Isaac is trying to decide how often shark attacks happen.He quickly remembers the many shows about shark attacks that he saw on television last week, so he decides that they must be common.Isaac's overestimation of the rate of shark attacks is an example of
A)the hindsight bias.
B)taking mental shortcuts.
C)the self-serving bias.
D)seeing patterns that do not exist.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Isaac is using the availability heuristic, which involves making judgments based on the ease with which examples come to mind. In this case, the examples of shark attacks that he saw on television were very memorable and easily accessible in his memory, leading him to overestimate their frequency. This is an example of taking mental shortcuts, which is what the availability heuristic is all about.

Isaac Is Trying to Decide How Often Shark Attacks Happen