Brain Quote by Thomas Gilovich
““it seems that once again people engage in a search for evidence that is biased toward confirmation. Asked to assess the similarity of two entities, people pay more attention to the ways in which they are similar than to the ways in which they differ. Asked to assess dissimilarity, they become more concerned with differences than with similarities. In other words, when testing a hypothesis of similarity, people look for evidence of similarity rather than dissimilarity, and when testing a hypothesis of dissimilarity, they do the opposite. The relationship one perceives between two entities, then, can vary with the precise form of the question that is asked””
About This Quote
Source Journal Article: Judgment and Decision Making, 1991
People’s judgments of similarity or difference are biased by how the question is phrased, leading them to seek confirming evidence.
In simple terms: Question framing skews similarity judgments.
Key Takeaway
Be aware of framing bias when comparing.
Themes
cognitive bias
perception
decision making
Mood
analytical
critical
inquisitive
Type
observational
analytical
When to use this quote
- research design
- marketing analysis
- conflict resolution
- personal relationships
Key Concepts
confirmation bias
similarity assessment
heuristics
Questions to Reflect On
- How does the wording of a question affect your conclusions?
- Can you list both similarities and differences before deciding?
A Different Perspective
Bias can be reduced by explicitly considering both similarities and differences.
