Listening: How Cognitive Biases Shape Our Decisions

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C1 | Listening from video | 13 min

How Cognitive Biases Shape Our Decisions

Watch the whole video. You can watch more than once. Then answer the questions below. (5:53)

Choose the best answer.

1. What is the main message of the conversation?

____ Most poor decisions come from a lack of intelligence, so better education would largely prevent them.____ Shortcuts mostly serve us well, but they lean predictably when situations are new or emotional.____ Mental shortcuts are mostly harmful, so important choices should be left to careful calculation.____ Most classic studies of bias failed to replicate, so psychologists have dropped the idea.

2. How does the guest distinguish a bias from an ordinary mistake?

____ A bias is a mistake that people make when they lack the relevant knowledge.____ A bias is any error that happens when a decision is made under emotional pressure.____ A bias is a mistake that people notice and correct straight away.____ A bias pushes judgment the same way each time, whereas random errors scatter in both directions.

3. What does the guest say about the strength of the anchoring effect?

____ It varies a great deal, and looks weaker when the number is plainly random.____ It is consistently large across studies, and rewards for accuracy make no difference.____ It vanishes completely once people are told that the number is silly.____ It is strongest when people are paid to be accurate and take their time.

4. What point does the example of the experienced nurse make?

____ Medical staff are protected from most cognitive biases by their long training.____ Intuition is usually less accurate than the numbers shown on a hospital monitor.____ Gut judgment can be reliable after long practice with quick, clear feedback.____ Anyone who feels very sure of a judgment can safely trust it.

5. When does the guest say that carrying on after a big investment can be sensible?

____ When what remains to be spent is small next to what finishing would give you.____ Whenever a lot of money and effort has already gone into the project.____ When the people around you have already put in the same amount.____ When you cannot yet tell how much the rest of the work will cost.

True, False or Not Given? Choose Not Given if the video does not say.

6. The guest says that confirmation bias becomes stronger as people get older.

____ True____ False____ Not Given

7. Large-scale attempts to repeat classic studies showed that many of the effects had weakened or vanished.

____ True____ False____ Not Given

8. The guest believes that knowing about cognitive biases makes a person immune to them.

____ True____ False____ Not Given

Complete each sentence with the words you hear.

A NUMBER from the video.

9. A buyer chooses a flat on a feeling formed within the first ____ minutes of looking at it.

ONE WORD from the video.

10. Next to the high figure, a less expensive jacket seems like a ____ even though nothing else about it has changed.

ONE WORD from the video.

11. In the sunk-cost picture, a half-built wall holds so many ____ that the builder cannot bear to stop.

ONE WORD from the video.

12. Looking for the opposite of what you believe is said to help, though only a ____.

How Cognitive Biases Shape Our Decisions

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