Individuals were asked to estimate the number of African countries that belonged to the United Nations, using either 10 or 65 as a starting base.The final estimates depended on the starting point that was provided.A starting point of 10 produced an average estimate of 25 countries, and a starting point of 65 produced an average estimate of 45 countries.The results of this study support the view that people often:
A)use anchoring and adjustment to make judgments
B)use the availability heuristic when they are making judgments
C)use the representativeness heuristic when they are making judgments
D)work backward incorrectly when attempting to solve the problem

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The study's results suggest that individuals use anchoring and adjustment as they tend to anchor their estimates to the given starting point (10 or 65) and then adjust their estimate based on that starting point, resulting in different final estimates.

Individuals Were Asked to Estimate the Number of African Countries