Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Heuristics01:21

Heuristics

84
Heuristics are problem-solving strategies that use mental shortcuts to simplify decision-making. Unlike algorithms, which must be followed precisely to achieve a correct result, heuristics offer a general problem-solving framework. They save time and energy but can sometimes lead to less rational decisions.
People often rely on heuristics when faced with an overload of information, limited time, low importance of the decision, limited information, or when a heuristic readily comes to mind. For...
84
The Availability Heuristic01:08

The Availability Heuristic

6.0K
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):
6.0K
The Anchoring-and-Adjustment Heuristic01:25

The Anchoring-and-Adjustment Heuristic

7.2K
In order to make good decisions, we use our knowledge and our reasoning. Often, this knowledge and reasoning is sound and solid. However, sometimes, we are swayed by biases or by others manipulating a situation. For example, let’s say you and three friends wanted to rent a house and had a combined target budget of $1,600. The realtor shows you only very run-down houses for $1,600 and then shows you a very nice house for $2,000. Might you ask each person to pay more in rent to get the...
7.2K
Self-Discrepancy Theory02:45

Self-Discrepancy Theory

18.3K
One influential perspective on what motivates people's behavior is detailed in Tory Higgin's self-discrepancy theory (Higgins, 1987). He proposed that people hold disagreeing internal representations of themselves that lead to different emotional states.  
18.3K
Reason and Intuition01:37

Reason and Intuition

6.4K
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...
6.4K
Robbers Cave04:49

Robbers Cave

14.3K
During the 1950s, the landmark Robbers Cave experiment demonstrated that when groups must compete with one another, intergroup conflict, hostility, and even violence may result. At the Oklahoman summer camp, two troops of boys—termed the Rattlers and the Eagles—took part in a week-long tournament. During this time, their negativity culminated in derogatory name-calling, fistfights, and even vandalism and destruction of property. However, this work also revealed that such tension...
14.3K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Exploring a core psychopathology in disordered eating: the feelings of fat scale.

Journal of eating disorders·2021
Same author

An exploratory study of creativity and eating disorders.

Journal of eating disorders·2017
Same journal

Shared intentionality and attachment theories in WILD and WEIRD contexts.

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026
Same journal

Constructing an architecture for a decolonized developmental science.

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026
Same journal

Go WILD, but mind the gap.

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026
Same journal

WILDing the study of developmental trajectories in navigation and wayfinding: Progress and challenges.

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026
Same journal

WILD kids, cutting-edge research. Enhancing diversity and reflexivity in psychology.

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026
Same journal

Ethnographic methods can help psychology overcome its WEIRD problems.

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 26, 2025

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal
06:45

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal

Published on: April 18, 2017

6.2K

Proxies, heuristics, and goal alignment.

Bruce D Burns1

  • 1School of Psychology, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australiahttp://sydney.edu.au/science/people/bruce.burns.php.

The Behavioral and Brain Sciences
|May 13, 2024
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Decision-making heuristics use proxies but do not fail due to feedback, unlike proxy failures. This difference may stem from aligned goals between regulators and agents in successful heuristics.

More Related Videos

The HoneyComb Paradigm for Research on Collective Human Behavior
06:48

The HoneyComb Paradigm for Research on Collective Human Behavior

Published on: January 19, 2019

9.3K
Real-Time Proxy-Control of Re-Parameterized Peripheral Signals using a Close-Loop Interface
11:54

Real-Time Proxy-Control of Re-Parameterized Peripheral Signals using a Close-Loop Interface

Published on: May 8, 2021

4.4K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 26, 2025

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal
06:45

Task Interruption and Resumption Paradigm for Testing the Activation and Pursuit of an Abstract Thinking Goal

Published on: April 18, 2017

6.2K
The HoneyComb Paradigm for Research on Collective Human Behavior
06:48

The HoneyComb Paradigm for Research on Collective Human Behavior

Published on: January 19, 2019

9.3K
Real-Time Proxy-Control of Re-Parameterized Peripheral Signals using a Close-Loop Interface
11:54

Real-Time Proxy-Control of Re-Parameterized Peripheral Signals using a Close-Loop Interface

Published on: May 8, 2021

4.4K

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Behavioral Economics
  • Decision Science

Background:

  • Decision-making heuristics are cognitive shortcuts that simplify complex choices.
  • Heuristics often rely on proxies, which are simpler elements used to represent more complex ones.
  • Previous research by John et al. identified elements of proxies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare the failure mechanisms of decision-making heuristics and proxy failures.
  • To investigate the role of feedback in heuristic and proxy failure.
  • To explore the influence of aligned goals on heuristic success.

Main Methods:

  • Conceptual analysis comparing heuristic and proxy failure frameworks.
  • Literature review of decision-making heuristics and proxy theory.
  • Theoretical modeling of goal alignment in decision processes.

Main Results:

  • Heuristics do not fail due to feedback, a key difference from proxy failure.
  • Proxy failure can occur when feedback reveals misalignments.
  • Successful heuristics may function because regulator and agent goals are aligned.

Conclusions:

  • Heuristics and proxies exhibit distinct failure modes.
  • Goal alignment is a critical factor for heuristic success and stability.
  • Understanding these differences is crucial for designing effective decision support systems.