Brain Bias – Common Questions, 5

Do you have another example of learned bias? 

Suppose you are playing at the beach and are bitten by a rabid dog. That is a very unpleasant experience and you have to receive anti-rabies shots in your abdomen—another unpleasant experience. You are told repeatedly that rabid dogs are dangerous, especially when running wild on the beach. As much as you love going to the beach, you develop a bias against going to the beach because it is deemed unsafe. You also develop a bias against the breed of dog that bit you. Some adults in your life, tell you that all unleashed dogs are dangerous and potentially rabid. Now you take your experience, globalize it, and develop a bias against any dog that is unleashed, anywhere, and at any time. You have now taught your brain to be biased against all dogs. This prevents you from ever having a relationship with a dog and limits you from developing friendships with anyone who owns a dog.

What are other common biases? (more tomorrow)