Specifically, it is proposed that people use an affect heuristic to make judgements. That is, representations of objects and events in people´s minds are tagged to varying degrees with affect.

People consult or refer to an “affective pool" in the process of making judgements and decisions. Using an overall, readily available affective impression can be far easier - more efficient - than weighing the pros and cons or retrieving from memory many relevant examples, especially when the required judgement or decision is complex or mental resources are limited.

Reliance on the affect heuristic has important non-intuitive implications for the rationality of all manner of decisions including those involving risk and environment.

About Paul Slovic
Paul Slovic is president of Decision Research and a professor of psychology at the University of Oregon.

He studies human judgement, decision making, and risk analysis. Dr Slovic received a B.A. degree from Stanford University, an M.A. and Ph.D. degree from the University of Michigan, and an honorary doctorate from the Stockholm School of Economics. He is past president of the Society for Risk Analysis and in 1991 received its Distinguished Contribution Award.

In 1993 Dr. Slovic received the Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award from the American Psychological Association, and in 1995 he received the Outstanding Contribution to Science Award from the Oregon Academy of Science.