Recently experienced local weather conditions often have a greater impact on people's perceived threat of global climate change than less memorable scientific data regarding long-term planetary weather trends. This best illustrates the impact of

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First, consider what the scenario describes: people rely on recent, memorable local weather experiences to judge global climate change, rather than focusing on long-term planetary data. Now let's evaluate each option in turn.

Option a: the availability heuristic. This choice captures the idea that people base judgments on information that is most readily recalled or salient, such as recent local weather, rather than on comprehensive long-term data. This aligns well with the described effect, making this option a strong match.

Option b: confirmation bias. This would involve favoring information that confirms preexisting beliefs. The scenario does not emphasize seeking confirming evidence or filtering information to fit beliefs; it emphasizes the influence of memorable events on judgment, so this option is not a precise fit.

Option c: the framing effect. The framing effect concerns how presenting the same information in different ways (framing) changes decisions. The scenario does not involve changing the presentation of data to alter choices; it involves the impact of memorable experiences on perception, so this option is less accurate.

Option d: belief perseverance. This refers to clinging to initial beliefs despite new contradictory evidence. The scenario describes susceptibility to memorable events affecting perceived threat, not stubbornly holding onto a prior belief in the face of evidence, so this option is not appropriate.

In summary, option a correctly identifies the cognitive mechanism at play—the availability heuristic—where readily recalled, salient experiences disproportionately shape judgments about broader issues. The other options describe different biases or effects that do not precisely capture the described influence of memorable local weather on global climate judgments.

PSY 200 (003) Fall 2025 Introduction to Psychology (TR, 1:30pm)

Recently experienced local weather conditions often have a greater impact on people's perceived threat of global climate change than less memorable scientific data regarding long-term planetary weather trends. This best illustrates the impact of

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