A common factor underlying individual differences in confirmation bias

When they are asked to test a given hypothesis, individuals tend to be biased towards confirming evidence. This phenomenon has been documented on different cognitive components: information search, weighing of evidence, and memory recall. However, the interpretation of these observations has been de...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scientific reports 2024-11, Vol.14 (1), p.27795-13, Article 27795
Main Authors: Berthet, Vincent, Teovanović, Predrag, de Gardelle, Vincent
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
631/477
631/477/2811
Adolescent
Adult
Bias
Cognition - physiology
Cognitive science
Confirmation bias
Female
Humanities and Social Sciences
Humans
Hypotheses
Hypothesis testing
Individual differences
Individuality
Male
Measurement
Mental Recall - physiology
multidisciplinary
Psychology
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Young Adult
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Summary:When they are asked to test a given hypothesis, individuals tend to be biased towards confirming evidence. This phenomenon has been documented on different cognitive components: information search, weighing of evidence, and memory recall. However, the interpretation of these observations has been debated, and it remains unclear whether they truly reflect a confirmation bias (as opposed to e.g., a bias towards positive information). In the present study we aimed at evaluating whether these biases might be subtended by a common factor. We adapted three classic experimental paradigms on hypothesis testing (Wason selection task, 2-4-6 task, and interviewee task) and examined the relation between these biases using an individual differences approach. Participants (N = 200) completed a total of nine behavioral tasks, in which each component of confirmation bias was measured in each of the three experimental paradigms. Correlations and factor analyses within a multitrait–multimethod framework indicated greater convergence of bias scores within each component across paradigms, than within experimental paradigms. This suggests that a common factor underlies the different measurements of confirmation bias across experimental paradigms, at least to some extent. In these paradigms, thus, biases towards confirming evidence may truly reflect a confirmation bias.
ISSN:2045-2322
2045-2322
DOI:10.1038/s41598-024-78053-7