Cognitive Bias Video Song: Why should it be a YouTube Sensation?

by cv harquail on April 29, 2010

I have decided that this Cognitive Bias Video Song video is a YouTube sensation, despite its having only 1,046 hits as of this writing and the subsequent (and temporary) absence of social affirmation of its sensation-ism.

This song about Cognitive Bias was made salient to me by Mediation Channel, an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) blog written by Diane Levin. Since I write so often about specific forms of bias like discrimination, and since inauthenticity is its own special kind of cognitive dissonance, I thought that some of you might enjoy this song.

While it’s true that mediation has nothing to do with my areas of professional expertise, and that some would think I should be reading other things, to that I say: “Whatever. I don’t need to justify my decision. I know that my judgment is supported — even enhanced– by a host of cognitive biases.”

I think that this video is a sensation, and you should agree with me (or not).
Why? Refer back to those biases.

You could try to guess which cognitive bias(es) lead me to think that this song is a sensation….Is it:

— The recency effect?
— The choice supportive bias?
Déformation professionnelle (a bias that is (1) professionally relevant, (2) a pun!, and (3) the title of an obscure German glitch-electronica ‘song’)?
— The well-traveled road effect?
— Plain vanilla self-affirmation bias?

Or, my personal fave, the all-purpose Fundamental Attribution Error?

Listen to the song, remember your Psych 101 lectures, and then decide. In an unbiased way, of course.

.

This video, a study aid for students preparing for their AP Psychology exam, was created by and features Arundel (Maryland) High School teacher Bradley Wray.

Diane Levin found this video through her colleagues at the Bias and Belief blog, which is now another blog I’ll be reading. (How can you not love a blog that has “Crackpotology” as one of its categories? Pleeze.)

I’ll just have to justify these blogs as being relevant to my work.

Hmm, which biases might I use to do that?

{ 3 comments }

David Zinger April 30, 2010 at 12:56 pm

Hi CV:

A hidden psychological musical gem on bias. I loved it and did might part by putting it up on the employee engagement network. I will also twitter away and use it at my own site in the near future.

http://employeeengagement.ning.com/video/cognitive-bias-video

David
.-= David Zinger´s last blog ..I Ash You: How Toxic is Employee Engagement? =-.

Paul Kiser April 30, 2010 at 12:58 pm

I like it, but maybe I’m biased.

Seriously, with the discussion of how micro groups of Social Media are changing attitudes and influencing people, the study of bias and SM will result in a lot of Master’s and Doctoral thesis’s over the next five years.

Thanks for pointing this video out!

Brad Wray May 6, 2010 at 6:47 pm

Thank you so much for posting my video… since you posted it it has gone viral. It was posted on BoingBoing and the NYT Freakonomics blog. Thank you so much!

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