The process of judging something by quickly comparing it with a mental representation of a category is the:

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The process described in the question is the representativeness heuristic. This is a mental shortcut where we judge something based on how well it appears to represent, or match, a typical example or prototype from a particular category. The other options are not relevant to this process - theory of mind refers to the ability to understand and infer the mental states of others, transference refers to projecting feelings or ideas onto someone else based on past experiences, and the availability heuristic refers to making decisions based on the ease with which examples come to mind.

The Process of Judging Something by Quickly Comparing It with a Mental