Overcoming ideology-consistent biases: does it help to make things easier?
In 2 experiments, we attempted to reduce belief-consistent biases in interpretations of a polarized problem by making information easier to interpret. In the experiments, participants solved numerical problems that were either framed in a politically polarized (the effects of Muslim prayer rooms on...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Cambridge University Press
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Judgment and Decision Making |
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| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1930297524000445/type/journal_article |
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| author | Philip U. Gustafsson Torun Lindholm Freja Isohanni Ola Svenson Sophia Appelbom |
| author_facet | Philip U. Gustafsson Torun Lindholm Freja Isohanni Ola Svenson Sophia Appelbom |
| author_sort | Philip U. Gustafsson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In 2 experiments, we attempted to reduce belief-consistent biases in interpretations of a polarized problem by making information easier to interpret. In the experiments, participants solved numerical problems that were either framed in a politically polarized (the effects of Muslim prayer rooms on support for Islamic extremism) or a neutral setting (the effects of a skin cream on skin rash). In both studies, the problems were presented twice, with the second presentation accompanied with an aid to facilitate problem-solving. In Experiment 1, this aid came in the form of an informative text on how to calculate the numbers to solve the problem. In Experiment 2, the aid provided participants with the first calculus necessary to solve the problem: transforming frequencies to percentages. Overall, results demonstrated belief-consistent responses in the polarized scenario when participants attempted to solve the first problem (higher accuracy when the correct conclusion was in line with participants’ ideology). Information on how to calculate the problem (Experiment 1) only slightly reduced the biased responses, whereas the added percentages (Experiment 2) led to a substantial reduction of the bias. Thus, we demonstrate that the facilitation of complex information on a polarized topic reduces biases in favor of rational reasoning. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9287bc17ff704d96823e6f096299de45 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1930-2975 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Judgment and Decision Making |
| spelling | doaj-art-9287bc17ff704d96823e6f096299de452025-02-06T07:40:23ZengCambridge University PressJudgment and Decision Making1930-29752025-01-012010.1017/jdm.2024.44Overcoming ideology-consistent biases: does it help to make things easier?Philip U. Gustafsson0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4249-5887Torun Lindholm1Freja Isohanni2Ola Svenson3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1717-7198Sophia Appelbom4Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, SwedenDepartment of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, SwedenDepartment of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, SwedenDepartment of Psychology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden Decision Research at Oregon Research Institute, Eugene, OR, USAHealth Informatics Centre, Department of Learning, Informatics, Management and Ethics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, SwedenIn 2 experiments, we attempted to reduce belief-consistent biases in interpretations of a polarized problem by making information easier to interpret. In the experiments, participants solved numerical problems that were either framed in a politically polarized (the effects of Muslim prayer rooms on support for Islamic extremism) or a neutral setting (the effects of a skin cream on skin rash). In both studies, the problems were presented twice, with the second presentation accompanied with an aid to facilitate problem-solving. In Experiment 1, this aid came in the form of an informative text on how to calculate the numbers to solve the problem. In Experiment 2, the aid provided participants with the first calculus necessary to solve the problem: transforming frequencies to percentages. Overall, results demonstrated belief-consistent responses in the polarized scenario when participants attempted to solve the first problem (higher accuracy when the correct conclusion was in line with participants’ ideology). Information on how to calculate the problem (Experiment 1) only slightly reduced the biased responses, whereas the added percentages (Experiment 2) led to a substantial reduction of the bias. Thus, we demonstrate that the facilitation of complex information on a polarized topic reduces biases in favor of rational reasoning.https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1930297524000445/type/journal_articleanalytic thinkingideological biasmotivated reasoningnumeracy |
| spellingShingle | Philip U. Gustafsson Torun Lindholm Freja Isohanni Ola Svenson Sophia Appelbom Overcoming ideology-consistent biases: does it help to make things easier? Judgment and Decision Making analytic thinking ideological bias motivated reasoning numeracy |
| title | Overcoming ideology-consistent biases: does it help to make things easier? |
| title_full | Overcoming ideology-consistent biases: does it help to make things easier? |
| title_fullStr | Overcoming ideology-consistent biases: does it help to make things easier? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Overcoming ideology-consistent biases: does it help to make things easier? |
| title_short | Overcoming ideology-consistent biases: does it help to make things easier? |
| title_sort | overcoming ideology consistent biases does it help to make things easier |
| topic | analytic thinking ideological bias motivated reasoning numeracy |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1930297524000445/type/journal_article |
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