Addiction (Cognitive Biases) Flashcards
What are heuristics?
Heuristics are simple, efficient rules which people often use to form judgements and make decisions.
What do heuristics focus on?
Heuristics focus on one aspect of a complex problem and ignore others.
How do heuristics work?
They work well under most circumstances but can lead to systematic deviations from logic, probability, or rational choice theory.
What are errors in heuristics called?
Errors are called cognitive biases.
How do heuristics affect decision-making?
They govern automatic, intuitive judgements and can be used as deliberate mental strategies when working from limited information.
Who identified different types of heuristics?
Kahneman and Tversky (1973).
What is the availability heuristic?
A mental shortcut based on how easy it is to bring something to mind.
What is the representativeness heuristic?
A mental shortcut that helps us make decisions by comparing them to a mental representation.
What is the base rate heuristic?
A mental shortcut that helps us make decisions based on probability.
What is a limitation of heuristics?
While vital for human functioning, heuristics can lead to errors.
How can heuristics explain addiction?
They may explain why some people engage in addictive behavior even when logically they should not.
What is the gambler’s fallacy?
The gambler may feel that a bet is a ‘sure thing’ because they believe an outcome is due, based on representativeness.
How do gamblers use the representativeness heuristic?
They may feel that after a run of losing bets, they are ‘due’ a win and continue gambling.
What are the two types of gambler’s fallacy?
Type One fallacy: Belief that an outcome is due to bring balance. Type Two fallacy: Belief that a random system is biased.
How do gamblers misuse the representativeness heuristic?
They underestimate the number of observations needed to reliably detect biased numbers and believe they see patterns where there are none.
How does the availability heuristic affect decision-making?
Events that are more easily recalled from memory may bias our assessment of how likely an outcome is.
How does the availability heuristic apply to gambling?
Gamblers may overestimate their chances of winning because they easily remember their winning experiences.
How does a gambler’s memory influence their behavior?
Gamblers may remember their wins more easily than their losses, leading them to overestimate their chances of winning.
How do gambling companies exploit the availability heuristic?
Companies make noise when there is a win and remain silent during a loss, making the gambler more likely to remember the wins.
What is the sunk cost fallacy?
The tendency to continue investing resources in a situation due to previous investments, even if it’s not beneficial.
How does the sunk cost fallacy relate to gambling?
Gamblers may continue betting because they feel that they are ‘due’ a win due to prior losses.
How do heuristics apply to practical scenarios?
Understanding cognitive biases can be used in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
What did Griffiths (1994) find about regular gamblers?
Regular gamblers made more irrational statements than non-regular gamblers, showing evidence of heuristics and biases.
What did Joukhador et al. (2003) develop?
The Gambling Belief Questionnaire, which identifies cognitive biases and shows problem gamblers score higher than social gamblers.
