Ignoring facts that contradict a person's pre-existing beliefs demonstrates what type of bias?

• A. Confirmation bias
• B. Hindsight bias
• C. Availability bias
• D. Anchoring bias

Answer: (A)

Focusing on information that confirms what you already think and ignoring facts that contradict those beliefs is confirmation bias. In valuation, this shows up when an appraiser has a fixed view about market conditions or a property's value and gives more weight to data that supports that view while discounting or overlooking data that challenges it. For example, if you believe values are rising, you might emphasize sales and trends that justify higher values and overlook recent listings, vacancy increases, or declining rents that would pull values down. This tendency keeps your conclusion aligned with your preconceptions rather than reflecting all available evidence. Other biases involve different missteps: hindsight bias is thinking you would have predicted an outcome after it’s happened; availability bias relies on information that’s most memorable or recent; anchoring bias sticks too firmly to an initial number or reference point.