The Interface between Human Information Behavior and Confirmation Bias

Abstract

This article analyzes the relationship between human information behavior and confirmation bias in processes of information seeking, evaluation, and use in contemporary digital contexts. The study aims to: (i) identify scientific articles that simultaneously address human information behavior and confirmation bias; (ii) analyze these articles in terms of methodological design, sample characteristics, thematic axes, results, areas of knowledge, and mitigation strategies; and (iii) discuss perspectives for the systemic mitigation of this bias.  The study adopts a narrative literature review conducted in the databases SciELO, Google Scholar, Scispace, DOAJ, and the CAPES Journal Portal. The initial search identified 883 documents, which were subsequently screened using inclusion and exclusion criteria, with emphasis on peer-reviewed empirical articles in which the descriptors constituted the central analytical axes. This process resulted in a final sample of 22 articles.The analysis reveals a field that balances experimental rigor and field validity, with a concentration of publications in Economics and Psychology and still limited production within Information Science. The findings confirm that confirmation bias operates as a structural mechanism of human information behavior, triggered by active information seeking and amplified by digital platforms, with critical consequences in high-risk sociopolitical and health-related domains. The study concludes that, although there are punctual technical interventions (such as alerts), systemic mitigation requires formative strategies grounded in the development of integrated informational-scientific-cognitive literacy.