Omission bias

Omission bias is the phenomenon in which people prefer omission (inaction) over commission (action), and tend to judge harm as a result of commission more negatively than harm as a result of omission.[1][2][3] It can occur due to a number of processes, including psychological inertia,[4] the perception of transaction costs, and the perception that commissions are more causal than omissions.[5]

In social political terms the Universal Declaration of Human Rights establishes how basic human rights are to be assessed in article 2, as "without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status." criteria that are often subject to one or another form of omission bias. It is controversial as to whether omission bias is a cognitive bias or is often rational.[4][6] The bias is often showcased through the trolley problem and has also been described as an explanation for the endowment effect and status quo bias.[2][7]

  1. ^ Yeung, Siu Kit; Yay, Tijen; Feldman, Gilad (9 September 2021). "Action and Inaction in Moral Judgments and Decisions: Meta-Analysis of Omission Bias Omission-Commission Asymmetries". Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 48 (10): 1499–1515. doi:10.1177/01461672211042315. PMID 34496694. S2CID 237453626.
  2. ^ a b Ritov, Ilana; Baron, Jonathan (February 1992). "Status-quo and omission biases". Journal of Risk and Uncertainty. 5 (1). doi:10.1007/BF00208786. S2CID 143857417.
  3. ^ Baron, Jonathan; Ritov, Ilana (September 1994). "Reference Points and Omission Bias". Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes. 59 (3): 475–498. doi:10.1006/obhd.1994.1070.
  4. ^ a b Gal, David (July 2006). "A Psychological Law of Inertia and the Illusion of Loss Aversion" (PDF). Judgment and Decision Making. 1: 23–32. doi:10.1017/S1930297500000322.
  5. ^ Yeung, Siu Kit; Yay, Tijen; Feldman, Gilad (9 September 2021). "Action and Inaction in Moral Judgments and Decisions: Meta-Analysis of Omission Bias Omission-Commission Asymmetries". Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 48 (10): 1499–1515. doi:10.1177/01461672211042315. PMID 34496694. S2CID 237453626.
  6. ^ Howard-Snyder, Frances (2011). "Doing vs. Allowing Harm". The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
  7. ^ Gal, David; Rucker, Derek D.; Shavitt, Sharon (July 2018). "The Loss of Loss Aversion: Will It Loom Larger Than Its Gain?". Journal of Consumer Psychology. 28 (3): 497–516. doi:10.1002/jcpy.1047. S2CID 148956334.