoy
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Cognitive biases vs. Logical Fallacies

Post #1

Post by AgnosticBoy »

I found some areas on this forum that offers tips on debating, like the thread The 10 commandments of Logic. I think it would also be helpful to include a list of common cognitive biases that people tend to have in debates.


Here's a brief summary explaining cognitive biases:
Cognitive biases are often confused with logical fallacies. A logical fallacy refers to an error in reasoning that weakens or invalidates an argument.

A cognitive bias is a strong, preconceived notion of someone or something, based on information we have, perceive to have, or lack.
Cognitive biases are inherent in the way we think, and many of them are unconscious. The many types of cognitive biases serve as systematic errors in a person’s subjective way of thinking, which originate from that individual’s own perceptions, observations, or points of view.

How Does Cognitive Bias Impact the Way We Think?
Biases make it difficult for people to exchange accurate information or derive truths. A cognitive bias distorts our critical thinking, leading to possibly perpetuating misconceptions or misinformation that can be damaging to others.

Biases lead us to avoid information that may be unwelcome or uncomfortable, rather than investigating the information that could lead us to a more accurate outcome. Biases can also cause us to see patterns or connections between ideas that aren’t necessarily there.
Source: https://www.masterclass.com/articles/ho ... itive-bias

For a list to go with this summary, maybe we can start with these from Wikipedia:
Confirmation bias:
Tendency to search for or interpret information in a way that confirms one's preconceptions, and discredit information that does not support the initial opinion.

Framing bias:
Tendency to narrow the description of a situation in order to guide to a selected conclusion. The same primer can be framed differently and therefor lead to different conclusions.

Continued influence effect (CIE):
Misinformation continues to influence memory and reasoning about an event, despite the misinformation having been corrected

Bandwagon effect:
the tendency to do (or believe) things because many other people do (or believe) the same. Related to groupthink and herd behavior.

False consensus effect:
the tendency for people to overestimate the degree to which others agree with them.

A lot of people have heard about bias but they may not know about the different types and how it influences their thinking. Having this list (of course there's more) should help us identify our own biases so that we can work on avoiding them.
Last edited by AgnosticBoy on Fri Apr 29, 2022 12:58 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Cognitive biases vs. Logical Fallacies

Post #2

Post by otseng »

Moved to General Chat and made it a sticky.

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Re: Cognitive biases vs. Logical Fallacies

Post #3

Post by nobspeople »

AgnosticBoy wrote: Fri Apr 29, 2022 12:19 am I found some areas on this forum that offers tips on debating, like the thread The 10 commandments of Logic. I think it would also be helpful to include a list of common cognitive biases that people tend to have in debates.


Here's a brief summary explaining cognitive biases:
Cognitive biases are often confused with logical fallacies. A logical fallacy refers to an error in reasoning that weakens or invalidates an argument.

A cognitive bias is a strong, preconceived notion of someone or something, based on information we have, perceive to have, or lack.
Cognitive biases are inherent in the way we think, and many of them are unconscious. The many types of cognitive biases serve as systematic errors in a person’s subjective way of thinking, which originate from that individual’s own perceptions, observations, or points of view.

How Does Cognitive Bias Impact the Way We Think?
Biases make it difficult for people to exchange accurate information or derive truths. A cognitive bias distorts our critical thinking, leading to possibly perpetuating misconceptions or misinformation that can be damaging to others.

Biases lead us to avoid information that may be unwelcome or uncomfortable, rather than investigating the information that could lead us to a more accurate outcome. Biases can also cause us to see patterns or connections between ideas that aren’t necessarily there.
Source: https://www.masterclass.com/articles/ho ... itive-bias

For a list to go with this summary, maybe we can start with these from Wikipedia:
Confirmation bias:
Tendency to search for or interpret information in a way that confirms one's preconceptions, and discredit information that does not support the initial opinion.

Framing bias:
Tendency to narrow the description of a situation in order to guide to a selected conclusion. The same primer can be framed differently and therefor lead to different conclusions.

Continued influence effect (CIE):
Misinformation continues to influence memory and reasoning about an event, despite the misinformation having been corrected

Bandwagon effect:
the tendency to do (or believe) things because many other people do (or believe) the same. Related to groupthink and herd behavior.

False consensus effect:
the tendency for people to overestimate the degree to which others agree with them.

A lot of people have heard about bias but they may not know about the different types and how it influences their thinking. Having this list (of course there's more) should help us identify our own biases so that we can work on avoiding them.
A fun read - thanks for providing it.
Quick question: Do you believe/think one can exists without any bias?
Have a great, potentially godless, day!

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Re: Cognitive biases vs. Logical Fallacies

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Post by AgnosticBoy »

nobspeople wrote: Fri Apr 29, 2022 12:05 pm A fun read - thanks for providing it.
Thanks nobs. I tried to limit it to biases that would impact debates, otherwise, that list would be much longer. We can also add to the list if anyone can find other biases that would have an effect on debates.
nobspeople wrote: Fri Apr 29, 2022 12:05 pm Quick question: Do you believe/think one can exists without any bias?
I don't believe that we can exist without bias, especially when it comes to our personal lives and relationships. I do believe that someone can be significantly less biased than someone else, and that's especially the case in intellectual matters (like in debates).

As an agnostic, I try to practice being non-partisan which is something I picked up from Thomas Huxley's writings. One part of being non-partisan is not taking sides, or not clinging to them unquestionably. I feel that this gives the agnostic an advantage of being less biased because taking sides is a big source for biases. People often resort to evidence or information that only supports their side. My motto for intellectual matters is to place truth before sides, and not the other way around.
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Re: Cognitive biases vs. Logical Fallacies

Post #5

Post by nobspeople »

AgnosticBoy wrote: Fri Apr 29, 2022 1:04 pm
nobspeople wrote: Fri Apr 29, 2022 12:05 pm A fun read - thanks for providing it.
Thanks nobs. I tried to limit it to biases that would impact debates, otherwise, that list would be much longer. We can also add to the list if anyone can find other biases that would have an effect on debates.
nobspeople wrote: Fri Apr 29, 2022 12:05 pm Quick question: Do you believe/think one can exists without any bias?
I don't believe that we can exist without bias, especially when it comes to our personal lives and relationships. I do believe that someone can be significantly less biased than someone else, and that's especially the case in intellectual matters (like in debates).

As an agnostic, I try to practice being non-partisan which is something I picked up from Thomas Huxley's writings. One part of being non-partisan is not taking sides, or not clinging to them unquestionably. I feel that this gives the agnostic an advantage of being less biased because taking sides is a big source for biases. People often resort to evidence or information that only supports their side. My motto for intellectual matters is to place truth before sides, and not the other way around.
Thanks for the reply. We have very similar POVs on things, it seems (great minds and all that ;) )
I try to be as un-biased as possible, but sometimes it's not possible. Other times I simply refuse to be unbiased :D
Have an awesome weekend!
Have a great, potentially godless, day!

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Re: Cognitive biases vs. Logical Fallacies

Post #6

Post by Purple Knight »

AgnosticBoy wrote: Fri Apr 29, 2022 12:19 am For a list to go with this summary, maybe we can start with these from Wikipedia:
Confirmation bias:
Tendency to search for or interpret information in a way that confirms one's preconceptions, and discredit information that does not support the initial opinion.

Framing bias:
Tendency to narrow the description of a situation in order to guide to a selected conclusion. The same primer can be framed differently and therefor lead to different conclusions.

Continued influence effect (CIE):
Misinformation continues to influence memory and reasoning about an event, despite the misinformation having been corrected

Bandwagon effect:
the tendency to do (or believe) things because many other people do (or believe) the same. Related to groupthink and herd behavior.

False consensus effect:
the tendency for people to overestimate the degree to which others agree with them.
Aside from framing bias which I believe I may be guilty of depending on what this means, and perhaps the continued influence effect in a very small way, I couldn't do any of that if you paid me. I look for information that goes against my beliefs and I have no difficulty finding it because (I'm pretty convinced) nobody agrees with me about anything.

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