Blog 67: Confirmation Bias by Xavier Lo, FIA, FRM, MBA

Have you ever noticed that people’s views are becoming more and more extreme [極端] these days? Its actually really difficult to have civilised debates [正常辯論] with people about politics or other world issues. Why is that the case? It comes down to Confirmation Bias [確認偏誤] (well, and also the increasing ease of accessing news through the internet).

Think about some strong view or belief [堅定信念] that you have. Lets say someone challenges this belief of yours. What do you naturally do? You would probably hang out with people who support you, you would go online and find news articles which agree with your thinking. And the disagreements? You’d probably dismiss them as idiots or you would just ignore [忽視] those view points. Social media companies know this and they have programs to show you articles which align with how you think. The more of these articles you read, the more you are confident [有信心] that you are correct. Eventually, you won’t even accept someone else’s point of view, even if they were just showing just the mildest of questioning.

This is more of a soft management type of skill [管理技巧] you need to be self-conscious of in the work place. It is very easy and comfortable to find people who agree with you, and be angry at people who disagree with you (especially if they are your juniors [下屬]). It takes quite a lot of mental strength to seek people who go against your views, and to accept their ideas [接受意見]. Don’t let your previous biases and thoughts affect the way you interact with people because it will eventually lead you to making the wrong decision for business [錯嘅商業決定].

More of a soft skill type of blog today. However, the one key takeaway I want you to have is that you should actively try and find people who disagree with you. Have arguments, but do it in a calm way. Also, encourage your juniors to challenge you when you’re wrong – it may feel uncomfortable at first, but you’ll eventually thank them for it!