Don't just do it just because everyone else is

After reading this article, you’ll learn:

1. What is the bandwagon effect.

2. Why you should know about it.

3. How you can avoid it.

Have you ever done something just because everyone you know was also doing it?

It may be the keto diet, a trending social media challenge (remember the ALS ice bucket challenge ?) or a fashion craze (e.g. Athleisure brand Lululemon).

I’m sure you would have felt, “let me try this - so many people are already doing it so this must be good”.

This is called the bandwagon effect. Basically this is the “follow the crowd” mentality that drives people to conform to prevailing norms.

The bandwagon effect is a cognitive bias where people adopt behaviors, styles, or attitudes because others are doing so.

A bias is a thinking error. e.g. an unconscious tendency to favour one person / thing / idea over another.

Ok. But why should I know about this?

1. To resist manipulation.

Buying stuff:

When I want to buy something in Amazon, I filter by the number of reviews and usually look for a product with the most number of reviews. But, do you know that in 2020, Fakespot found that 42% of 720 million Amazon reviews were fake?

Celebrity endorsements:

All soft drinks are bad for you. Inspite of this, the most famous celebrities worldwide endorse them. Why? Money. Since the drinks become associated with celebrities and a feeling of being “cool”, millions around the world consume it. Young folks give into peer pressure and jump onto the bandwagon.

2. To become a better thinker.

Following the herd may be ok for small decisions. But when it comes to major life decisions e.g. what should I study in college, what career path should I choose, should I buy a house now, which city should I live in - deep thinking is needed. When you know about the bandwagon effect and it’s results, you become a much - better thinker.

3. For better investments.

Two good examples of the bandwagon effect happened with the 2008 sub prime crisis and the 2021 gamestop stock.

In the 2008 subprime crisis, financial institutions joined the subprime mortgage bandwagon, which became a loosely - regulated and unstable housing market bubble. Investors and the general public believed everything is stable as everyone else thought everything is stable. This led to the great recession.

In the 2021 gamestop stock situation, in 1 month, it’s stock went from $17 to $350. Investors kept buying to fight the short - sellers, which further increased the stock price. Other people saw the price and jumped onto the bandwagon.

4. Social proof, testimonials.

This relates to the fist point. If you have a business, testimonials from happy customers will help new customers jump onto the bandwagon. To get things started, you can offer incentives for your first few customers in exchange for testimonials. Once momentum builds up, it will help your business. More ideas here.

How you can avoid the bandwagon effect:

1. Think slow.

The bandwagon effect exists for a reason - it helps the brain make decisions quickly. Want to vote ? Vote for the most popular candidate. Want to buy a product? Buy the one with the most reviews.

Then there is FOMO (fear of missing out) , and also, because we want to fit in the crowd and not stick out like a sore thumb.

But, remember - all decisions are not made equal. If you take shortcuts for major decisions, you will suffer. Such decisions need what Daniel Kahneman labels “System - 2” thinking. This is slow, conscious and deliberate thinking for complex and important decisions.

2. Listen to different viewpoints.

When buying a product, looking at 5 - star reviews are ok. But also read the 1 - star reviews. What are people complaining about?

When you want to understand about the Israel - Palestine conflict, don’t listen only to the Western media. Learn about the history of the region, and also listen to reports from Gaza. Just because everyone hops onto one bandwagon, you don’t have to. As a human with a brain, seek objective facts and information and form your own opinions.

I hope this knowledge helps in your personal and professional life. And if so, share the article with your friends and family.

Further reading:

1. Bandwagon Effect as a Cognitive Bias.

2. Why do we support opinions as they become more popular?