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Review
. 2011 Oct:1235:57-74.
doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2011.06208.x.

Decision-making heuristics and biases across the life span

Jonell Strough  1 , Tara E Karns, Leo Schlosnagle
Affiliations
Review

Decision-making heuristics and biases across the life span

Jonell Strough et al. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2011 Oct.

Abstract

We outline a contextual and motivational model of judgment and decision-making (JDM) biases across the life span. Our model focuses on abilities and skills that correspond to deliberative, experiential, and affective decision-making processes. We review research that addresses links between JDM biases and these processes as represented by individual differences in specific abilities and skills (e.g., fluid and crystallized intelligence, executive functioning, emotion regulation, personality traits). We focus on two JDM biases-the sunk-cost fallacy (SCF) and the framing effect. We trace the developmental trajectory of each bias from preschool through middle childhood, adolescence, early adulthood, and later adulthood. We conclude that life-span developmental trajectories differ depending on the bias investigated. Existing research suggests relative stability in the framing effect across the life span and decreases in the SCF with age, including in later life. We highlight directions for future research on JDM biases across the life span, emphasizing the need for process-oriented research and research that increases our understanding of JDM biases in people's everyday lives.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic depiction of conceptual framework. Each of three circles corresponds to one process, which constitutes sets of abilities or skills. Overlapping circles represent connections between processes. Dotted lines represent the immediate and larger sociocultural and historical contexts within which the decision-making process occurs.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Schematic depiction of a motivational model of JDM across the life span.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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