illusion of control

[swatiraohnlu]

he illusion of control is the tendency for people to overestimate their ability to control events, for instance to feel that they control outcomes that they demonstrably have no influence over.[1] The effect was named by psychologist Ellen Langer and has been replicated in many different contexts.[2] It is thought to influence gambling behavior and belief in the paranormal.[3] Along with illusory superiority and optimism bias, the illusion of control is one of the positive illusions.

 

[swatiraohnlu]

Ellen Langer, who first demonstrated the illusion of control, explained her findings in terms of a confusion between skill and chance situations. She proposed that people base their judgments of control on "skill cues". These are features of a situation that are usually associated with games of skill, such as competitiveness, familiarity and individual choice. When more of these skill cues are present, the illusion is stronger.