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Decision Making

Decision Making

Decision-making is a fundamental cognitive process that involves evaluating alternatives and selecting among them. This process can range from simple choices, such as deciding what to wear, to complex decisions, like choosing a major in college or a career path. The complexity of the decision often dictates the approach we use, which can be broadly categorized into two types: automatic and controlled decision-making.
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The human brain processes information for decision-making using one of two routes: an intuitive system and a rational system (Epstein, 1994; popularized by Kahneman, 2011 as System 1 and System 2, respectively). The intuitive system is quick, impulsive, and operates with minimal effort, relying on emotions or habits to provide cues for what to do next, while the rational system is logical, analytical, deliberate, and methodical. Research in neuropsychology suggests that the...

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First, a specific claim about the population parameter is decided based on the research question and is stated in a simple form. Further, an opposing statement to this claim is also stated. These statements can act as null and alternative hypotheses, out of which a null hypothesis would be a...

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A heuristic is a general problem-solving framework (Tversky & Kahneman, 1974). You can think of these as mental shortcuts that are used to solve problems. Different types of heuristics are used in different types of situations, and the impulse to use a heuristic occurs when one of five conditions is met (Pratkanis, 1989):

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 22, 2026

Creating Objects and Object Categories for Studying Perception and Perceptual Learning

Creating Objects and Object Categories for Studying Perception and Perceptual Learning

Published on: November 2, 2012

Decision making under uncertain categorization.

Stephanie Y Chen¹, Brian H Ross², Gregory L Murphy¹

¹Department of Psychology, New York University New York, NY, USA.

Frontiers in Psychology

|October 14, 2014

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

People often use multiple categories in decision-making under uncertainty, even when inappropriate. Framing category information can influence this behavior, but doesn't improve decision accuracy.

Keywords:

categories category-based induction decision making framing uncertainty

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Area of Science:

Cognitive Psychology
Decision Science
Behavioral Economics

Background:

Decision-making under uncertainty often involves ambiguous category information.
Previous research suggests individuals may default to single-category reasoning in uncertain situations.
Understanding how category framing impacts decision strategies is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate how individuals utilize category information in uncertain decision-making scenarios.
To determine if the framing of category information influences decision strategies.
To assess whether individuals appropriately adjust their use of category information based on relevance.

Main Methods:

Two experiments were conducted using vignettes with ambiguous item categorization.
Participants chose actions to achieve a specific outcome for a story character.
A framing manipulation was introduced to observe its effect on category use.

Main Results:

Participants frequently considered multiple categories during decision-making, irrespective of appropriateness.
The tendency to use multiple categories was observed even when not normatively justified.
Framing manipulations increased multiple-category use, but not exclusively in appropriate contexts.

Conclusions:

Individuals often employ multiple categories in decision-making under uncertainty, but not always strategically.
Category framing can alter decision strategies, yet does not guarantee more appropriate information use.
Decision-making processes under uncertainty may involve heuristics not solely driven by logical relevance.