"Heuristics are simple strategies that humans, animals, organizations, and even machines use to quickly form judgments, make decisions, and find solutions to complex problems."
The mental shortcuts people use to make decisions that often lead to errors and biases.
Cognitive biases: These are the errors in judgment that people make due to mental shortcuts or heuristics, which can lead to inaccurate decisions or beliefs.
Anchoring bias: This refers to relying too heavily on the first piece of information provided when making subsequent judgments or decisions.
Confirmation bias: The tendency to seek out information that confirms our pre-existing beliefs, while ignoring or undervaluing information that contradicts those beliefs.
Availability bias: Refers to the tendency to rely on easily accessible or memorable information when making decisions, rather than seeking out objective data.
Groupthink: This occurs when a group of people conform to group norms or beliefs, rather than making independent decisions based on objective analysis.
In-group bias: The tendency to favor people or groups that we belong to or identify with, while showing bias or prejudice against those outside of our group.
Illusory correlation: This occurs when a perceived connection between two events or factors is thought to be stronger than it actually is.
Overconfidence bias: Refers to the tendency to overestimate one's abilities or the accuracy of one's beliefs, leading to poor decision-making.
Prospect theory: A theory that describes how people make decisions under conditions of uncertainty, and how they evaluate potential gains and losses associated with those decisions.
Sunk cost fallacy: This refers to the tendency to continue investing time, money, or resources into a project, despite diminishing returns or evidence that the endeavor is unlikely to be successful.
Framing effects: The way in which information is presented can influence decision-making, even when the underlying data is the same.
Loss aversion: People often experience stronger negative emotions from potential losses than positive emotions from potential gains, which affects how they make decisions.
Nudge theory: The idea that subtle changes in how information is presented or options are framed can lead to better decision-making outcomes.
Behavioral economics: A subfield of economics that studies the effects of psychological, social, and emotional factors on decision-making, in contrast to traditional models that assume rationality.
Heuristics: Mental shortcuts that people use to make quick decisions or judgments, which can be helpful but also lead to cognitive biases.
Confirmation Bias: The tendency to search, interpret, or remember information in a way that confirms one's preconceptions or hypotheses.
Anchoring Bias: The tendency to rely too heavily on the first piece of information encountered when making subsequent judgments.
Hindsight Bias: The inclination to see an outcome as predictable once it has occurred, even if it was not foreseeable before.
Availability Bias: The tendency to overestimate the importance or likelihood of information that is readily available in memory.
Sunk Cost Fallacy: The tendency to continue investing in a previously chosen course of action, even in the face of negative outcomes, because of the resources already invested.
Overconfidence Bias: The tendency to overestimate one's own abilities, knowledge, or the likelihood of success in a particular situation.
Representativeness Heuristic: The tendency to rely on mental shortcuts or stereotypes to make judgments or decisions.
Availability Heuristic: The tendency to make quick judgments based on how easily examples come to mind and how readily available they are in memory.
Anchoring and Adjustment Heuristic: The tendency to adjust an initial estimate to arrive at a final answer, which can lead to under- or over-estimation.
The Framing Effect: The way in which information is presented or framed can significantly influence people's decisions or judgments.
The Endowment Effect: People value an item more simply because they own it.
The Status Quo Bias: The tendency to favor maintaining the current situation or choice, even if better alternatives exist.
"Heuristics are used to find answers and solutions that are most likely to work or be correct."
"While heuristic processes are used to find answers and solutions that are most likely to work or be correct, they are not always right or the most accurate."
"Judgments and decisions based on heuristics are used in situations of uncertainty, where information is incomplete."
"Yes, heuristic-based decisions can differ from answers given by logic and probability."
"The economist and cognitive psychologist Herbert A. Simon introduced the concept of heuristics in the 1950s."
"Herbert A. Simon suggested there were limitations to rational decision making."
"Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman added to the field with their research on cognitive bias."
"Their work introduced specific heuristic models to the field."
"Yes, the field of heuristic models has expanded since then."
"Some argue that pure laziness is behind the heuristics process."
"Some argue that decisions based on heuristics can be more accurate than decisions based on every known factor and consequence."
"The less-is-more effect refers to the idea that heuristic-based decisions, focusing on the most relevant aspects, can be more accurate or effective."
"Heuristics are the process by which humans use mental shortcuts to arrive at decisions."
"Yes, animals also use heuristics to form judgments and make decisions."
"Organizations and even machines use heuristics to make decisions."
"Heuristics are used to quickly form judgments, make decisions, and find solutions to complex problems."
"Heuristics become useful in situations of uncertainty where information is incomplete."
"Heuristics involve focusing on the most relevant aspects of a problem or situation to formulate a solution."
"Judgments and decisions based on heuristics are simply good enough to satisfy a pressing need in situations of uncertainty, where information is incomplete."