Question

Crystal is a very liberal young woman. She selectively chooses to pay attention to news outlets that are strongly liberal, one of the many ways that she controls her input of information to be consistent with her current political beliefs. Her behaviour is most consistent with which of the following biases?

A. confirmation
B. representative
C. availability
D. hindsight
E. anchoring

Answer 1

Crystal's behavior is an example of confirmation bias, where she selects information that reaffirms her liberal beliefs and disregards opposing views.

Step-by-step explanation:

This cognitive bias involves the tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information in a way that confirms one's preconceptions. For example, a liberal woman like Crystal might exclusively consume liberal news media, reinforcing her existing political views and ignoring information that challenges or contradicts them. Confirmation bias can be exacerbated by social media and personalized news streams, where algorithms often present users with content that aligns with their existing beliefs, further reinforcing this bias. It's a powerful force in shaping not only individuals' perspectives but also the collective public discourse, potentially leading to increased political polarization.