Question

Ayanna is the one person Matthew has ever met from the Ivory Coast. To Matthew, Ayanna seems quite friendly and funny. When asked what he would expect people to be like if he went to the Ivory Coast, Matthew says that he would expect the people to be quite friendly and funny. What allows him to think this way?

a.
the representativeness heuristic

b.
insight

c.
the availability heuristic

d.
confirmation bias

Answer 1

Matthew's expectation that people from the Ivory Coast will be friendly and funny like Ayanna is an example of the availability heuristic.

Step-by-step explanation:

In the scenario described where Matthew expects people in the Ivory Coast to be friendly and funny based on his interaction with Ayanna, he is applying the availability heuristic. This cognitive bias leads individuals to make judgments about the likelihood of events based on how easily they can recall similar instances. In Matthew's case, because his interactions with Ayanna are positive and memorable, he mistakenly believes these traits are representative of all people from the Ivory Coast.