Automation bias

Biological Parallel

Algorithmic following appears across social species because individual verification is costly while social information is cheap. Army ants follow pheromone trails so faithfully that circular trails create 'death spirals'—ants marching in loops until exhaustion. Honeybees follow waggle dance directions without independent verification, occasionally flying to depleted or dangerous locations. Schooling fish like herring follow neighbors' directional changes within 10-30 milliseconds—faster than individual assessment could occur. Lemming migrations show similar algorithmic following, contrary to the myth of mass suicide—individuals follow movement signals regardless of destination. The pattern: delegating cognition to external systems (chemical trails, social cues, automated signals) creates efficiency but removes verification. Evolution favors trusting the algorithm until catastrophic failure reveals its limits.