Belief‐Consistent Information Processing or Coherence‐Based Reasoning: Integrating Two Parsimonious Frameworks for Biases

European Journal of Social Psychology, vol. 55, pp. 1131–1135

Abstract

ABSTRACT Recently, two independently published papers put forward separate frameworks to explain several different biases. Although the two frameworks do not contradict each other, their mere co‐existence is an unsatisfactory state as psychological theory is not advanced. In the present outlook paper, we make a first attempt in bringing the two frameworks together – and with it, the largely unconnected research strands they come from. Specifically, we focus on the (bi‐)directionality of a coherence generating process underlying the core of the one framework – coherence‐based reasoning (CBR) – and argue that one direction is largely consistent with the core process of the other framework: belief‐consistent information processing (BCIP). We elaborate on the circumstances under which coherence will be more likely obtained via BCIP. In doing so, we derive some predictions that future research could test. Furthermore, we point to relevant open questions and outline several recommendations for future research.

Authors 3

1. Aileen Oeberst corresponding

   University of Potsdam

   Affiliation as printed

   University of Potsdam Potsdam Germany

2. Dorothee Mischkowski Aachen

   Leiden University · Max Planck Institute for Behavioral Economics

   Affiliation as printed

   Leiden University Leiden The Netherlands

   Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods Bonn Germany

3. Roland Imhoff

   Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz

   Affiliation as printed

   Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz Mainz Germany