Social Science

Cognitive Biases and Decision Making

1,902 Questions

Explore a curated set of questions on cognitive biases, decision making, and behavioral economics. These concepts evaluate how social norms, emotions, and heuristics influence human judgment and group behavior. Master these topics to build a strong foundation for psychology and social science exams.

Behavioral economicsSocial group influencesEmotional decision makingConfirmation bias

Cognitive Biases and Decision Making Questions

Multiple choice

What is the term for the psychological phenomenon where people tend to conform to the environmental norms of their social group?

  1. Social norms

  2. Social influence

  3. Environmental conformity

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Environmental conformity refers to the psychological phenomenon where people tend to conform to the environmental norms of their social group, such as recycling or conserving energy.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the psychological phenomenon where people tend to overestimate the risks associated with environmental hazards?

  1. Optimism bias

  2. Risk perception bias

  3. Environmental risk perception bias

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Environmental risk perception bias refers to the tendency for people to overestimate the risks associated with environmental hazards, such as air pollution or climate change.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the psychological phenomenon where people tend to underestimate the benefits of environmental actions?

  1. Optimism bias

  2. Risk perception bias

  3. Environmental benefit perception bias

  4. None of the above
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Environmental benefit perception bias refers to the tendency for people to underestimate the benefits of environmental actions, such as recycling or using renewable energy.

Multiple choice

What is the name of the phenomenon in which people tend to overestimate their own abilities and accomplishments?

  1. The Dunning-Kruger effect

  2. The self-serving bias

  3. The confirmation bias

  4. The anchoring bias
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The Dunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which people with low ability at a task overestimate their ability. It is related to the cognitive bias of illusory superiority and comes from the inability of people to recognize their own incompetence.

Multiple choice

What is the name of the phenomenon in which people tend to remember information that is consistent with their existing beliefs and forget information that is inconsistent with their beliefs?

  1. The confirmation bias

  2. The self-serving bias

  3. The anchoring bias

  4. The availability heuristic
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The confirmation bias is a cognitive bias that leads people to seek out information that confirms their existing beliefs and to ignore information that contradicts their beliefs.

Multiple choice

What is the name of the phenomenon in which people tend to remember information that is presented at the beginning and end of a list and forget information that is presented in the middle?

  1. The primacy effect

  2. The recency effect

  3. The serial position effect

  4. The availability heuristic
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The serial position effect is the tendency to remember information that is presented at the beginning and end of a list and forget information that is presented in the middle. This effect is thought to be due to the fact that information that is presented at the beginning and end of a list is more likely to be rehearsed and consolidated in memory.

Multiple choice

What is the name of the phenomenon in which people tend to remember information that is personally relevant to them?

  1. The self-reference effect

  2. The primacy effect

  3. The recency effect

  4. The availability heuristic
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The self-reference effect is the tendency to remember information that is personally relevant to us. This effect is thought to be due to the fact that information that is personally relevant to us is more likely to be processed and consolidated in memory.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to perceive members of other social classes as being more different from oneself than they actually are?

  1. Social categorization

  2. Social comparison

  3. Social stereotyping

  4. Social discrimination
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Social stereotyping refers to the tendency to perceive members of other social classes as being more different from oneself than they actually are, based on preconceived notions and generalizations.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is NOT a type of cognitive bias?

  1. Confirmation bias

  2. Hindsight bias

  3. Framing bias

  4. Availability bias
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Hindsight bias is not a type of cognitive bias, but rather a tendency to believe that an event was more predictable than it actually was.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is NOT a type of decision-making bias?

  1. Confirmation bias

  2. Framing bias

  3. Anchoring bias

  4. Availability bias
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Confirmation bias is not a type of decision-making bias, but rather a cognitive bias that leads people to seek out information that confirms their existing beliefs.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to rely on emotional cues rather than objective information when making decisions?

  1. Cognitive Dissonance

  2. Confirmation Bias

  3. Affect Heuristic

  4. Framing Effect
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

The Affect Heuristic refers to the inclination to use emotions as a shortcut in decision-making, often leading to reliance on feelings rather than logical reasoning.

Multiple choice

Which theory suggests that emotions can influence decision-making by altering the perceived value of outcomes?

  1. Prospect Theory

  2. Affect Heuristic

  3. Somatic Marker Hypothesis

  4. Framing Effect
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Prospect Theory proposes that individuals evaluate outcomes relative to a reference point, and emotions can influence the perceived value of these outcomes, thereby shaping decision-making.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to make riskier decisions when faced with potential gains compared to potential losses?

  1. Risk Aversion

  2. Risk Seeking

  3. Framing Effect

  4. Loss Aversion
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Risk Seeking refers to the inclination to make riskier choices when presented with the possibility of gains, even if the potential losses are significant.

Multiple choice

Which theory suggests that emotions can influence decision-making by altering the perceived likelihood of outcomes?

  1. Prospect Theory

  2. Affect Heuristic

  3. Somatic Marker Hypothesis

  4. Framing Effect
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The Framing Effect proposes that the way information is presented (e.g., as gains or losses) can influence the perceived likelihood of outcomes and, consequently, decision-making.

Multiple choice

What is the term for the tendency to make more conservative decisions when faced with potential losses compared to potential gains?

  1. Risk Aversion

  2. Risk Seeking

  3. Framing Effect

  4. Loss Aversion
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Risk Aversion refers to the inclination to make more cautious choices when faced with the possibility of losses, even if the potential gains are substantial.