Many people drew faulty conclusions about the relative safety of air travel compared to automobile travel in the wake of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Such poor reasoning was the result of ________.
A)thin slicing
B)hindsight bias
C)mental sets
D)the availability heuristic

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The availability heuristic is a cognitive bias in which people judge the likelihood of events based on how easily they can recall examples of those events. In the case of the September 11 attacks, the intense media coverage of the event made it easier for people to recall incidents of terrorism involving airplanes, leading them to mistakenly believe that air travel was less safe than automobile travel.

Many People Drew Faulty Conclusions About the Relative Safety of Air