Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 17, 2026

Post-Movie Subliminal Measurement (PMSM), for Investigating Implicit Social Bias
Published on: February 29, 2020
Risk perception and movies: a study of availability as a factor in risk perception
Lennart Sjöberg1, Elisabeth Engelberg
1Center for Risk Research, Stockholm School of Economics, Stockholm, Sweden. lennartsjoberg@gmail.com
Abstract:
Media effects on risk perception have often been explained by Tversky and Kahneman's availability principle, but research has not consistently supported it. What seem like media effects based on availability may be effects of new information. In an experimental study, entertainment movies depicting dramatic risk events were shown. They were found to produce no average effects on perceived risks in spite of large mood effects and being perceived as credible. We found, however, evidence of idiosyncratic effects of the movies, that is, people reacted immediately after the movies with enhanced or diminished risk beliefs. These reactions had faded after 10 days. Implications for the availability heuristic and risk perception are discussed.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
The Availability Heuristic
Framing Effects
Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast, controlled...
Actor-Observer Effect
Lazarus's Cognitive Appraisal Theory
Primary Appraisal:...
Factors Affecting Perception
An illustrative example of a perceptual set is the scenario where an airline pilot told...

