We accept that everyone has Bias, and the study of that is exhaustive if not complete. But we continue to ask Why we have bias; the answer is that we need it.

1. Decoding Cognitive Bias
H O W I T W O R K S
© 2020 malcolm ryder / archestra research

2. Mindset: Three Major Factors
In the course of ordinary events, a person encounters ideas and situations (including, for
example, needs, intentions, and plans) for which the person has an emotional acceptance or
resistance. Neither is necessarily good or bad; that depends on the circumstances at hand.
Generally, we can refer to that as “bias”. In particular, we recognize bias as a “mindset”. Looking
deeper, note the following three aspects of mindset:
• Orientation – primarily about perspective. What appears to be evident?
• Predisposition – primarily about readiness. How is that pertinent to me?
• Agency – primarily about ability. What can I do with it or about it?
Next, note how those three aspects relate, influence, and are influenced.

3. vs.
Agency
(ability)
Virtual:
Observed
option
CIRCUMSTANTIAL
MINDSET
The language about “bias” is difficult to normalize
outside of formal research. But in general, “bias” is
the distance and direction that current probable
awareness (for recognition) has from currently available
evidence (for cognition).
In each incident of experience, the perceiver considers -
- with some degree of freedom from preconceived
expectation -- whether a current possibility is an
acceptable option. That degree can be small or large.
The in-the-moment consideration is what is being
examined. The factors contributing to (or “causing”) the
probability of bias are usually presumptions,
assumptions, and observations.
Those factors are mitigated by other influences in the
immediate moment such as unfamiliarity, contradiction,
negotiation, demonstration, authority, or other
cognitive pressures. Three major sources of those
influential pressures are Needs, Intents, and Plans.
Recognized
(perceived)
© 2020 malcolm ryder / archestra research
(plan)

4. Position: Four Major Factors
It is common now to consider the “practicality” of awareness as a two-sided coin: sense on the one side; and on the
other, respond. The former preconditions the latter, and the latter represents the value of the former. The point here is
that they are always paired.
In our analysis, the consistent description or narrative of what is “practiced” has four key factors. Each of the factors
represents something at stake about the position held by the person (whether actual or aspirational).
In the basic narrative of “position”, perception projects opportunity, which invokes status, which affects
community. However, experience shows that each of these factors readily preconditions each of the others.
• PERCEPTION (Knowledge/Awareness)
• OPPORTUNITY (Advantage/Leverage)
• STATUS (Power/Influence)
• COMMUNITY (Value/Inclusion)

5. The Cognitive Bias Table at Titlemax
At Titlemax (accessible online), a well known catalog is presented called 50 Cognitive Biases. We chose to refer to
this catalog because it is the largest and most detailed of many easily found on the web. Each of the 50 types of bias
has a clearly distinctive definition.
More importantly, each distinctive bias is also “tagged” with up to six of what our analysis sees as different contexts.
Each context is a point of view or “driver” corresponding to the occurrence of the given type of bias. The Titlemax
contexts are, in our analysis, labelling the circumstantial conditions in which awareness occurs:
• Memory
• Learning
• Belief
• Social
• Politics
• Money (held or tradeable “asset”)

6. The “stakes”: what’s being affected?
Circumstantial
concerns:
Issue being reinforced or challenged
Identity and Culture
What distinguishes me among all other persons, and my group among all other
groups?
Authority and Expertise What makes me most able to affect other things?
Influence and Vision How much is the way I see things accepted and respected?
Roles and Impacts In what way do I intentionally affect things?
Resources and Benefits What do I have or get that supports my efforts?
Goals and Production What are my desired outcomes and accomplishments?
Bias can originate in the person’s conscious or unconscious sense of what is at stake when a
condition or idea presents itself. We characterize that sense as “position”. These examples of
common concerns come to mind in connection with certain factors of the person’s position.

7. Position and Circumstance Narratives
1
2
3
4
5
6
Here, the narrative of
psychological position cross-
references the narrative of
practical circumstance.
In the basic narrative of
“position”, perception
projects opportunity, which
leverages status, which affects
community.
In the narrative of
“circumstances”, the person
considers who they are and,
due to that, how they get to do
what they care about, in and
for their organization.
In the above, the listed concerns are circumstantially what is felt to be “at
stake”. Each different circumstantial concern typically associates with certain
position factors . In the following, we model and show each position factor as
a set of influential contexts included and related by mindset factors.

8. Psychological vs. Circumstantial
Influences
In the following, our analysis has mapped the six contexts from the Titlemax
catalog against our four major factors of a person’s position.
While there are four different position factors, each position factor has a mindset
that is made up of the same three factors that compose a “practical” recognition.
Our point is to illustrate that the person’s “practical” recognition in the given
circumstances is indicative of what they feel is at stake, which explains the
propensity towards any bias. It is a psychological matter.
But the same illustration shows that as differing contexts circumstantially take
priority, the sense of what is being most influenced differs as well.

9. One of Six
Contexts
A 3rd of Six
Contexts
A 2nd of Six
Contexts3rd of three
mindset
factors
Practical
Offer
or Utility of
a position factor
MODELING THE STAKES: A PERSON’S POSITION FACTOR
At left above: our analysis models any position factor as a combination of three contexts (bias drivers) selected from the
predefined set of six contexts. Contexts are always combined (related) by the same three predefined Mindset factors. While
the mindset factors are constant, they easily have unequal influence in the heat of the moment. Influence can change.
Position Factors (4 types)
• Perception (knowledge/awareness)
• Opportunity (advantage/leverage)
• Status (power/influence)
• Community (value/inclusion)
Mindset Factors (practical recognition)
• Orientation – primarily about perspective.
• Predisposition – primarily about readiness.
• Agency – primarily about ability.
Contexts (bias drivers)
• Memory
• Learning
• Belief
• Social
• Politics
• Money

10. Example Position Factor: PERCEPTION
One of Six
Contexts
One of Six
Contexts
One of Six
Contexts3rd of three
mindset
factors
Model of a “Position” Factor
At left above: our modeling maps six contexts (bias drivers) against the four major factors of a person’s position.
In the example at right, the “Perception” position factor is modeled using three of the six available Contexts.
Any context is associated (related) to another context by one of the three standard factors of Mindset.
Practical
Offer
or Utility of
a position factor
MEMORY
BELIEF LEARNING
agency
KNOWLEDGE
(awareness)

11. MEMORY
BELIEF LEARNING
agency
KNOWLEDGE
(awareness)
PERCEPTION
MEMORY
MONEY LEARNING
agency
ADVANTAGE
(leverage)
OPPORTUNITY
In general, Position is what we identify as being at stake. Here, we propose the most typical contexts in Perception
and Opportunity and compared them. They are very similar to each other. The critical difference revealed is that Belief
highly impacts Perception, whereas emphasizing Money instead of Belief highly impacts the sense of Opportunity.

12. SOCIAL
BELIEF POLITICS
agency
VALUE
(inclusion)
COMMUNITY
MEMORY
BELIEF LEARNING
KNOWLEDGE
(awareness)
PERCEPTION
agency
The relationship of Perception and Community readily refers to Identity and Culture.
Meanwhile, a change of perception can influence community, and vice-versa.
1.

13. MEMORY
BELIEF LEARNING
agency
KNOWLEDGE
(awareness)
PERCEPTION
SOCIAL
MONEY POLITICS
agency
POWER
(influence)
STATUS
The relationship of Status and Perception readily refers to Authority and Expertise.
Meanwhile, a change of status can influence perception, and vice-versa.
2.

14. MEMORY
BELIEF LEARNING
agency
KNOWLEDGE
(awareness)
PERCEPTION
MEMORY
MONEY LEARNING
agency
ADVANTAGE
(leverage)
OPPORTUNITY
The relationship of Opportunity and Perception readily refers to Influence and Vision.
Meanwhile, a change of opportunity can influence perception, and vice-sersa.
3.

15. SOCIAL
MONEY POLITICS
agency
POWER
(influence)
STATUS
SOCIAL
BELIEF POLITICS
agency
VALUE
(inclusion)
COMMUNITY
The relationship of Status and Community readily refers to Roles and Impacts.
Meanwhile, a change of status can influence community, and vice-versa.
4.

16. MEMORY
MONEY LEARNING
agency
ADVANTAGE
(leverage)
OPPORTUNITY
SOCIAL
BELIEF POLITICS
agency
VALUE
(inclusion)
COMMUNITY
The relationship of Opportunity and Community readily refers to Resources and Benefits.
Meanwhile, a change of opportunity can influence community, and vice-versa.
5.

17. MEMORY
MONEY LEARNING
agency
ADVANTAGE
(leverage)
OPPORTUNITY
SOCIAL
MONEY POLITICS
POWER
(influence)
STATUS
agency
The relationship of Opportunity and Status readily refers to Goals and Production.
Meanwhile, a change of opportunity can influence status, and vice-versa.
6.

18. Cognitive Bias Indices, compared
Titlemax:
https://www.titlemax.com/discovery-center/lifestyle/50-cognitive-biases-to-be-aware-of-so-you-can-be-the-very-best-
version-of-you/
A simple web search for “top cognitive biases” will result in a list of entries ranging from top 4, 5, 7, 12, 20, 25, or
more types to consider.
This apparent disparity only means that there are differences in scope and level of generality that are applied when
such lists are being made. With 50 different defined types, the Titlemax table begins to seem highly specific and
exhaustive.
But we are nonetheless interested in the underlying dynamics of what surfaces as a “biased” mindset or behavior.
The Titlemax “tagging” (which we have called “contexts”) clearly says that a given type of bias can be active in
multiple different types of situations. But we have used two “narratives” to contain and convey how and why bias
may surface when there is a challenge to a held or desired “position”, being processed through a mindset.

19. Cognitive Bias Indices, compared
Brainytab - another categorical view:
https://brainytab.com/lp/cognitive-bias-codex-search-volume/
The view from Brainytab uses four categories that organize its catalog of cognitive issues as Bias events: Memory,
Utility, Quality, and Meaning.
Without attempting to cross-reference the Brainytab taxonomy against the modeling we have presented as
Perception, Opportunity, Status and Community, we can say that they have in common an interest in what makes
information noticeable and acceptable in the moment.
Brainytab’s setup offers descriptions of what is going on in a person’s mind, and those certainly at least suggest what
the person feels is at stake in handling the available information one way or another. It also allows for the possibility
that multiple issues may be at hand simultaneously for the person whose mental state is the subject at hand. To us,
this calls out the question of how the person prioritizes the different matters they feel are at stake.

20. Archestra notebooks compile and organize decades of in-the-field empirical findings. The notes offer explanations of why things
are included, excluded, or can happen in certain ways or to certain effects. The descriptions are determined mainly from the
perspective of strategy and architecture. They comment on, and navigate between, the motives and potentials that predetermine
the decisions and shapes of activity as discussed in the notes. As ongoing research, all notebooks are subject to change.
©2020 Malcolm Ryder / Archestra Research
©2020 Malcolm Ryder / Archestra Research
www.archestra.com
mryder@archestra.com