Biases in human behavior have been found to provide social benefits, especially when they align with the majority. Humans are not unique in exhibiting behavioral biases, as animals also exhibit such tendencies. A recent study published in Scientific Reports has revealed that aligning these biases with others may offer social advantages.
One such bias identified in the study is the visual field bias, where a significant portion of the population demonstrates a preference for recognizing identities and emotions on one side of their visual field compared to the other. This bias is believed to develop in early childhood. Research on animals has shown that biases can be beneficial, enhancing efficiency in survival tasks.
The study suggests that biases in animals free up brain resources, making them more adept at tasks necessary for survival. Interestingly, it was found that the presence of a bias, rather than its specific direction (left or right), significantly impacts performance. The study also explored why many individuals exhibit a right-hand bias for motor tasks and a left visual field bias for face processing.
The alignment with the majority in these biases may provide social advantages, as animals that align with the group during cooperative behavior are less likely to be targeted by predators. While individuals with a standard bias (right-handedness for motor tasks, left visual field bias for face processing) were not necessarily better socially, those with a reversed bias (left-handedness for motor tasks, right visual field bias for face processing) were found to have more social difficulties and higher rates of autism or ADHD diagnoses.
Though the study does not establish a causal relationship between the reversed bias and autism or ADHD, it suggests the potential for further research to investigate bias profiles as early markers for these conditions. Overall, the study highlights the impact of biases on social interactions and the potential benefits of aligning with the majority in certain biases.