Debbie, a recent acquaintance of yours, is an attractive, outgoing, and ambitious woman. When someone asks you whether Debbie is a secretary or an executive, you reply, "I don't know for sure but knowing what she is like, I'd say that she is an executive." Your response reflects the __________ heuristic.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Your response reflects the representativeness heuristic because you are judging Debbie's occupation based on how closely she matches your stereotype or representation of an executive, rather than considering statistical or base-rate information about the relative frequency of these occupations.

Debbie, a Recent Acquaintance of Yours, Is an Attractive, Outgoing