How Biased Are Gamers?
OPINION
From having a favorite console to playing competitive multiplayer, we take a quick look at how bias effects you as a gamer - you may find the results surprising!
-”*&@! $@*£ !!$#” (Average conversation on Call of Duty servers.)
Hard-easy effect – If we're playing a game on an easy difficulty, we don't pay as much attention as we would if it was on hard.
-(Thinking)”This guy I'm playing on FIFA doesn't seem very good, I can slack off a bit. Oh, I lost.”
-(Saying)”Nah, I let you win.”
Hyperbolic discounting – When you first start playing a game, the rewards for playing come thick and fast, and then slow down a bit a fair way into it. This is because people tend to have a preference for immediate rewards rather than receiving them later.
-”I love World of Warcraft! You can level so quickly!”
Just-world hypothesis – Most people would like to think that we live in a just world. This means that people will say that the victim of something probably deserved it in some way.
-”You crashed on the last corner of the race because you pushed me off the track on the first lap.”
Pseudocertainty effect – This is where we make risky choices when we know that we are in an already negative situation. For example, if we know we are about to die in a shooter, we will run around spamming grenades and firing wildly, because what's the worst that could happen?
-”It's fourth down with one minute to go and we're six points behind... I'm going for it!”
Recency illusion – If we are playing a game, and suddenly find something works better if you do it a certain way, we fall under the illusion that this is a recent innovation.
-”I was playing Starcraft 2 the other day and invented a new tactic. If you get big ball of Marines and Marauders, and back them up with Medivacs, it works really well.”
-”I don't think you invented that.”
Finally, if you've showed one of these effects to someone and they've said “Hey, I don't do that!” Simply point them to an effect called the 'Bias blind spot', which is the tendency to see oneself as less biased than other people. This is one of those catch-all statements that they cannot get out of, a bit like saying to someone “You argue with everything I say.” To which they will of course reply:
“No I don't!”