The Psychology of Cognitive Biases

1. What is a cognitive bias?

A) A systematic pattern of deviation from norm or rationality in judgment.
B) A cognitive skill that enhances reasoning.
C) An emotional response to stimuli.
D) A type of psychological disorder.

2. Which cognitive bias causes people to favor information that confirms their existing beliefs?

A) Confirmation bias.
B) Overconfidence bias.
C) Availability heuristic.
D) Anchoring bias.

3. What is hindsight bias?

A) Being surprised by unpredicted outcomes.
B) Believing that an event was predictable after it has happened.
C) Underestimating future uncertainties.
D) Overconfidence in one's initial predictions.

4. What is the affect heuristic?

A) Making decisions based on emotions rather than logic.
B) Calculating probabilities before acting.
C) Assessing risks through careful analysis.
D) Relying on statistical data exclusively.

5. Which bias involves favoring information that is more recent?

A) Confirmation bias.
B) Survivorship bias.
C) Framing effect.
D) Recency bias.

6. In which scenario does the gambler's fallacy occur?

A) Relying solely on statistical evidence.
B) Believing that past random events affect future outcomes.
C) Understanding that outcomes are independent.
D) Seeing patterns where none exist.

7. What does self-serving bias lead people to do?

A) Take equal responsibility for successes and failures.
B) Minimize their own role in results.
C) Blame others exclusively for their victories.
D) Attribute successes to themselves and failures to external factors.

8. What is the illusion of control?

A) A clear acknowledgment of randomness in events.
B) The belief that one can influence outcomes that are really beyond control.
C) Relying on evidence-based predictions.
D) Feeling helpless in decision-making scenarios.

9. What is the planning fallacy?

A) Relying on past performance data to predict future tasks.
B) Improving accuracy through careful planning.
C) Overestimating costs in project planning.
D) Underestimating the time required to complete a task.

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