Critical cognitive biases in sustainability policy

The rapid advances of science and technology have radically altered the tribal circumstances in which humanity lived for most of its history. Compared to our ancestors, we have an abundance of tools that provide us with all conceivable needs and comfort. However, this welfare comes at a cost; it is accompanied by serious threats to the planet and many of its inhabitants. An enormous amount of scientific evidence points at global warming, mass destruction of bio-diversity, scarce resources, health risks, and pollution all over the world. These facts are generally acknowledged nowadays, not only by scientists, but also by the majority of politicians and citizens. Nevertheless, this understanding has caused insufficient changes in our behaviour, such as making financial, social or material sacrifices that are needed in order to preserve our natural resources and to prevent upcoming (natural) disasters. In the present study, we try to explain how evolved characteristics of human judgement and decision making, known as “cognitive biases”, contribute to this short-term oriented and destructive behaviour. Cognitive biases are systematic tendencies, inclinations, or distortions in (human) judgement and decision making that may make the outcomes of our deliberations inaccurate, suboptimal, or simply wrong. A large body of literature shows how cognitive biases may lead to poor, or risky, decisions in a broad range of issues, like climate change or pandemic prevention.