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Why do we remember recent news events so well but ignore common things?
In the era of information explosion, the media reports all kinds of events, exposing people to a vast amount of information. However, why are we always impressed by breaking news events but often ignore the common things in life? This phenomenon is not only related to our psychological cognition, but also closely related to the way the media reports.
The availability heuristic is a mental shortcut that relies on immediacy. Some recently emerged information will strengthen our judgment, causing unpopular, routine or daily events to gradually fade from our memory.
The availability heuristic is a theory proposed by psychologists Amos Tversky and Daniel Kahneman that explains why people are more likely to be attracted to recent or salient information. The incident is still fresh in my memory. They point out that when we need to make a judgment in a situation, information that is easily recalled will influence our decision-making. Important events that we remember, such as terrorist attacks reported in the news, are rated as more important because of their accessibility. On the other hand, ordinary events that occur in daily life, such as traffic accidents and holiday celebrations, may be overlooked because they are not so noticeable.
The impact of psychological cognition
Numerous studies have shown that media events and incidents can strongly influence our perception of reality. When we are frequently exposed to specific types of information during the intelligence acquisition process, this information will take up a place in our memory and influence our decision-making. According to the theory of the availability heuristic, when people are informed of the frequency of an event (such as a violent crime), these impressions can blur our evaluation of other events because of their memorability.
Media reports often give more exposure to non-routine events, making these events easier for people to remember than daily life events.
The role of media coverage
Media reports focus on eye-catching events by selecting and emphasizing certain information. As we are exposed to reports about an event over and over again, the impact of the event and the anxiety it causes will increase. For example, composite reports about cancer, shootings, and natural disasters can cause people to panic unduly. At the same time, common health risks or accidents do not receive the same attention, leading to a distorted sense of the importance of these events.
The impact of availability bias on daily life
Worse, this bias can affect our everyday decision making. When people are faced with choices, they tend to make judgments based on recent experience or reports. For example, a plane crash that was widely reported in the media for a period of time may cause people to fear using air transportation, while they pay less attention to traffic accidents that occur every day. The result is an inability to make sound judgements about common risks in life.
Media focus makes some incidental events more exposed than the risks in daily life, which in turn causes cognitive dissonance among people.
Observations on the availability heuristic from behavioral economics
In the field of behavioral economics, research shows that the availability heuristic also plays a significant role in influencing investment decisions. Investors often make decisions based on recent market information while ignoring systematic analysis and long-term trends. For example, when a certain category of stocks is gaining attention because of recent good news, investors may overlook the underlying risks in that sector. This leads to over-investment or under-investment in the market, resulting in information asymmetry in the entire market.
The Long-Term Effects of the Availability Heuristic
The impact of this psychological bias in social, business, and even political decision-making cannot be underestimated. When we choose to make strategies or judgments based on recent news events, it will ultimately affect our lives and the way society functions. For example, in public health policy, excessive attention to certain reports may lead to an imbalance in the allocation of resources and affect overall health outcomes.
The availability heuristic causes people to inadvertently ignore common but still important events or risks when making information decisions. Will this lead to our society facing more absurd decisions in the future?
Therefore, understanding the impact of the availability heuristic and its role in different contexts is crucial to shaping more rational and balanced social decision-making. Faced with the rapid changes in society, how can we maintain clear and rational thinking in the ocean of information?
