Behavioural bias can be defined as the systematic possibility of making unfounded decisions that are motivated by social norms, beliefs, and emotions rather than a comprehensive, logical analysis. Some of these biases include requesting information that will validate an already existing expectation and principles and ignoring all the information likely to contradict those principles and expectations.
Behavioural biases in project management also include the possibility of anticipating past events and making them more predictable than they already are. The more managers understand the existence of these biases, the better their chances of an effective project execution. There are many behavioural biases present in project management, and this piece will be dedicated to explaining the few basic ones and exploring various biases that affect project outcomes.
Note:
There are more types of project management biases, but the ones explained in this piece are considered the most reoccurring.
Top Six Biases in Project Management
1. Overconfidence Bias
This type of bias has to do with the tendency to have too much confidence in personal opinions and not totally acknowledge the dangers they may pose in the larger scheme of things. A typical example of this is a situation where a certain individual is so certain about their predictions that they are very ready to bet everything on them—hence, they plan without a backup. This is often triggered by overconfidence, probably from previous project success.
2. Optimism Bias
This has to do with being overly optimistic about a given event or action. As much as it is ok to be expectant about a particular event, being excessively optimistic comes with certain implications that may negatively affect the outcome of the project. As much as everyone wants to hear positive stories about a certain event, optimism bias indoctrinates everyone into thinking that the outcome will always be positive. This usually happens when some information is withdrawn from others, thereby compelling them into believing what they need to believe.
3. Strategic Misrepresentation
This type of behavioural bias is seen in the intention to misrepresent data systematically for a specific reason. It is known by three names: power, political, or strategic behavioural bias. In summary, this type of bias is visible when an idea is made to appear more than it originally is. It is often interpreted as intentional hype. This situation obviously has a lasting effect on a project’s outcome.
4. Uniqueness Bias
Uniqueness bias sees an individual project as more than what it appears. This is when it is not even close to its original state and can be compared to other projects like it. The thing is, every unique project has its replica, no matter how unique it is. However, there’s no need to reinvent the same thing every time.
5. Hindsight Bias
This type of bias is often seen when the outcome of a particular event looks predictable at the time of occurrence. It is always that kind of scenario that will make a person go, “Yes! I knew it would happen this way.” Instead of focusing on the Hindsight type of bias, people must endeavour to learn from their mistakes without premonishing the outcome of such an event.
6. Availability Bias
Availability bias gives one the impression that events that are easier to recall are more likely to happen. This leaves everyone remembering just the most current or significant events. The implication of this is that people may overestimate the frequency of a particular event should a specific project encounter a major problem. In this case, people must learn to balance both current and past information for the sake of clarity.
Conclusion
Project managers are encouraged to become very familiar with the basic behavioural biases in the field of project management. There are advantages to doing so, one of which is dominating the niche and leveraging the outcome. Some other advantages of understanding these project management behavioural biases include (but are not limited to) making organized decisions and taking advantage of available historical data, which also boils down to making better management decisions. Finally, any manager smart enough to acknowledge the effect of these biases on their leadership style will reduce its impact on the organization, hence guaranteeing more successful projects.
