Heuristics are practical strategies for solving problems and making decisions when a perfect solution is too costly, slow, or impossible to find. This lesson introduces their purpose, their connection to induction, and the benefits and risks of using mental shortcuts.
A heuristic is a problem-solving approach, mental shortcut, or rule of thumb that helps produce a useful answer without necessarily guaranteeing the best possible answer. Heuristics are especially valuable when finding an optimal solution is impractical or impossible.
All flashcards
Attribute substitution
Unconsciously answering an easier question in place of a difficult judgment.
Cognitive-experiential self-theory
An account distinguishing deliberate, systematic thinking from intuitive, emotional thinking.
Analogy
Using similarities between situations to guide reasoning about a new situation.
Adaptive toolbox
A collection of strategies available for making decisions.
Satisficing
Searching for or accepting an option that is good enough for a purpose.
Quiz questions
In one-reason decisions, what do search, stopping, and decision rules specify?Answer: Which cues to examine, when to stop, and what choice to make.
How does the take-the-best heuristic choose between alternatives?Answer: It bases the choice on the most informative cue that distinguishes them.
What does satisficing mean in decision-making?Answer: Accepting or searching for an option that is good enough for the purpose.
What is the representativeness heuristic?Answer: Judging an event by how similar it seems to a typical example or category.
How can an AI search heuristic help find a solution?Answer: It estimates which candidate paths seem promising and guides the search.
Based on the Wikipedia article Heuristic, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.