Confirmation Bias and Fixation in Effective Problem Solving - Essay Example

Confirmation Bias and Fixation in Effective Problem Solving We face problems everyday. Most of the time we don't even think about the problem solving skills involved in finding the solution; it just comes naturally. However, are the solutions we come up with the most effective solutions for that particular problem I would like to discuss the effects of confirmation bias, fixation in everyday problem solving, and finally the Tower of Hanoi problem and how fixation affects an individual's ability to solve the puzzle.

There are several steps to effective problem solving. Most of us don't analyze the steps that we use to come up with a solution, but they are there. In confirmation bias and fixation, we are not concentrating on the solution, but rather an expected outcome. With confirmation bias we have an outcome in mind that we would like our solution to lead to. For instance, in the medical field there are many studies being done. An article in Applied Clinical Trials by Mark Hochhauser (2001), titled Conflict of interest, discusses biases in clinical studies.

He reported that there is concern that financial relationships with pharmaceutical companies may cause confirmation bias in the studies. Hochhauser (2001) states that an article reporting on a drug that is sponsored by a pharmaceutical company is more likely to have a positive outcome then one that is not sponsored by a pharmaceutical company. In confirmation bias, there is a tendency to keep results that would be favorable to the outcome that is expected, while rejecting those that would show unfavorable.

This confirmation bias and fixation is not only in the medical field or at our work, we see it in everyday life as well. We come across problems everyday. Most are so minute that we don't even process them as problems; such as what to wear to work, or what to have for breakfast. Some problems we do knowingly go through the problem solving process. One such problem may involve vehicle repair. Most of the time when a vehicle needs repairing it comes at a financially inopportune time. When we are looking for repair shops we may be so fixated on the fact that we can't afford much that we choose the cheapest repair shop we can find without regards to how good the mechanic may be.

While this helps us financially at the moment, it may cost us more in the long run. If the repair was done hastily or half-heartedly, it may need to be repaired to fix the repairs only a month or two down the road. This fixation on finances has caused us to spend double what we should have spent to have the work done right. One such problem that was discussed is the Tower of Hanoi, which is a mathematical puzzle. According to Wikipedia (2005), a French mathematician named Eduourd Lucas invented it in 1883 and it is currently used in psychological research in problem solving.

When one first looks at the puzzle and hears the instructions, he or she might be inclined to think it either can't be done, or is so complicated it would take an excessive amount of time to complete it. They become so fixated on the size of the problem that they can't think effectively to take a step-by-step solution. When one tries it and doesn't succeed rather quickly, they may give up. Some may become so fixated on the stipulations of the puzzle, which are moving one disk at a time and a larger one cannot go on top of a smaller one that they are unable to concentrate on finding a solution.

When we think negatively or concentrate on other things, it is hard to come up with an effective solution. To conclude, confirmation bias and fixation are big blocks in the road to effective problem solving. I have shown that confirmation bias can give inaccurate results, how fixation can hinder effective solutions in everyday life, and how fixation can take a simple puzzle and make it essentially unsolvable to the person trying to solve it.ReferencesHochhauser, Mark (2001). Conflict of Interest.

Applied Clinical Trials, 10, 58. Retrieved January 3, 2006, from http://acamedicintegrity.blogspot.com/2004/06/bias-subtle-and-pervasive.htmlTower of Hanoi. (2005). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved January 3, 2006, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tower_of_Hanoi