Cognitive biases are hardwired parts of human brains rather than avoidable mistakes.
Evidence
Succumbing to cognitive bias can feel a lot like thinking. But especially when we are emotionally invested in a subject, all of the experimental evidence shows that our ability to reason well will probably be affected. It is a fascinating question why any of these cognitive biases might be there in the first place. Isn’t truth adapative—wouldn’t believing the truth increase our chances for survival? For whatever reason, we must recognize that a plethora of cognitive biases are just part of the way that our brains are wired. — Lee McIntyre, Post-Truth, 115
Categorization
- QUESTION: The author flags why biases exist at all as an open puzzle—worth chasing the evolutionary/adaptive explanations literature later.
- XREF: connects to: Motivated reasoning engages different brain circuitry than neutral reasoning. — Lee McIntyre, Post-Truth, 103; Cognitive biases are an inherited feature of all human brains, not curable — Lee McIntyre, Post-Truth, 115; Psychological manipulation targets cognitive biases as its weak point — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof: Why Misinformation Infects…, 485 (+7 more)
Broader Connections
- Cognitive biases are an inherited feature of all human brains, not curable
#corroborates(0.95) — Lee McIntyre, Post-Truth, 115 - Implicit biases can be consciously overridden through deliberate attention
#contradicts(0.95) — Joseph Avery, Jim Sidanius, Joel Cooper, Gregory Davis, Amanda N., Bias in the Law, 1362 - Contradictory thinking and self-serving bias are universal human traits
#corroborates(0.85) - Human judgment errors are systematic and shared, not random noise
#corroborates(0.85) - Low-prejudice people reduce automatic bias by learning to associate failures with guilt and self-regulation
#contradicts(0.80) — , Rudman, Laurie A - On the Nature of…, 2109 - Psychological manipulation targets cognitive biases as its weak point
#qualifies(0.75) — Sander van der Linden, Foolproof, 485 - Salience heuristics, not logical weight, routinely drive human judgment.
#exemplifies(0.72) — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 1498 - People’s memory errors reveal spontaneously used cognitive group-type categories.
#exemplifies(0.72) - Human brains develop differently across cultural contexts, unlike chemical laws.
#qualifies(0.72)