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Fallacy Of Optimism Bias

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Humans are rational creatures. They are biased on different contexts. Bias that influences judgment from being balanced is a complex neural interplay between emotions and believes. It is a way we get things systematically wrong. Neuroscience and social physics suggest that we humans have typical mind-set that is more optimistic than realistic. We expect more the ‘better’ than the ‘worse.’ We anticipate things turn out better than they typically wind up being. We, in general, overestimate our expectations: children gifted, happy family life and higher life expectancy (a margin of 20 years or more); and hugely underestimate our shot comings like losing job or being diagnosed with cancer. They call it optimism bias – a bias that the future will be better than the past and the present. It is a bias that we all have. The farmer expects best crops next year. Optimism bias is across the board: age, sex, race, region and socioeconomics. Schoolchildren are rampant optimists – I will be somebody when I grow up – and so are the grownups. Optimists are often punished at the end. …show more content…

A survey conducted in 2007 found that while 70% thought families in general were less successful than in their parents' days, 76% of respondents were optimistic about the prospect of their own

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