The human brain processes vast amounts of information every second, but it cannot do so perfectly. To speed decision-making, our minds rely on heuristics—mental shortcuts that help us act quickly but often at the cost of accuracy. These shortcuts can lead to cognitive biases, systematic patterns of deviation from rational judgment.
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Consider anchoring bias: the tendency to rely too heavily on the first piece of information we receive. A car salesperson might first show you an expensive model so that the cheaper one seems like a bargain, even if it’s still overpriced. Or take confirmation bias, the tendency to seek and interpret information in ways that confirm what we already believe. In the age of personalized social media feeds, confirmation bias can create “echo chambers” where opposing views are rarely encountered.
