Dundee Discussion Papers in Economics 115: Positive confirmation bias in the acquisition of information

TY - UNPB

T1 - Dundee Discussion Papers in Economics 115

T2 - Positive confirmation bias in the acquisition of information

AU - Jones, Martin

AU - Sugden, Robert

N1 - The original publication is available at www.springerlink.com This paper was also published by Springer in Theory and Decision, Vol. 50 (1) pp. 59-99.

PY - 2000

Y1 - 2000

N2 - An experiment is reported which tests for positive confirmation bias in a setting in which individuals choose what information to buy, prior to making a decision. The design – an adaptation of Wason’s selection task – reveals the use that subjects make of information after buying it. Strong evidence of positive confirmation bias, in both information acquisition and information use, is found; and this bias is found to be robust to experience. It is suggested that the bias results from a pattern of reasoning which, although producing sub-optimal decisions, is internally coherent and which is self-reinforcing.

AB - An experiment is reported which tests for positive confirmation bias in a setting in which individuals choose what information to buy, prior to making a decision. The design – an adaptation of Wason’s selection task – reveals the use that subjects make of information after buying it. Strong evidence of positive confirmation bias, in both information acquisition and information use, is found; and this bias is found to be robust to experience. It is suggested that the bias results from a pattern of reasoning which, although producing sub-optimal decisions, is internally coherent and which is self-reinforcing.

KW - Positive confirmation bias

KW - Selection task

KW - Information acquisition

M3 - Discussion paper

T3 - Dundee Discussion Papers in Economics

BT - Dundee Discussion Papers in Economics 115

PB - University of Dundee

ER -