Really Scary Things!

It’s Monday and that can only mean one thing.  It’s time to share!!  Ok, it can mean other things but if you think zombies and monsters are scary, just wait until you read this article…  

While I love that you read my words in written form, as usual, if you would rather listen, in either of Canada’s official languages, click here: People Power Everything Podcast (Version Francophone)

Lions, and Tigers, and Biases, Oh My! Understanding the Tricky Trio of Negativity Bias, Confirmation Bias, and the Dunning-Kruger Effect.

If you've ever found yourself thinking "I'm definitely above average at this," or anxiously refreshing your news feed, you’re not alone! Even if psychology isn’t your usual cup of tea, understanding these mental pitfalls can be eye-opening, if not downright frightening.

So, without further ado, let’s scare ourselves silly!

1. Negativity Bias: When the Glass is Half Empty, And We're Sure It's Poisoned

Negativity bias is our brain’s tendency to register bad news more heavily than good. Imagine it as a psychological Velcro for bad news and Teflon for good news. Evolution had its reasons for this – after all, "Is that a shadow or a bear?" required a much faster decision than "Is that bear… friendly?"

Let’s take an everyday example: letting your nine-year-old walk to the park. Statistically, child abductions are incredibly rare, but stories of them make front-page news every time they happen. The result? We think it’s happening in every neighborhood, every day. Add to that our scroll-happy habits, and we’re almost guaranteed to see another story that confirms our worst fears. That little dose of doom adds up – and we start to feel like danger is just around the corner, even if the real odds say otherwise.

2. Confirmation Bias: The “I Knew I Was Right!” Effect

Confirmation bias is our tendency to seek out information that validates our existing beliefs and conveniently ignore the rest. It’s like when you ask your search engine of choice – let’s call it "Gaggle" – if "chocolate is a superfood." Suddenly, every article is cheering you on to eat more chocolate, and before you know it, you’re halfway through a bar. Somewhere, in the dark corners of the search results, there might be an article about “chocolate's sugar content” and “its effect on metabolism,” but who’s reading that?

Here’s where it gets tricky: even in science, researchers can fall prey to confirmation bias, especially if they’re attached to proving a hypothesis. This is why good research includes peer review – the scientific version of getting reality-checked by your brutally honest best friend.

3. The Dunning-Kruger Effect: “Trust Me, I’m an Expert… (Kind of)”

Ah, the Dunning-Kruger effect. It’s the tendency for people who don’t know much about a topic to think they’re experts, while those who know a lot are acutely aware of how much they still have to learn.

A great example is the classic "Are you an above-average driver?" survey, where 80% of respondents say they’re above average. For those keeping score, that’s mathematically impossible. But hey, math is hard, right?

And, as a side note, people with real expertise in a subject often grapple with "imposter syndrome," worrying that they don’t know enough. They realize that the more you know, the more complex things become. The true experts are the ones who admit they’re still learning – and that’s a big part of what keeps their expertise growing.

Putting It All Together: The Bias Trifecta

Imagine a hypothetical person who feels that the world is getting more dangerous by the minute (thanks, negativity bias), finds stories that confirm their worst fears about society (hello, confirmation bias), and believes they have the full picture after a quick scroll through a few articles (enter, Dunning-Kruger). You see how these biases can work together to create a whole lot of certainty with not a whole lot of evidence.  Now, that is REALLY SCARY!!

So, the next time you hear someone say, "I've done my research," just remember: real research involves much more than a quick online search and a few articles that fit our assumptions. True learning is in asking questions, challenging ourselves, and acknowledging that we probably don’t have all the answers – yet.

In a world of biases, maybe the best skill is knowing when to say, “I might not know as much as I thought”, and try to mitigate the power these biases have on us by asking more questions, practicing more critical thinking and forgiving ourselves for simply being people, because we are people, and People Power Everything.

John

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