Article · 8 min read

You Are Not the User: The False-Consensus Effect

Raluca Budiu · Nielsen Norman Group Free Beginner

This article names the exact cognitive bias behind the red flag you're asking about: assuming other people think, want, and behave like you do. It's short, evidence backed, and gives you a clear mental checklist for catching yourself projecting your own preferences onto a whole market.

• The false-consensus effect makes people overestimate how many others share their views and habits.
• Designers and founders fall for this more than they think, because their own reaction feels like data.
• Deliberately seeking out people unlike you is the direct antidote.