Can We Train Students' Brains to Be Less Biased?

"Everyone employs bias-otherwise known as cognitive shortcuts-in their lives every day. Imagine you're scrolling through your social media feed and immediately dismiss a news article because it comes from a source you don't typically trust. Or maybe you're convinced your favorite restaurant is the best in town, remembering all the great meals you've eaten there while forgetting that mediocre dinner last month."

"These biases aren't character flaws. Thousands of years ago, this type of quick decision-making ensured the safety of ancient humans. Our brains have evolved to recognize patterns quickly and jump to conclusions based on limited information. Although these mental shortcuts served us well long ago, they don't always translate well in our complex modern world. For several decades, psychology researchers have been testing interventions that help people become aware of and minimize biases people hold today."

"A new systematic review published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour offers the most comprehensive look at bias training yet. Researchers combined the results from 54 randomized controlled trials involving nearly 11,000 students to determine whether educational interventions can reduce cognitive biases. The studies used a wide range of approaches, including games, online simulations, classroom instruction, video-based training, and group discussions. The analysis found that the interventions provided a small but significant improvement in reducing the likelihood of bias."

People routinely use cognitive shortcuts and biases, such as dismissing unfamiliar news sources or selectively remembering positive experiences. These heuristics evolved to support quick decision-making but often misfire in modern, complex contexts. Fifty-four randomized controlled trials involving nearly 11,000 students were combined to evaluate educational interventions aimed at reducing cognitive biases. Interventions included games, online simulations, classroom instruction, videos, and group discussions and produced a small but significant reduction in bias likelihood. Training that taught specific cognitive strategies, like actively seeking contradictory evidence, tended to be most successful, while some biases proved harder to mitigate. Bias affects medicine, policy, and elections.

Read at Psychology Today