Skip to Main Content

Ovid Medline Search Filters

How was the Cognitive Biases filter developed?

Cognitive biases

We tend to think of "implicit biases" as the catch-all phrase, but it is only one aspect of "cognitive biases". Cognitive biases is a very broad concept and includes implicit biases, stereotypes, "isms", and much more.

The comprehensive search in the following box was developed using The Cognitive Bias Codex (jpg) to capture various types of biases. The terms were added in alphabetical order to the search string using the appropriate syntax for each database to which it has been adapted. 

The following article is a scoping review that looks at methods for reducing cognitive biases in a specific healthcare profession. This scoping review did NOT use the search filter but it also helped inform the search filter:

  • Shlonsky A, Featherston R, Galvin KL, Vogel AP, Granger CL, Lewis C, Luong ML, Downie LE. Interventions to Mitigate Cognitive Biases in the Decision Making of Eye Care Professionals: A Systematic Review. Optom Vis Sci. 2019 Nov;96(11):818-824. doi: 10.1097/OPX.0000000000001445. PMID: 31664015 (Requires Pitt login)

Cognitive/implicit biases search string

Ovid Medline search filter for all cognitive biases (Updated 13 May 2024)

("Ageism"/ or "Bias, Implicit"/ or "Homophobia"/ or "Prejudice"/ or "Racism"/ or Stereotyping/ or "Systemic Racism"/ or "Sexism"/ or "Weight Prejudice"/ or "Xenophobia"/ or ((age adj1 (bias or biases)) or Ageism or (Anchoring adj3 (bias or biases)) or (ascertainment adj1 (bias or biases)) or (attentional adj1 (bias or biases)) or ((attribution or attributional) adj1 (error or errors)) or (Availability adj1 (bias or biases)) or ((base adj1 rate) and (rate adj1 neglect)) or (belief adj1 (bias or biases or perseverance)) or (blind adj1 spot) or ((bounded adj rationality) and rationality) or (cognitive adj1 (bias or biases)) or (coherence adj1 (bias or biases)) or (confirmation adj1 (bias or biases)) or (conjunction adj1 fallacy) or (conservatism adj1 (bias or biases)) or (consistency adj1 (bias or biases or effect or effects)) or (diagnostic adj1 (momentum or overshadowing)) or (dread adj1 risk) or (ego adj1 (bias or biases)) or (emotional adj1 contagion) or ((examiner* or experimenter*) adj1 (bias or biases)) or (expectancy adj1 (bias or biases or effect or effects)) or ((faulty adj1 causal) and (causal adj1 model)) or (framing* adj1 effect) or (framing* adj1 effects) or (gambler* adj1 fallacy) or (gender adj2 (bias or biases)) or (halo adj1 effect) or (halo adj1 effects) or (hidden adj1 (bias or biases)) or homophobia or homophobic or (implicit adj1 (bias or biases or prejudice or prejudices or stereotype or stereotypes)) or (Inappropriate adj1 selectivity) or (inferential adj1 (bias or biases or error or errors)) or (label?ing adj1 (bias or biases)) or (loss adj1 aversion) or (multiple adj1 alternatives) or (narrative adj1 (fallacies or fallacy)) or (omission adj1 (bias or biases)) or ((optimism or optimistic) adj1 (bias or biases)) or (order adj1 (bias or biases or effect or effects)) or (ostrich adj1 effect) or (outcome adj1 (bias or biases)) or overconfidence or ((post adj1 hoc) and (hoc adj1 fallacy)) or ((premature adj1 closure) and (bias or biases)) or (primacy adj1 (effect or effects)) or (race adj1 (bias or biased or biases)) or (racial adj1 (bias or biases)) or Racism or (recency adj1 (bias or biases or effect or effects)) or (representative adj1 (heuristic or heuristics)) or (representativeness adj1 (bias or biases)) or ((retrospection or retrospective) adj1 (bias or biases)) or (search adj1 satisfying) or (sex adj2 (bias or biases)) or Sexism or (socioeconomic adj1 (bias or biases)) or stereotyp* or (subconscious* adj1 (bias or biased or biases)) or (sunk adj1 (cost or costs)) or (technological adj1 imperative) or (thinking adj1 (bias or biases)) or (unconscious adj1 (bias or biases)) or (unpacking adj1 principle) or (visceral adj1 (bias or biases)) or (vocation adj1 (bias or biases)) or (weight adj1 (bias or biased or biases)) or (Weight adj1 Prejudice*) or ((status adj1 quo) and (quo adj1 (bias or biases))) or ((worst adj1 case) and (case adj1 scenario)) or Xenophobia).ti,ab,kf,kw.)

Example searches

Example searches

Racial bias incorporating cognitive biases with a focus on Blacks/African Americans

The search string below has had removed from it non-relevant terms from the broader "cognitive biases" filter above by testing each pair of terms in PubMed in combination with terms for Blacks/African Americans. The search was then translated into Ovid Medline syntax. Terms for ageism, sexism, weight prejudice, and homosexuality have all been removed from the search.

("Black or African American"/ or Minority Groups/ or "Race Factors"/ or Racial Groups/ or (((African or Black) adj (American* or ancestry)) or Blacks or minorities or minority or race or racial).ti,ab,kf.) and ("Bias, Implicit"/ or "Prejudice"/ or "Racism"/ or Stereotyping/ or "Systemic Racism"/ or ((Anchoring adj3 (bias or biases)) or (ascertainment adj1 (bias or biases)) or (attentional adj1 (bias or biases)) or (attribution* adj1 (error or errors)) or (Availability adj1 (bias or biases)) or ((base adj1 rate) and (rate adj1 neglect)) or (belief adj1 (bias or biases or perseverance)) or (blind adj1 spot) or (cognitive adj1 (bias or biases)) or (coherence adj1 (bias or biases)) or (confirmation adj1 (bias or biases)) or (conjunction adj1 (fallacies or fallacy)) or (conservatism adj1 (bias or biases)) or (consistency adj1 (bias or biases or effect or effects)) or (diagnostic adj1 (momentum or overshadowing)) or (dread adj1 risk) or (ego adj1 (bias or biases)) or (emotional adj1 contagion) or (examiner* adj1 (bias or biases)) or (expectancy adj1 (bias or biases or effect or effects)) or (experimenter* adj1 (bias or biases)) or ((faulty adj1 causal) and (causal adj1 (model or models))) or (framing* adj1 effect) or (framing* adj1 effects) or (gambler* adj1 (fallacies or fallacy)) or (gender adj2 (bias or biases)) or (halo adj1 (effect or effects)) or (hidden adj1 (bias or biases)) or (implicit adj1 (bias or biases or prejudice or prejudices or stereotype or stereotypes)) or (Inappropriate adj1 selectivity) or (inferential adj1 (bias or biases or error or errors)) or (label?ing adj1 (bias or biases)) or (loss adj1 aversion) or (multiple adj1 alternatives) or (narrative adj1 (fallacies or fallacy)) or (omission adj1 (bias or biases)) or ((optimism or optimistic) adj1 (bias or biases)) or (order adj1 (bias or biases or effect or effects)) or (ostrich adj1 effect) or (outcome adj1 (bias or biases)) or overconfidence or ((post adj1 hoc) and (hoc adj1 fallacy)) or (premature adj1 closure) or (primacy adj1 (effect or effects)) or (race adj1 (bias or biased or biases)) or (racial adj1 (bias or biases)) or Racism or (recency adj1 (bias or biases or effect or effects)) or (representative adj1 (heuristic or heuristics)) or (representativeness adj1 (bias or biases)) or ((retrospection or retrospective) adj1 (bias or biases)) or (search adj1 satisfying) or stereotyp* or (subconscious* adj1 (bias or biased or biases)) or (sunk adj1 (cost or costs)) or (technological adj1 imperative) or (thinking adj1 (bias or biases)) or (unconscious adj1 (bias or biases)) or (unpacking adj1 principle) or (visceral adj1 (bias or biases)) or ((status adj1 quo) and (quo adj1 (bias or biases))) or ((worst adj1 case) and (case adj1 scenario))).ti,ab,kf.) not ((exp africa/ or exp asia/ or exp australia/ or exp canada/ or exp central america/ or exp europe/ or exp south america/) not (north america/ or exp united states/))


Search for interventions/trials

This is NOT a comprehensive search but it will enable you to view a sample of interventions & trials with different populations including patients, healthcare providers, and students.

((Cognitive or implicit) adj2 (Bias* or prejudice* or stereotype*)).ti,ab,kf. and (intervention or trial).ti.

  • NOTE: The above search will require you to log into My Pitt.

Search for systematic/scoping reviews

This is NOT a comprehensive search but it will enable you to view a sample of reviews with different populations including patients, healthcare providers, and students.

((Cognitive or implicit) adj2 (Bias* or prejudice* or stereotype*)).ti,ab,kf. and (systematic or scoping).ti.

  • NOTE: The above search will require you to log into My Pitt.