The Cognitive Bias Codex

The Cognitive Bias Codex, developed by Buster Benson, categorizes cognitive biases into four major groups. These biases influence how we perceive, decide, and remember. Below is a structured summary based on the classification from the Cognitive Bias Codex.

I. Too Much information

Our brains filter and prioritize information, often leading to biases.

How our brain works  
a. We notice things already primed in memory or repeated often
We notice things already primed in memory or repeated often		 1. Availability heuristic
2. Attentional bias
3. Illusory truth effect
4. Mere–exposure effect
5. Context effect
6. Cue–dependent forgetting
7. Mood–congruent memory bias
8. Frequency illusion
9. Baader–Meinhof Phenomenon
10. Empathy gap
11. Omission bias
12. Base rate fallacy
   
b. Bizarre, funny, or visually striking details stick out more
Bizarre, funny, or visually striking details stick out more		 1. Bizarreness effect
2. Humor effect
3. Von Restorff effect
4. Picture superiority effect
5. Self–relevance effect
6. Negativity bias
   
c. We notice when something has changed
We notice when something has changed		 1. Anchoring
2. Conservatism
3. Contrast effect
4. Distinction bias
5. Focusing effect
6. Framing effect
7. Money illusion
8. Weber–Fechner law
   
d. We are drawn to details that confirm our existing beliefs
We are drawn to details that confirm our existing beliefs		 1. Confirmation bias
2. Congruence bias
3. Post–purchase rationalization
4. Choice–supportive bias
5. Selective perception
6. Observer–expectancy effect
7. Experimenter’s bias
8. Observer effect
9. Expectation bias
10. Ostrich effect
11. Subjective validation
12. Continued influence effect
13. Semmelweis reflex
   
e. We notice flaws in others more than in ourselves
We notice flaws in others more than in ourselves		 1. Bias blind spot
2. Naïve cynicism
3. Naïve realism

II. Not Enough Meaning

Our brains construct stories and patterns to make sense of the world.

How our brain works  
a. We find patterns in sparse data
We find patterns in sparse data		 1. Confabulation
2. Clustering illusion
3. Insensitivity to sample size
4. Neglect of probability
5. Anecdotal fallacy
6. Illusion of validity
7. Masked–man fallacy
8. Recency illusion
9. Gambler’s fallacy
10. Hot–hand fallacy
11. Illusory correlation
12. Pareidolia
13. Anthropomorphism
   
b. We fill in characteristics from stereotypes and generalities
We fill in characteristics from stereotypes and generalities		 1. Group attribution error
2. Ultimate attribution error
3. Stereotyping
4. Essentialism
5. Functional fixedness
6. Moral credential effect
7. Just–world hypothesis
8. Argument from fallacy
9. Authority bias
10. Automation bias
11. Bandwagon effect
12. Placebo effect
   
c. We imagine things and people we’re familiar with as better
We imagine things and people we’re familiar with as better		 1. Out–group homogeneity bias
2. Cross–race effect
3. In–group favoritism
4. Halo effect
5. Cheerleader effect
6. Positivity effect
7. Not invented here
8. Reactive devaluation
9. Well–traveled road effect
   
d. We simplify probabilities and numbers to make them easier to think about
We simplify probabilities and numbers to make them easier to think about		 1. Mental accounting
2. Appeal to probability fallacy
3. Normalcy bias
4. Murphy’s Law
5. Zero sum bias
6. Survivorship bias
7. Subadditivity effect
8. Denomination effect
9. The magical number 7 ± 2
   
e. We think we know what others are thinking
We think we know what others are thinking		 1. Illusion of transparency
2. Curse of knowledge
3. Spotlight effect
4. Extrinsic incentive error
5. Illusion of external agency
6. Illusion of asymmetric insight
   
f. We project our current mindset onto the past and future
We project our current mindset onto the past and future		 1. Telescoping effect
2. Rosy retrospection
3. Hindsight bias
4. Outcome bias
5. Moral luck
6. Declinism
7. Impact bias
8. Pessimism bias
9. Planning fallacy
10. Time–saving bias
11. Pro–innovation bias
12. Projection bias
13. Restraint bias
14. Self–consistency bias

III. Need to Act Fast

When under pressure, we use mental shortcuts that can lead to biases.

How our brain works  
a. To act, we must feel we can make an impact
To act, we must feel we can make an impact		 1. Overconfidence effect
2. Social desirability bias
3. Third–person effect
4. False consensus effect
5. Hard–easy effect
6. Lake Wobegone effect
7. Dunning–Kruger effect
8. Egocentric bias
9. Optimism bias
10. Forer effect
11. Barnum effect
12. Self–serving bias
13. Actor–observer bias
14. Illusion of control
15. Illusory superiority
16. Fundamental attribution error
17. Defensive attribution hypothesis
18. Trait ascription bias
19. Effort justification
20. Risk compensation
21. Peltzman effect
   
b. To stay focused, we favor immediate, relatable things
To stay focused, we favor immediate, relatable things		 1. Hyperbolic discounting
2. Appeal to novelty
3. Identifiable victim effect
   
c. To get things done, we complete what we’ve invested in
To get things done, we complete what we’ve invested in		 1. Sunk cost fallacy
2. Irrational escalation
3. Escalation of commitment
4. Generation effect
5. Loss aversion
6. IKEA effect
7. Unit bias
8. Zero–risk bias
9. Disposition effect
10. Pseudocertainty effect
11. Processing difficulty effect
12. Endowment effect
13. Backfire effect
   
d. To avoid mistakes, we favor autonomy and consistency
To avoid mistakes, we favor autonomy and consistency		 1. System justification
2. Reverse psychology
3. Reactance
4. Decoy effect
5. Social comparison effect
6. Status quo bias
   
e. We favor simple–looking options and complete information over complex, ambiguous options
We favor simple–looking options and complete information over complex, ambiguous options		 1. Ambiguity bias
2. Information bias
3. Belief bias
4. Rhyme–as–reason effect
5. Bike–shedding effect
6. Law of Triviality
7. Conjunction fallacy
8. Occam’s razor
9. Less–is–better effect

IV. What Should We Remember?

Our memories are selective and often reconstructed inaccurately.

How our brain works  
a. We edit and reinforce some memories after the fact
We edit and reinforce some memories after the fact		 1. Source confusion
2. Cryptomnesia
3. False memory
4. Suggestibility
5. Spacing effect
6. Misattribution of memory
   
b. We discard specifics to form generalities
We discard specifics to form generalities		 1. Implicit association
2. Implicit stereotypes
3. Stereotypical bias
4. Prejudice
5. Negativity bias
6. Fading affect bias
   
c. We reduce events and lists to their key elements
We reduce events and lists to their key elements		 1. Peak–end rule
2. Leveling and sharpening
3. Misinformation effect
4. Serial recall effect
5. List–length effect
6. Duration neglect
7. Modality effect
8. Memory inhibition
9. Primacy effect
10. Recency effect
11. Part–set cueing effect
12. Serial–position effect
13. Suffix effect
   
d. We store memories differently based on how they were experienced
We store memories differently based on how they were experienced		 1. Levels–of–processing effect
2. Absent–mindedness
3. Testing effect
4. Next–in–line effect
5. Google effect
6. Tip of the tongue phenomenon

This codex helps us recognize and mitigate biases in decision-making and perception, improving critical thinking and rationality.

Availability Heuristic

Ia1

TAGS: BIAS
updated_at 01-06-2024