AP Psychology: Biases and Errors in Thinking

What is metacognition?

• A type of cognitive bias

• Awareness of one's own thought processes

• A form of memory recall

• A method of solving problems

Which heuristic involves making quick judgments based on stereotypes?

• Representativeness heuristic

• Anchoring heuristic

• Confirmation heuristic

• Availability heuristic

What is a common result of using the availability heuristic?

• Ignoring relevant information

• Making decisions based on emotions

• Overestimating the frequency of events

• Relying on stereotypes

What does hindsight bias lead us to believe?

• An event was inevitable after it happened

• We have no control over outcomes

• We could not have predicted an event

• Our initial judgment was correct

How does confirmation bias affect our perception of information?

• We focus on information that aligns with our beliefs

• We ignore information that supports our beliefs

• We are open to all information equally

• We seek out information that contradicts our beliefs

What is anchoring bias?

• Ignoring new information

• Focusing on irrelevant details

• Relying on the first piece of information encountered

• Making decisions based on emotions

How can framing affect decision-making?

• By providing too much information

• By simplifying complex information

• By influencing opinions through the way information is presented

• By presenting information in a neutral way

What is belief perseverance?

• Changing beliefs when presented with new evidence

• Holding onto beliefs despite contradictory evidence

• Ignoring beliefs altogether

• Forming beliefs based on stereotypes

What is illusory correlation?

• Ignoring actual correlations

• Focusing on irrelevant details

• Believing two unrelated events are connected

• Recognizing patterns in random data

What is functional fixedness?

• Using objects based on their color

• Using objects only in traditional ways

• Finding new uses for objects

• Ignoring the function of objects