I don't care that you're the CEO. Your logic is wrong

Imagine you're planning to buy a car. When researching, you see your favourite actor endorsing a car brand. They say it's comfortable, stylish, safe and well priced.

You're convinced and decide to buy this. After all, you trust the actor...

This is authority bias in a nutshell. You trust and believe those in authority (without questioning or looking at the facts).

In the car example, some questions to think about (ignoring what the actor said):

• Safety = what is the NHTSA crash test rating?

• Comfort = What do the Consumer reports / U.S News ratings say?

• Cost = how does it do when compared to other brands?

Why does this happen?

All cognitive biases happen because our brain loves shortcuts. It doesn't like to spend calories by deep thinking. When someone authoritative speaks, our brain takes the shortcut of listening to them.

I've written more about it in these posts.

• Loss aversion.

• Framing effect.

• Availability heuristic.

One recent example. It is alleged that Elizabeth Holmes (Theranos) faked her voice, She spoke in a deep voice to sound authoritative. In 2022, she was found guilty of fraud and sentenced to jail.

Some shocking studies / examples which demonstrates this bias

• Milgram obedience experiment.

A famous and controversial psychology experiment. In 1963 Stanley Milgram showed how people blindly obey authority. This was even when their actions were against moral principles.

Milgram recruited 40 people for this study. The participants gave potentially lethal electric shocks (around 450 V!) to a "learner". This was under the direction of the authoritative "teacher".

To keep things safe, the shock generator was fake. The "learner" faked their pain. But the results are chilling.

• Doctors recommending cigarettes.

You read that right. In the 30's & 40's cigarettes weren't linked to cancer yet. So the big tobacco companies such as Lucky strike used doctors in their ads. Can you imagine this?

• Celebrities endorse Gutka (chewing tobacco)

Gutka causes cancer. In spite of this, many celebrities endorse it. Why? The answer is authority bias. People listen to them. And more importantly, these people get paid tonnes of money. These celebrities have no moral bearing. They're responsible for increased use of this dangerous product. And for the deaths it causes.

Why, even James Bond endorsed it :)

• Natural, organic, additive - free tobacco. WTF, seriously?

   

Check out this brand. Companies will go to any lengths to make money. Health, life, truth - nothing matters until you keep making money. Think about it - just because poison is "natural, organic and additive - free", does it stop being poison? True colours of capitalism right here.

• The Challenger Space Shuttle disaster.

In 1986, the space shuttle Challenger disintegrated after liftoff. Investigation revealed that the engineers had warned against proceeding. But those in charge decided to go ahead anyway.

How to avoid this bias

1. Separate the person from the claim.

As the reason this happens is authority, this is the best way to start. Ask yourself:

• What is the claim being made here?

• Remember this quote:

2. Separate yourself from the person.

Another major reason may be that you adore the person. So, detach how you feel about this person. Let go of everything and focus only on the logic.

3. Use critical thinking.

Now you're left only with the claim. Approach it with cold logic. Critical thinking is a great framework for this. I've written more about it here.

Some common personal & professional scenarios

Now that you know about this bias, here are some scenarios which can alert you when you encounter them.

Personal:

• Medical: Proceeding after a doctor's diagnosis. Instead you can get a second opinion.

• Education: Choosing an educational institute based on celebrity endorsements. Instead, look for the institute rank, infrastructure & speak to seniors.

• Parenting: Following advice from experts always . Instead speak to family members too.

• Buying: Buying something because a celebrity endorsed it. Instead do your research and then decide.

• Politics: Voting for someone just because they speak well. Instead, look at education, views on major issues and party manifesto. Ask yourself, does this make sense?

Professional:

• Hiring: Hiring based only of recommendation of senior leaders. Instead, look at interview performance and job fit

• Performance evaluation: Giving top rating because a senior leader said so. Instead, look at job performance, savings, impact.

• Meetings: Everyone agreeing to what the leader says. Instead, look at the most feasible solution using a proven framework.

  Pro tip: Leaders speak last. This is what Jeff Bezos does.

• Promotions: Promoting loudmouths. Instead look for people who have an open mindset and have some skill for the next role.

I hope this concept helps you become a clear thinker. If you found this helpful, share with someone who will benefit.

Further reading:

• Authority bias: when we irrationally trust the judgement of experts.

• Why do we always trust the doctor, even though they may be wrong?

P.S: I’ve been writing for a while now and I genuinely hope these concepts are helping you. If you want to provide any feedback or want me to write about something else let me know. I will do my research and write about it.

Until then, hang loose \m/