Heuristics and cognitive biases in business management: A meta-analysis

Abstract

Nowadays, studies about the role of heuristics and cognitive biases in relation to business management are scarce, fragmented and partial. Consequently, the objective of this article is to perform a meta-analysis about the main findings that establish the state of the matter and the frontier of knowledge in such a relationship, emphasizing the pernicious effects of some heuristics on the process of adopting strategic decisions, and methods for counteracting these effects. The methodology, consistent with the objective, Is content analysis. Principle results show clearly that the best antidote for the pernicious effects of heuristics and cognitive biases is to know them, be aware of how they work and of their consequences. Furthermore, although heuristics and cognitive biases are inherently human in nature and therefore, difficult to elude, due to their process character, they, as well as their effects (biases), can be influenced by management. To do this, however, they must be understood and interiorized-not an easy task, considering that they are conceptually abstract, Intangible, hard to grasp and ineffable. Through a simple empirical proof, the study demonstrates that heuristics and cognitive biases are culturally transversal and knowledge resistant, and concludes by offering some interesting didactic clues for explaining and describing them.