Immigration is such an emotive topic that rationality seldom seems to make its opinions heard.  A new study from the University of Geneva explores whether one of the most commonly seen cognitive biases might be hampering a rational debate from occurring.

The research explored how anchoring changed how people perceived migration and migration levels, and especially whether the numbers of immigrants reported in the Swiss media influenced how many refugees the Swiss people would b prepared to receive.

“A widely-known reasoning bias has been analysed since 1974, namely anchoring bias,” the authors explain. “This means that when you ask someone to evaluate a situation, you can influence his response by giving him a low number (or, by contrast, a high number) that will at first serve to ‘anchor’ his thinking.”

Overcoming bias

Research from the University of Arkansas highlights how role playing games can help to shift these perceptions.  The researchers created a role-playing game to try and shed light on the citizenship process was like for all that played the game.

“Games-based learning initiatives offer a way of creating shared experiences between groups that have come to interact less, such as racial or ethnic majorities and minorities,” the researchers say. “This was a valuable learning experience for the students, and for us as reseachers as well.”

The game, which was called Citizenship Quest, tasked players with creating a fictional persona from a random foreign country, including China and Mexico.  They then had to apply for a green card via their persona, with the ultimate goal of obtaining citizenship.

The developers believe the game clearly helped players to build empathy and awareness of the ordeals migrants go through, and even helped to develop a sense of trust in them, despite having no face-to-face contact.  It’s a finding the researchers believe could help raise acceptance and integration of immigrants into their host communities.