Which bias is about wanting to stay consistent with past choices even when they no longer make sense?

Which bias is about wanting to stay consistent with past choices even when they no longer make sense?

• A. Status quo bias
• B. Commitment bias
• C. Irrational continuation
• D. Sunk cost fallacy

Answer: (B)

Consistency with past commitments shapes decisions, leading you to stick with choices even when they no longer fit. This tendency is called commitment bias. It shows up when you’d rather honor something you once decided or promised than admit you were wrong or change course in light of new information. The pull comes from wanting to appear reliable and coherent with your own prior actions, so you keep defending or acting on those earlier choices. It’s not exactly the same as the sunk cost idea, which is about continuing because you’ve already invested resources you don’t want to waste. Commitment bias, by contrast, centers on maintaining consistency with what you’ve previously decided or declared, even if that decision no longer makes sense. It’s also a bit different from simply preferring the current situation (status quo bias); here the emphasis is on staying true to past commitments rather than just resisting change in general.

Consistency with past commitments shapes decisions, leading you to stick with choices even when they no longer fit. This tendency is called commitment bias. It shows up when you’d rather honor something you once decided or promised than admit you were wrong or change course in light of new information. The pull comes from wanting to appear reliable and coherent with your own prior actions, so you keep defending or acting on those earlier choices.

It’s not exactly the same as the sunk cost idea, which is about continuing because you’ve already invested resources you don’t want to waste. Commitment bias, by contrast, centers on maintaining consistency with what you’ve previously decided or declared, even if that decision no longer makes sense. It’s also a bit different from simply preferring the current situation (status quo bias); here the emphasis is on staying true to past commitments rather than just resisting change in general.