Our TV choices are not trivial … What neuroscience reveals
Every day, after his morning ritual, Michel settles comfortably in his chair. Around 9 am, this 69 -year -old retiree begins his favorite activity: watching television. When no sporting event is broadcast, he sails between continuous information channels. BFM TV (n ° 15) and CNEWS (n ° 16) are its pieces of choice. At the height of the war in Ukraine, he went to LCI (n ° 26), recognized for his debates on international conflicts. On the other hand, he systematically abandons Franceinfo (n ° 27), which he judges “too far” on his remote control.
Michel’s choices owe nothing to chance. His television preferences depend on his mood, the quality of the programs, but also on the political orientations of the channels. But he ignores that each pressure on his TV command reflects a complex cerebral mechanism. Memory, mnemonic and cognitive bias intertwine, influencing his zapping without his knowledge. TV channels, for which audience rhymes with advertising recipes, know this process well. This is why the new grid unveiled on January 9 by Arch, the audiovisual regulator, has aroused many reactions. Scheduled to enter into force on June 6, it will upset the order of the channels. France 4 will go to Canal 4, LCP and Public Senate will occupy the 8th, Gulli will be repositioned on the 12, and the news channels will be grouped together on the channels 13 to 16. “A robbery” for Nicolas de Tavernost, president of BFM , which deplores this rapprochement. Very good news for others, which come out of the depths of the grid. “Long numbering is a handicap,” said Thierry Thuillier, information boss of the TF1 group, to which LCI belongs.
But why such a reorganization raises as many issues? Neurosciences offer enlightening responses. Our brain, always in search of simplification, more easily memorizes the chains located at the top of the list. The first numbers, like sports podiums or rankings, unconsciously evoke quality and excellence, giving a particular aura to the chains that occupy them. “This is called a cognitive analogy bias,” explains Patrick Georges, neurosurgeon and specialist in human intelligence.
An implicit hierarchy
This phenomenon is not limited to the perception of numbers. Beyond the first ten, cognitive ergonomics – discipline analyzing our interactions with external interfaces – explains why 11, 22 or even 99 prevail on a 17 or 25, the latter involving an additional constraint on the remote control and therefore a more difficult learning. “The brain favors the simplest solutions. Man or animal always try to use the minimum energy to do something. This is a property inherent in biological functioning, ”specifies Olivier Koenig, professor of cognitive neuroscience and specialist in decision -making.
Between memory, cognitive biases and ergonomics, an implicit hierarchy is installed in our relationship with television channels. By reorganizing the canals on June 6, the Arcom shakes up this well -oiled mechanics, but also reveals the invisible cogs.
