By encouraging people to imagine their homes being destroyed by winds from a hurricane,insurance salespeople are especially successful at selling large homeowners' policies. They are most clearly exploiting the influence of

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The salespeople are exploiting the availability heuristic, which is a mental shortcut that involves basing judgments on the most readily available information in one's memory. By prompting people to imagine their homes being destroyed by hurricane winds, the salespeople are making the potential risks and damages more salient in the person's mind, which can lead them to overestimate the likelihood of such an event occurring. This, in turn, can make them more willing to purchase a larger insurance policy as a means of protecting themselves from that perceived risk.

By Encouraging People to Imagine Their Homes Being Destroyed by Winds