Heuristics: a source of judgement fallacies or decision-making aids?

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Research Paper (undergraduate) from the year 2012 in the subject Psychology - Methods, grade: 20, University of St Andrews, course: Behavioural Economics, language: English, abstract: This review essay explores different perspectives and conceptualizationsof the study of heuristics, decision-making rules which operate under constrainedtime and computation (Kahneman, 2011). Two opposed models of heuristics thatassume conditions of bounded rationality, the heuristics-and-biases and the fastand-frugal framework, are assessed. Whereas the former evaluates heuristics interms of logical rationality and postulates that humans exhibit predictablefallacies in judgement, the latter focuses on ecological validity, and suggests thathumans possess an adaptive toolbox of evolutionary developed decision-makingrules which enable better decision making. Finally, alternative explanations andlimitations of existing research programs will be explored, concluding with ademand for a rigorous evaluation of experimental designs as well as outliningconditions for a possible synthesis.

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