Thoughts on Decision Making Biases

Once you start realizing there are biases in action when making decisions, especially in a group, you can start making better decisions. These are the most common biases that I was able to find with their definitions and applications in real life, or at least how I have experienced them.

Groupthink is probably the most prevalent in this list, or at least what I have seen in the world. There is always pressure in a group to conform and for many reasons. It can be because of a strong personality, but it may also be because the group just wants to wrap up before lunch. When you see too much consensus in your group, this bias maybe in play. I also see Confirmation Bias playing a big role here too, where group members all believe the same thing and they therefore overweight their opinions.

Framing Effect and Confirmation Bias is something I often see in management decision making. If managers already believe something is the case, it is hard to get them to change their mind. I also see the Framing Effect, where people sometimes make a decision by trying to read into what the person is saying by their tone. You can say the same thing, one in a self doubting way, and one in a “gee golly how could anyone think this is right” and almost know which one will get picked. You should know, some people will pick the opposite because they are aware of the bias. You can also frame it using non-emotional tone and get the person thinking too.

Hindsight Bias is the one that always gets me. I even wrote about it here – https://www.joshuarust.com/2026/07/02/thoughts-on-regrets-in-general/ . I argue that regretting and learning are two different things. One does nothing, one is constructive. I have also heard that people who do a lot of MMQ also tend to feel disempowered in their work, so complaining in this way makes them feel that they have some credibility.

I have come to find that Anchoring Bias is one of the strongest biases out there. There is often a rush to get to a decision maker because you know they are making their mind up based on whoever told them first and you have to change it. I also like to get in early on job interviews because of this bias, I want other people to be framed against me, not me against them. That is why I always take the first appointment available.

I think other biases, like Sunk Cost and Loss Aversion are easier to pick out. People realize when they are going down a losing path, or at least should if the groupthink is not in play.