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10 cognitive biases to avoid in User Research (and how to avoid them) 7/18/18, 9(47 AM

Sundar Subramanian Follow


UX Researcher | Design Strategist | Engineer | Musician. Love exploring the magic at the
intersection of diverse disciplines. www.sundarsubramanian.xyz
Jun 7 · 11 min read

10 cognitive biases to avoid in User


Research (and how to avoid them)

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10 cognitive biases to avoid in User Research (and how to avoid them) 7/18/18, 9(47 AM

Cognitive biases have become quite popular in mainstream culture in the


last decade, thanks to books like Thinking Fast and Slow and Predictably
Irrational. Along with human centered approaches, it has also gained
quite a lot of prominence in Experience/Business design.

Since we have come to rely more and more on quantitative and


qualitative research to take informed product/business decisions, it’s
also important to ensure that the data and its method of collection is not
impaired by an ignorance of cognitive biases, so as to provide
meaningful value to end customers.

There are more than a 100 of them (188 according to this exhaustive
infographic), but for the context of User Research, I’m going to focus on
10 of them and give examples/anecdotes on why and how to avoid
them.

1. Framing e:ect
This is one that I have seen most repeatedly occurring in the context of
User Research and one which is also tricky to avoid if you don’t pay close
attention to your words and actions.

What is it?

Simply put, human beings don’t make choices in isolation. We are


highly dependent on the way it is presented to us. A simple example
would be this — A big meal on a small plate is more fulOlling than a small
meal on a big plate. The empathy map is designed to help overcome this
bias by including what we see and hear along with what we do and say.

Example

When you are presenting prototypes or asking users about their


experiences while using a product, be careful about how you frame the
question.

A question such as “What did you like/dislike while using this product”
can cause the users to only focus on the positives/negatives of the

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product (even for the rest of the interview duration) and it might lead to
false positive/negative insights.

A neutral, non-indicative way of questioning, such as “Can you describe


the last time you used it?” or “How do you feel when you use this
product?” can yield better-unbiased results.

2. Con=rmation Bias
This is a super-villain of biases. Extremely common and diVcult to
rectify. But it is one of the biggest goof-ups that researchers can make,
and is often used by proponents of quantitative research to justify why it
is better to go with large data sets.

What is it?

We like data that con>rms our existing hypothesis/beliefs and


discard those which challenge them. This is an evolutionary safety net
that has been programmed into us, to protect our brains from the threat
of opposing information which challenges our identity (we evolved as
tribes with shared beliefs). That makes it very diVcult to get rid of it
completely.

Example

A typical example would be a researcher/product manager asking the


participant — “Have you ever done/considered doing Action X through
App Y”, and the participant says, “Yes! All the time!”. Hooray! you have
hit a jackpot and your evidence is conOrmed. Users love taking that
action through your app. But in reality that might be far away from the
truth.

When you get an aVrmation/positive response for something,


check/recheck in several di[erent ways. Why did the user take that
action? Was it because they did not have other options? Did they like the
process? How many times in the last week did they do it? Can they show
any evidence? Is there a possibility they might just be wanting to please
you?

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The best way to avoid conOrmation bias is to play devil’s advocate to


your thoughts and hypothesis consistently during the research process.

3. Hindsight Bias
Human beings are really bad at thinking in time. And hindsight bias
stands testimony to it.

What is it?

In order to create synchronicity and order to the ebb and ]ow of time,
we try and >nd reasons for the events that happened in our past,
without having any factual evidence for it. It is often called the “I
knew it all along” phenomenon.

Example

When we conduct research, we often ask users to dig into their past to
Ond examples and anecdotal pieces of evidence. And often when we dig
deep into the why’s, we hear several reasons about how they faced
certain diVculties/took certain actions.

For e.g: A user was complaining about his business not running well due
to the oncoming of the internet and people buying things online rather
than coming to the stores. So when I posed the counter question of why
he was not getting into e-Commerce, I received a rather surprising
answer: “The websites are not taking good care of customers and if there
is any damage/problem with our product it re]ects badly on our name”.
It was a clear indication that he was not really aware of how e-
Commerce works and the fact that customers had the option to return
damaged items and provide reviews to sellers.

Customers can never be blamed for making up such reasons, but it’s
really important for interviewers to be aware of them and constantly
double check the evidence to support their statements/anecdotes.

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As a researcher, this also means that when we don’t have all the answers
to a certain aspect of what we were supposed to uncover, we need to
admit that instead of covering up with false reasons.

4. Social Desirability Bias


One word to encapsulate this is, ‘SELFIES’

What is it?

We are social animals, and this means that our actions and words
are presented in a way that makes us look good amongst others,
even though they might be inaccurate. This is so deep-rooted in our
behavior that we even disdainfully label those who don’t follow these
norms as anti-social.

Example

This bias particularly comes up when you are researching on a topic


which has a social capital associated with (social media, online
platforms, matchmaking services etc.)

For e.g: A middle-aged social media user who wants to portray an image
of a leader among his/her family. He/She would never post or say
something that might hamper that image, and hence even if there is a
usability issue and the user is Onding diVcult to navigate through the
app, they might still not complain about it. A skilled researcher would
take the e[orts to re frame the questions in a way as to boost their social
desirability (for e.g: If you could design this better for your dad/mom,
what would you do?). This could give clues as to issues they really Ond
annoying but never speak up about.

5. Sunk Cost Fallacy


Again one of the most common biases. Causes a lot of damage not only
in research but also in major life choices (marriage/debt etc.)

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What is it?

Our decisions are tainted by the emotional investments we


accumulate, and the more we invest in something the harder it
becomes to abandon it. In other words, the deeper we get into the
maze the harder it becomes to come out (subtle Westworld reference).
The next time you end up drinking ‘just one drink more’ and get passed
out or keep calling with a bad hand in poker, you know which bias to
blame.

Example

As researchers, we invest a lot of time into conducting research and


collecting data. Over a period of time, this data can become a burden
rather than being helpful. Obsessing over the Ondings, we can easily get
lost and miss the bigger picture of what we really need to achieve and
deliver.

In order to avoid this bias, it is important to balance our e[orts and


rewards. This means breaking down the research into smaller chunks
and having go/no-go decisions after each of those chunks. The Lean
Startup methodology is in a way aimed at reducing this bias, by forcing
entrepreneurs to run small experiments and objectively test the results,
rather than spending time and e[ort to eventually reach a futile
conclusion.

It needs a mindset to ultimately get acclimatized to and become at peace


with the fact that losses and failures are an inevitable part of life.

6. Serial-Position E:ect
The U-shaped destiny of long lists.

What is it?

If your name starts with an M and your name is part of an alphabetically


ordered list, then sorry to say but your name likely won’t be noticed.

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This list illustrates the % of word recall compared to its position in a


sequence. Due to the way our memory gets constructed, we pay
more attention to the earlier and later parts of long lists.

Example

In tasks such as card sorting, this bias can lead to users omitting or
ignoring the middle elements, which might hamper the e[ectiveness of
the activity/experiment.

An interesting case of this bias a[ecting your studies is in continuous


Oeld studies, where you go out on the Oeld to interview more than 5–10
users on a stretch before getting to synthesis. Where it gets tricky is when
you tend to overemphasize observations from the Orst and last
interviews more if you place them in the order (on sticky notes/word
docs).

A good way to get around is to break them down into smaller chunks or
randomize the arrangement a few times to nullify the bias.

This bias can also creep into things such as to-do-lists and feature lists,
especially for those who are in charge of getting many things done at the
same time. Categorization is a highly e[ective strategy to counter this.

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7. The illusion of transparency


A dangerous bias that leads to misinterpretation and miscommunication

What is it?

If you have ever played charades, you already know this bias. We tend to
overestimate the extent to which others know what we are
thinking/trying to convey.

Most of our subjective experience is not observable, and we tend to


overestimate how much we telegraph our inner thoughts and emotions.

Example

In interviews, many participants try to convey their emotions through


body language, pauses, and other non-verbal cues. The illusion of
transparency makes it diVcult for them to really know whether the
message is being conveyed rightly.

Which means that we need a di[erent mechanism to Ogure out whether


we are missing out on some of these aspects which might not be caught
in the interview. This is why providing aVrmative feedback is important.
It can be as simple as, “So from what you said I feel like you are feeling
this way about this feature, pardon me if I’m wrong.”

Often you would be surprised to know that whatever they said in the
Orst place was interpreted by you in a completely di[erent manner.

8. Clustering Bias
Can lead to a lot of false positives and false negatives in cognition

What is it?

Clustering bias is what happens when we describe someone as having a


‘hot streak’, such as a night of poker or a football tournament where
everything seems to go right for the player. But in a short streak of

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random events, a wide variety of probabilities are expected,


including some streaks that seem highly improbable.

Example

As researchers, Onding patterns in data is bread and butter for us. But a
drawback of qualitative analysis is that with such a short sample size, it
is often impossible to avoid seeing patterns that might be just smaller
sets of randomness that appear to have a commonality. An e[ective tool
to counter it is to triangulate patterns, and to match data-driven insights
based on large sample sizes with the deeper insights found in qualitative
research.

It can be also reduced by conducting research and prototyping with


completely di[erent and diverse sets of users.

Another way of avoiding it is to have silent brainstorming before


discussing patterns and include a set of diverse stakeholders in the
analysis process so that the bias has a better chance of getting
canceled/evened out.

9. Implicit Bias
Again a really tricky and dangerous one. Often termed as stereotyping in
popular culture.

What is it?

These are our attitudes and stereotypes we associate to people


without our conscious knowledge. Implicit Bias is really diVcult to
root out since it has been embedded into our consciousness from a very
young age through media, people around us and popular culture.

Example

One of the most prominent examples of implicit bias is that of police


oVcers associating black people with crimes without realizing they are
doing it.

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In the context of user research, it can happen when we talk to people


from certain demographic, racial or ethnic groups of whom we already
have preconceived notions and generalizations about. It can lead us to
behave in certain ways which might not be totally necessary (such as
being overly polite to disabled people when they would rather be treated
like a normal person). A good practice to avoid this would be to write
down all the preconceived notions about the person before going into
the interview, and knowing as little as possible about them before
speaking to them.

It’s always important to always remember that as a good researcher, our


duty is not to be socially appealing or to become friends with our users
but to really understand what is going on inside their mind and how they
think, even if it that means there needs to be certain uncomfortable
awkward silences or small disagreements.

10. Fundamental Attribution Error


A favorite among designers and usability enthusiasts, it is what happens
when people blame themselves for not being able to understand
technology

What is it?

It is the tendency of people to overemphasize personal


characteristics and ignore situational factors in judging others’
behavior. Because of the fundamental attribution error, we tend to
believe that others do bad things because they are bad people. We’re
inclined to ignore situational factors that might have played a role.

Example

When you conduct usability tests and you hear a user talking about
making a ‘mistake’ doing a certain task, pay attention! That might be the
biggest clue towards creating a better product/experience.

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Really good products make the user think less and get more done. Think
of any app/website where you blame yourself for not being able to do a
certain thing right. There is an opportunity for improvement.

A good way to avoid this bias is to also to complement interviews with


observations/heat maps. They provide a better account of how
researchers use the product and the kind of errors they commit due to
poor design. It’s common among engineers to also push the blame on to
users and guide them on the correct usage. But as researchers, we need
to Oght this notion. Products and their learning curves need to be
designed in a way that even a beginner can pick them up with a few tries
and not feel guilty about failing.

In summary, these are the 10 biases you can take away to improve your
research practice

1. Framing eIect — Framing of inquiries can in]uence responses

2. Con>rmation Bias —Humans tend to only look for evidence


conOrming their hypothesis

3. Hindsight Bias —Humans always Ond reasons for their actions in


the past

4. Social Desirability Bias — Humans tend to speak in a way that


makes them look good

5. Sunk Cost Fallacy — Humans tend to stick on longer to their losses


than they should

6. Serial-Position EIect —Humans tend to value items at the


end/beginning of lists more

7. Illusion of transparency — Humans tend to overestimate the


extent to which others know what they are thinking

8. Clustering Bias — Humans tend to Ond patterns amidst


randomness, when there are really none

9. Implicit Bias — Humans have implicit associations about certain


groups and their behavior

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10. Fundamental Attribution Error —Humans tend to attribute errors


to internal characteristics even when it is situational/caused by an
external forces

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