New CED – Social Psychology Practice Test 2025: Your Complete Guide to Mastering the Exam!

The false consensus effect is a cognitive bias that leads individuals to overestimate the extent to which their beliefs, values, and preferences are shared by others. This means that when people hold a particular opinion or preference, they often assume that it is more widely held than it actually is, leading to the perception that their view is the "norm."

For instance, if someone enjoys a certain type of music or has a particular political opinion, they may believe that most people around them share that same taste or viewpoint. This bias can affect how they interpret the behavior and opinions of others, potentially leading to misunderstandings or dismissals of views that do not align with their own. Therefore, the false consensus effect can shape social interactions and judgments, as individuals might fail to recognize the diversity of opinions and preferences in a given group or society.

In contrast, other biases like fundamental attribution error focus on misinterpretations of others' behaviors in situational contexts, groupthink is related to decision-making in cohesive groups leading to a lack of critical thinking, and in-group bias refers to favoring one's own group over others. While these are important concepts, they do not specifically address the tendency to assume one’s preferences are typical or universally shared in the way that the false consensus