By itself, a study such as Wason's might be dismissed on the grounds that it represents a fairly artificial laboratory task in which the subjects have little interest, but similar failures to seek disconfirmation have been observed in a number of different spheres. For example, Mitroff (1974) indicates that NASA scientists have a strong confirmation-seeking bias in their work, and Mynatt, Doherty and Tweeney (1977) report a similar bias amongst subjects attempting to discover the laws of an artificial universe simulated on a computer. Snyder and Swann (1978) conclude that subjects seek evidence of extroverted behaviour rather than its opposite when trying to evaluate a description of someone who has been described as extroverted. Tajfel (1969) makes the case that such a failure to seek disconfirmation, and an inability to recognize disconfirmation for what it is when it is presented to the individual by chance, are important factors in the maintenance of racial prejudice.

XREF: Connects to Wason's card selection task and confirmation bias literature in cognitive psychology. SEED: Potential article on how confirmation bias manifests in institutions — from NASA science to racial prejudice.

Diego Gambetta, Trust - Making and Breaking…, loc. 634