Fooled by facts: quantifying anchoring bias through a large-scale experiment

Through a large-scale online field experiment, we provide new empirical evidence for the presence of the anchoring bias in people's judgement due to irrational reliance on a piece of information that they are initially given. The comparison of the anchoring stimuli and respective responses across different tasks reveals a positive, yet complex relationship between the anchors and the bias in participants' predictions of the outcomes of events in the future. Participants in the treatment group were equally susceptible to the anchors regardless of their level of engagement, previous performance, or gender. Given the strong and ubiquitous influence of anchors quantified here, we should take great care to closely monitor and regulate the distribution of information online to facilitate less biased decision making.

Automated summary

Through an online experiment, we found evidence of the presence of anchoring bias in people's judgment. The bias occurs when individuals rely too heavily on initial information they receive. Regardless of their level of engagement, previous performance, or gender, participants were equally susceptible to the influence of anchors. Therefore, it is crucial to closely monitor and regulate the distribution of online information to facilitate less biased decision-making.