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You might have heard, while arguing with someone, ‘You are biased!’ Or ‘it is your bias that speaks’. As much as these can be mere allegations, they can actually be true most of the time.
Biases can creep into one’s mind and arguments without them realising. They are natural; humans tend to stay in the herd for survival. Not going against the norms even if that compromises justice. This is where it becomes the problem.
Biases can be defined as the failure to think clearly. Or more academically, cognitive errors. They are a systematic deviation from logic - from optimal, rational, reasonable thought and behaviour. The author of the famous book ‘The Art of Thinking Clearly’ defines and describes this error of our thinking while introducing the very topic. He goes on to describe biases as our routine mistakes and repeating patterns through generations and through centuries.
This realisation leaves one in awe for sure. And the funny part is that we do it all the time and still think of ourselves as logically correct. A biased mind compromises the arguments that we make. The logical incorrectness of thinking leads to logically incorrect arguments.
The above-mentioned book is an amazing read to know several different types of biases that one can carry.One example from the life of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the following famous narration of Jabir رضي الله عنه:
“A woman from Banu Makhzum stole something, and she was brought to the Prophet ﷺ. She sought the protection of Umm Salamah, but the Prophet ﷺ said:
‘If Fatimah bint Muhammad were to steal, I would cut off her hand.’
And he ordered that her hand be cut off.”
— Sunan an-Nasa’i 4895
The bias that often leads humans to compromise justice, is the bias of favoritism or emotional partiality. This bias was decisively rejected in the above example. The Prophet Muhammad ( peace be upon him) demonstrated that justice in Islam is not influenced or compromised because of status, kinship or sentiment. His statement, “If Fatimah bint Muhammad were to steal, I would cut off her hand,” is a timeless declaration that even the dearest relationships must not interfere with the rule of law.
Therefore, to have logical correctness in thinking and arguments we need to figure out our own biases, fix them and start thinking clearly.
