Framing-induced emotions affect performance in simple cognitive tasks under risk

No 2023-22, Working Papers from Faculty of Economic Sciences, University of Warsaw

Abstract: In this study, we investigated how performance in a number of puzzles (decisions under risk) depended on the framing. The puzzles, drawn and adapted from existing literature, were designed to expose well-established cognitive biases could lead respondents to select intuitive yet incorrect answer. Subjects were randomly assigned to one of three treatments: a third of the sample saw puzzles framed in terms of COVID-19, another third about a common cold, and the remaining group about unemployment. Across five continents, we collected over 8,000 observations. We found that framing of the puzzles affected performance, prompting questions regarding the external validity of these puzzles. Treatments associated with more severe threats, such as COVID and Unemployment, elicited stronger (negative) emotions compared to the common cold. Moreover, these emotional reactions were also linked to performance, and their levels correlated negatively with the number of correctly solved puzzles.

Keywords: decision-making under risk; framing; emotions; cognitive biases; cognitive tasks; COVID-19 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C91 C99 D01 D81 D91 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 38 pages
Date: 2023
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cbe, nep-exp and nep-neu
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https://www.wne.uw.edu.pl/download_file/3158/0 First version, 2023 (application/pdf)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:war:wpaper:2023-22

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