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Reactance Bias
What Is Reactance Bias?
In Critical Thinking, Reactance Bias is deciding to act solely to demonstrate your freedom to do so.
Easy Definition of Reactance Bias
Don't adopt an alternative view (or do something different from what was requested) just to show you're your own boss. If you do, your decision to do that will have been affected by Reactance Bias.
Academic Definition of Reactance Bias
Reactance Bias is doing something different from what someone wants you to do in reaction to a perceived attempt to constrain your freedom of choice. Reactance Bias can occur when you feel pressured to accept a certain view and can lead to a strengthening of resolve for an alternative view, regardless of its relative merits.
"Don't take the wrong side of an argument just because your opponent has taken the right side."
(Spanish prose writer Baltasar Gracian, 1601–1658)
(Spanish prose writer Baltasar Gracian, 1601–1658)
An Example of Reactance Bias
Don't tell me not to jump off a cliff

You would think everyone would support that law, wouldn't you? But no. For lots of people, it was an unacceptable shackle on their freedom of choice, and they overtly broke the law by publicly eating T-bone steaks. At the time, that did not look like a very bright decision. It was Reactance Bias at play.
Other examples are riding motorcycles without helmets, driving your car without a seat belt and even smoking. People have pushed back against laws banning or adverts denouncing these activities, despite the benefits, because they object to having their freedom of choice curbed.
A Practical Application for Reactance Bias
Keep smoking to reduce my taxes

Summary of Reactance Bias
If you think someone has chosen a specific action just to demonstrate their freedom of choice, tell them they're displaying Reactance Bias.- Do you disagree with something on this page?
- Did you spot a typo?
- Do you know a bias or fallacy that we've missed?