In cognitive psychology, which of the following best distinguishes the availability heuristic from the representative heuristic?

• A. The availability heuristic is used for making decisions about probabilities, while the representative heuristic is only used for memory recall.
• B. The availability heuristic relies on how easily examples come to mind, while the representative heuristic is based on how much something matches a prototype.
• C. The availability heuristic always leads to more accurate judgments than the representative heuristic.
• D. The representative heuristic depends on emotional responses, whereas the availability heuristic does not.

Answer: (B)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Step 1: Understand the availability heuristic. This heuristic involves making judgments about the likelihood of an event based on how easily examples or instances come to mind. It relies on the ease of recall from memory.
2. Step 2: Understand the representative heuristic. This heuristic involves making judgments about the probability of an event based on how much it resembles or matches a prototype or stereotype, rather than on actual statistical probability.
3. Step 3: Compare the two heuristics by focusing on their core mechanisms: availability heuristic depends on memory accessibility, while representative heuristic depends on similarity to a mental prototype.
4. Step 4: Evaluate the given options by matching these definitions to the descriptions provided, identifying which option correctly captures the distinction between the two heuristics.
5. Step 5: Conclude that the best distinction is that the availability heuristic relies on how easily examples come to mind, whereas the representative heuristic is based on how much something matches a prototype.