Skip to content
  • HOME
  • LMS
  • BLOG
  • CLIENTS
  • CAREERS

Tricking The Mind to Learn: Benefiting From Cognitive Biases

admin, March 28, 2018October 12, 2023

Left to itself, learning is a fairly simple process. We see; we experience; and we learn. Our mind somehow assimilates the information that interests it, and it gets retained.

The challenge arises when we look to impart formal, sit-down training. That is when things get tricky. Any training that is mundane doesn’t stick and the mind begins to forget as quickly as it learns.

But there’s a secret of the mind that aids and engages the audience – Cognitive Bias.

Before we jump up and look for ways to use Cognitive Bias to our advantage, let’s first see what it actually is.

We view everything – data, experiences, situations, people, etc. – through the filter of our individual perceptions; and we use Cognitive Bias to build our own ‘subjective social reality’ regardless of whether it is rational, logical, or fact-based. This is often not a one-off situation but a systematic pattern.

So, how can eLearning benefit from this systematic pattern? There are multiple ways that course architects can use Cognitive Biases to aid the process of eLearning; and to do this, let’s see the learn more about the seven types of biases:

  1. The Bandwagon effect :

    This makes people look at what the majority is doing and follow the same path, albeit unknowingly. It’s the best way to get your users interested in your course. Simply tell them how everybody is joining up, and they’ll come prepared for something meaningful.

  2. Availability heuristic :

    Examples! That’s what defines this bias. For example, when you see frequent news about shark attacks, you start to believe that, that is a common cause of “death at the ocean” when the truth is that a lot more people die at the ocean because of drowning.  Use such shocking, thrilling and exciting examples to help the user retain information easily.

  3. Framing effect :

    Simply by presenting the same information in different ways can make people react differently to it. Inviting the users to a discussion by showing both sides and asking their opinion can cement facts better.

  4. Curse of knowledge :

    This is a tricky one. Assuming a certain level of knowledge among the audience can lead the trainer into skipping some basic information that some users may not possess.

  5. Reactance :

    Reactance is the desire to do something opposite to what has been advised just because you don’t want to accept you were wrong. A trainer can ride on this tendency to create interesting branching/role-play scenarios.

  6. The ‘Sunk Cost’ fallacy :

    The mind’s tenacious hold on an idea, and the time and effort invested, can make it difficult to correct your course of action even when the result is not going to be as expected. Similar to Reactance, this can be used to for branching and/or role-play scenarios.

  7. Anchoring effect :

    People have a tendency to rely heavily on one piece, usually the first, of information while taking future decisions. Identify the important points and plan your course around them, helping your users draw the right conclusions and take correct decisions.

It is incredible, the mind’s ability to hinder or aid the process of learning. Once you learn to identify these biases, you can use them to your advantage, driving home your point with much more emphasis and with a greater chance of retention.

blended learning Cognitive Biases Custom eLearning eLearning Courses eLearning Engagement custom e-learning contentKnowledge ManagementLearner Engagementlearning outsourcing companymicrolearning

Post navigation

Previous post
Next post

Related Posts

Articulate Storyline – Whose Tool Is It Anyway?

April 3, 2018October 11, 2023

There was a time when one could be sure of their responsibilities – the ID did the writing, the designer created the graphics assets, and the developer created the course. That’s it – very simple. No stepping on each other’s toes. But all that changed with the advent of rapid…

Read More
Custom eLearning

Elevating Corporate Training with Vyond Animations

June 6, 2024June 7, 2024

In the fast-paced world of corporate training, engaging and effective methods are crucial for knowledge retention and employee development. As a leading custom e-learning development company, Aims Digital is committed to delivering innovative solutions that exceed our clients’ expectations. One of the powerful tools in our arsenal is Vyond, a…

Read More

Bite-sized learning: So you don’t bite off more than you can chew

July 23, 2017October 12, 2023

Many professionals believe that bite-sized learning has always been the right size of learning.  Some people may think it to be something that contains more useful content and that fits smaller screens or any screen. Micro-learning is learning in smaller fragments and goes hand in hand with traditional methods of…

Read More

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

  • Revolutionizing Compliance Training in BFSI, Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare with Advanced Corporate Learning Solutions
  • How Custom eLearning Solutions Are Revolutionizing Pharmaceutical Workforce Training
  • The Future of Content Development: How AI is Revolutionizing Rapid Authoring Tools
  • Gaming the System: Navigating the World of Game-Based Learning 
  • The Evolution of Custom eLearning: Meeting Modern Corporate Learning Needs

Recent Comments

No comments to show.

Archives

  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • June 2024
  • September 2023
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017

Categories

  • Articulate Rise
  • Articulate Storyline
  • blended learning
  • Cognitive Biases
  • Compliance Training
  • custom e-learning content
  • Custom eLearning
  • eLearning Content Development
  • eLearning Courses
  • eLearning Engagement
  • Future of eLearning
  • Instructional Design
  • Learner Engagement
  • learning management system
  • Mobile Learning
  • Storyboarding
  • Vyond
  • Whiteboard Animation
©2025 | WordPress Theme by SuperbThemes