INTHEBLACK September 2024 special edition - Flipbook - Page 50
“From a financial perspective, cognitive biases should be recognised and managed
properly. No one is immune to them. It comes back to accountability and people
being prepared to interrogate data properly and seek external review.”
STEVEN ASNICAR, DIVERSITY AUSTRALIA
“From a financial perspective, cognitive biases
should be recognised and managed properly. No one
is immune to them. It comes back to accountability
and people being prepared to interrogate data
properly and seek external review,” he says.
COGNITIVE BIAS
MITIGATING FACTORS
Given that cognitive biases are so risky, it is important
to try to mitigate the impact of biased decisions.
Organisational psychologist Dr Amanda Ferguson
says the key to mitigation is to continue to question
your reasoning and stay up-to-date with new research
and methodologies.
“Cognitive bias occurs as a result of taking a
shortcut. We are trying to reduce the complexity of a
decision, and when we need to act quickly, we might
go through a certain way of thinking that we have
used in the past,” Ferguson explains. “It is natural to
create shortcuts because it makes life easier, but the
consequence of that is that you’re not interrogating
information in the way you probably should be,
because you’re just defaulting to what your brain’s
telling you is the easiest way.
“To mitigate it resulting in a biased decision, it is
important to take the time to ruminate, to try not to
make decisions under pressure and to get expert and
outside independent advice,” she says.
Most importantly, Ferguson says people need to
constantly challenge their own reasoning and adopt a
growth mindset.
“Good workplace psychosocial safety can help
people recognise that being open to learning is a
good thing. It can help identify where biases may be
influencing decisions and how to avoid that.” ●
TED Talk, The Way We Work, Kim Scott and Trier Bryant: How to reduce bias in your workplace
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50 INTHEBLACK September 2024 SPECIAL EDITION
