Deck 7: Critical Decisions Before Deadline

Question 1

Which best describes confirmation bias?

A) a bias that confirms what we are feeling even in the face of contradictory information
B) the tendency people have to seek, interpret and remember information that reinforces their egos
C) searching for and interpreting information that does not support our story angle
D) the tendency people have to seek, interpret and remember information that reinforces their preconceptions
E) none of the above

Answer 1

D

Question 2

A reporter succumbing to confirmation bias might:

A) treat sources critical of the hypothesis in an aggressive or argumentative way
B) ignore information that confirms the hypothesis or story angle
C) interpret unanswered questions in a way that contradicts the hypothesis
D) be hyper-critical of sources and information that confirm the hypothesis
E) A and C

Answer 2

A

Question 3

What does "freezing out information" mean?

A) when the mind gathers as much information as possible before deadline
B) when the mind considers alternate hypothesis carefully and thoroughly
C) when the mind quits gathering new information
D) when the mind is open to new information because accuracy is important
E) none of the above

Answer 3

C

Question 4

What are heuristics?

A) mental frameworks that allow us to individuate information and think it through carefully and thoroughly
B) rules of thumb that allow people to make judgments quickly
C) highly useful techniques to avoid biases in thinking
D) our hunches, intuition, memory, or gut feeling
E) all of the above

Question 5

Which of the following describes hindsight bias?

A) when people judge probabilities on the basis of similarity.
B) when people judge the probability of an event by the ease of which previous instances come to mind
C) when two events that can occur separately are seen as more likely to occur together
D) when people base estimates and decisions on familiar positions and then adjust for the final answer
E) when people view something that has happened as having been relatively inevitable before it happened

Question 6

Which of the following describes the availability heuristic?

A) when people judge probabilities on the basis of similarity.
B) when people judge the probability of an event by the ease of which previous instances come to mind
C) when two events that can occur separately are seen as more likely to occur together
D) when people base estimates and decisions on familiar positions and then adjust for the final answer
E) when people view something that has happened as having been relatively inevitable before it happened

Question 7

Which of the following describes the conjunction fallacy?

A) when people judge probabilities on the basis of similarity.
B) when people judge the probability of an event by the ease of which previous instances come to mind
C) when two events that can occur separately are seen as more likely to occur together
D) when people base estimates and decisions on familiar positions and then adjust for the final answer
E) when people view something that has happened as having been relatively inevitable before it happened

Question 8

Which of the following describes the representativeness heuristic?

A) when people judge probabilities on the basis of similarity.
B) when people judge the probability of an event by the ease of which previous instances come to mind
C) when two events that can occur separately are seen as more likely to occur together
D) when people base estimates and decisions on familiar positions and then adjust for the final answer
E) when people view something that has happened as having been relatively inevitable before it happened

Question 9

The text states that a devotion to accuracy helps correct judgment biases.

Question 10

What is the term for the implied or clearly expressed expectation that one will be called upon to justify one's beliefs, feelings or actions to others?

A) automaticity
B) the anchoring heuristic
C) accountability
D) acculturation
E) acceptance theory