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MENTAL MODEL · M2329

False Consensus Bias

False Consensus Bias
BehaviorHigh supportSocial Psychology
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Version 1.0.0 · Updated 2026-07-30

CORE DEFINITION

Also known as false consensus effect. People tend to overestimate the degree to which others share their thoughts and behaviors, assuming that everyone thinks and acts as they do.

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In psychology, the false consensus effect, also known as consensus bias, is a pervasive cognitive bias that causes people to overestimate the extent to which other people share their beliefs and views; it is the tendency to "see their own behavioral choices and judgments as relatively common and appropriate to existing circumstances".

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This is the false consensus effect: people tend to overestimate the consistency of others' attitudes, judgments, and behaviors with their own, projecting their own choices as the majority.

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Source support: Explicit

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    en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_consensus_effectZH · Explicit
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