How cognitive biases impact innovation and market research with Adam Hansen

On our podcast, we recently hosted Adam Hansen, VP of Behavioral Innovation at Ideas To Go and co-author of Outsmart Your Instincts: How the Behavioral Innovation Approach Drives Your Company Forward. Adam shared insights into how cognitive biases—natural mental shortcuts humans rely on—can inadvertently hinder innovation and market research efforts.

“Negativity bias, confirmation bias, and status quo bias are just a few of the cognitive biases that can make innovation unnecessarily difficult,” Hansen explained. These biases, ingrained through evolution, shape our decision-making processes but often in ways that stifle creativity and progress.

Hansen illustrated how negativity bias—the tendency to focus on potential downsides—leads to premature dismissal of new ideas. “Negativity feels responsible, adult, and businesslike,” he said, but it can kill promising concepts before they get a chance to develop. Similarly, confirmation bias reinforces existing beliefs, limiting learning and experimentation, while status quo bias favors maintaining current practices even when change is necessary.

Lessons from Kodak and the perils of bias

To underscore the impact of bias, Hansen revisited the downfall of Kodak, a company that invented digital photography but succumbed to status quo bias. “They had a $20 billion war chest and every opportunity to experiment with new business models, yet they clung to their traditional film business,” Hansen noted. The reluctance to explore and embrace change ultimately led to their decline while companies like Instagram thrived.

Overcoming bias for better innovation

Hansen advocates for a conscious effort to counteract biases by fostering curiosity, experimentation, and collaboration. “We need to scratch the itch for cognition,” he said, emphasizing the importance of exploring the unknown and suspending judgment during the early stages of ideation.

He also highlighted the concept of diverging and converging in the innovation process: “First, you expand your thinking, generating as many ideas as possible. Then, you apply strategic criteria to narrow them down and develop actionable concepts.” This method ensures that biases don’t prematurely close off valuable possibilities.

Practical tools for market researchers

Market researchers and insight professionals can apply Hansen’s framework to better forecast consumer behavior and guide innovation. Key strategies include:

• Combat negativity bias: Start every ideation session with an open mindset, deliberately setting aside negative judgments until ideas have been fully explored.
• Expand availability bias: Introduce diverse and unrelated stimuli to uncover fresh perspectives and generate unique ideas.
• Challenge confirmation bias: Encourage teams to test their assumptions and embrace “falsification,” or seeking evidence that disproves existing beliefs.

Hansen also stressed the importance of insights: “A rich, actionable insight is one that feels obvious only in hindsight. It should reveal a truth about consumers that can guide innovation and set your brand apart.”

Rethinking assumptions to drive progress

Hansen’s closing advice for market researchers and innovators was clear: “Be curious, nimble, and willing to challenge entrenched assumptions. True innovation comes from rethinking what we think.” By embracing the discomfort of ambiguity and allowing space for creativity, teams can uncover opportunities that others overlook.

This episode of Now That’s Significant underscores the importance of understanding and addressing cognitive biases in market research and innovation. As Hansen put it, “Innovation requires us to link arms, stay curious, and support one another in the pursuit of new possibilities.”

For more actionable insights on behavioral science and innovation, listen to the full episode and explore Adam Hansen’s work in behavioral innovation.