Heuristic (cognitive psychology)

A mental shortcut that simplifies judgment or decision-making when time, information, or cognitive resources are limited. Heuristics can be efficient but may produce systematic errors.

Availability heuristic: A judgment shortcut that estimates frequency or likelihood by how easily examples come to mind. It shows how ease of recall can stand in for statistical evidence.
Bounded rationality: A model of decision-making in which limited time, information, and cognitive capacity constrain rational choice. It frames heuristics as responses to limits on computation and information.
Algorithm: A specified sequence of operations for solving a problem or producing an output. A fixed procedure contrasts with the flexible, often informal use of heuristics.
Herbert A. Simon: An American social scientist who developed bounded rationality and studied decision-making in organizations. His work established limited computation as a foundation for studying practical decision strategies.
Medical diagnosis: The process of identifying a disease or condition from symptoms, history, examination, and tests. Clinicians use rapid pattern recognition, but diagnostic errors can follow from misleading cues.
Representativeness heuristic: A judgment shortcut that estimates probability by similarity to a prototype or stereotype. It explains why resemblance can outweigh base rates in probability judgments.
Ecological rationality: The view that a decision strategy is rational when its structure fits the environment in which it is used. It explains why a simple shortcut can outperform complex analysis in some settings.
Bias–variance tradeoff: A statistical tradeoff between errors from overly simple assumptions and errors from sensitivity to data. It clarifies how simplification can reduce instability while introducing systematic error.
Amos Tversky: An Israeli cognitive psychologist whose research with Daniel Kahneman shaped the study of judgment and decision-making. His experiments helped identify systematic patterns in intuitive probability judgments.
Behavioral economics: The study of how psychological, social, and emotional factors shape economic decisions. Heuristic judgment helps explain departures from idealized models of economic choice.

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