Take the best or look at the rest? Factors influencing "one-reason" decision making.
Aspects of an experimental environment were manipulated in 3 experiments to examine the parameters under which the "take-the-best" (TTB) heuristic (e.g., G. Gigerenzer & D. G. Goldstein, 1996) operates. Results indicated TTB use to be more prevalent when the cost of information was high, when validities of the cues were known, and when a deterministic environment was used. However, large individual variability in strategy use was observed as well as a significant proportion of behavior inconsistent with TTB, expecially its stopping rule. The results demarcate some of the heuristic's boundary conditions and also question the validity of TTB as a psychologically plausible and pervasive model of behavior.
Newell
Ben R
BR
Department of Psychology, University College London, United Kingdom. b.newell@ucl.ac.uk
Shanks
David R
DR
D000328:Adult; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003463:Cues; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male