Heuristics In Decision Making

Heuristics In Decision Making, Benefits & Pitfalls, Biases Mitigating Strategy.
Heuristics are powerful tools that shape public opinion and influence decision-making across media, politics, advertising, and entertainment. By exploiting cognitive shortcuts like the availability heuristic, representativeness heuristic, framing effect, bandwagon effect, anchoring, halo effect, and sunk cost fallacy, these fields can manipulate public perceptions and behavior, often to significant social effect. While heuristics provide efficient ways of processing information, their use in propaganda and influence campaigns can lead to biases, discrimination, polarization, and wasted resources. Historical examples, from the “War on Drugs” to wartime propaganda and celebrity endorsements, illustrate both the effectiveness of heuristics in shaping public perception and the potential harms when they are used to manipulate. Recognizing the role of heuristics in decision-making is crucial for fostering critical thinking, enabling individuals and societies to better navigate the complex landscape of media, politics, and consumer culture.‪@HealthMedLab63‬