Observed Variability and Values Matter: Toward a Better Understanding of Information Search and Decisions from Experience

The search for different options before making a consequential choice is a central aspect of many important decisions, such as mate selection or purchasing a house. Despite its importance, surprisingly little is known about how search and choice are affected by the observed and objective properties of the decision problem. Here, we analyze the effects of two key properties in a binary choice task: the options' observed and objective values, and the variability of payoffs. First, in a large public data set of a binary choice task, we investigate how the observed value and variability relate to decision‐makers' efforts and preferences during search. Furthermore, we test how these properties influence the chance of correctly identifying the objectively maximizing option, and how they affect choice. Second, we designed a novel experiment to systematically analyze the role of the objective difference between the options. We find that a larger objective difference between options increases the chance for correctly identifying the maximizing option, but it does not affect behavior during search and choice. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Client as expert: A Delphi poll of clients’ subjective experience of therapeutic alliance formation variables

This study extends prior research that identified client-derived variables believed to contribute to therapeutic alliance development. Forty-two clients participated in a three-round-modified Delphi poll in which the subjective importance of 74 client-derived, common alliance formation variables was rated using a six-point scale. Participants consensually identified 23 variables as highly important, five as moderately important and three as low in importance to the formation of a strong alliance. Variables related to validation and asking about parts of the client’s life other than the presenting concern were considered as most important by at least one-third of the sample. Limitations of the study are presented and implications for theory, measurement, practice and future research are briefly discussed.     

Extreme Outcomes Sway Risky Decisions from Experience

Whether buying stocks or playing the slots, people making real‐world risky decisions often rely on their experiences with the risks and rewards. These decisions, however, do not occur in isolation but are embedded in a rich context of other decisions, outcomes, and experiences. In this paper, we systematically evaluate how the local context of other rewarding outcomes alters risk preferences. Through a series of four experiments on decisions from experience, we provide evidence for an extreme‐outcome rule, whereby people overweight the most extreme outcomes (highest and lowest) in a given context. As a result, people should be more risk seeking for gains than losses, even with equally likely outcomes. Across the experiments, the decision context was varied so that the same outcomes served as the high extreme, low extreme, or neither. As predicted, people were more risk seeking for relative gains, but only when the risky option potentially led to the high‐extreme outcome. Similarly, people were more risk averse for relative losses, but only when the risky option potentially led to the low‐extreme outcome. We conclude that in risky decisions from experience, the biggest wins and the biggest losses seem to matter more than they should. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the Decision to Explore New Alternatives: The Coexistence of Under‐ and Over‐exploration

The decision whether to explore new alternatives or to choose from familiar ones is implicit in many of our daily activities. How is this decision made? When will deviation from optimal exploration be observed? The current paper examines exploration decisions in the context of a multi‐alternative “decisions from experience” task. In each trial, participants could choose a familiar option (the status quo) or a new alternative (risky exploration). The observed exploration rates were more sensitive to the frequent outcome from choosing new alternatives than to the average outcome. That is, the implicit decision whether to explore a new alternative reflects underweighting of rare events: Over‐exploration was documented in “Rare Disasters” environments, and insufficient exploration was evident in “Rare Treasures” environments. In addition, the results reveal a decrease in exploration of new alternatives over time even when it is always optimal and some exploration even when it is never reinforcing. These results can be captured with models that share a distinction between “data collection” and “outcome‐driven” decision modes. Under the data collection mode, the decision maker collects information about the environment, to be used in future choices. Under the outcome‐driven mode, the decision maker relies on small samples of previous experiences with familiar versus unfamiliar alternatives, before the selection of a specific alternative. The predictive value of a two‐parameter “explorative sampler” quantification of these assumptions is demonstrated. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The hidden cost of value-seeking: People do not accurately forecast the economic benefits of experiential purchases

In spite of the experiential advantage, people consume material items in the pursuit of happiness. We conducted three studies to determine if people commit forecasting errors when deciding between purchasing life experiences and material items. Study 1a showed that people expect life experiences to result in more well-being, whereas material items are forecasted to be a better use of money. However, Study 1b demonstrated that people enjoy greater well-being from life experiences and consider them to be a better use of money. Study 2, a four-week longitudinal study, corroborated this economic misforecast. Study 3 demonstrated that seeking to make good use of one’s money, compared to prioritizing happiness, is more important during material consumption, and when people attempt to maximize economic value, instead of their happiness, they are more likely to consume material items. We suggest that prioritizing value may encourage people to prefer material items instead of life experiences.     

经验、材料性质及加工水平对虚假记忆的影响

本实验采用DRM研究范式,考察经验、材料性质和加工水平三个方面对虚假记忆的影响。实验首次采用句子的方式呈现,给被试提供符合经验和不符合经验的句子进行学习和再认。实验结果显示,三个因素对虚假记忆的影响都是显著的,其中,经验是导致虚假记忆产生的主导因素,加工深度同经验之间以及材料性质同经验之间的交互作用均存在显著的交互作用。     

The decision to check in multialternative choices and limited sensitivity to default

Given the rapid proliferation of smartphone applications and data aggregation websites, in many situations people can use decision aids to guide their choices. For example, they may consider whether to use a navigation device to check the fastest route or whether to use a price comparison website to find the cheapest deal. In what circumstances will subjects use a costly comparison decision aid (which I refer to as “checking”) to choose for them? In six studies, I investigate the impact of the number of available alternatives and checking's attractiveness on the decision to check. While at first increasing the attractiveness of checking led to higher checking rates, a further increase in the number of available alternatives (and thus checking's attractiveness) did not increase the checking rate. Surprisingly, even when checking had a 40% higher expected value compared with not checking, the observed checking rate was below 45%, contrary to risk and ambiguity aversion predictions. Furthermore, labeling the checking alternative as the default had no impact on its choice rate. I find large individual differences in decisions to check. Surprisingly, subjects' initial decisions had high predictive power over their subsequent checking rates, even after 100 trials with full feedback. I propose two simple learning models that capture well the aggregated results.     

Travailler dans un réseau de santé : effets sur la santé psychique au travail

The new needs as regards care taking charge of patients have contributed to the creation of health networks. As they are growing fast, they are an integral part of the French sanitation system. The impact, on the health professionals, of networking is, today, the object of contrasted research and results, but has little been studied as far as Social Psychology, Work and Organizations are concerned. This article follows a research project which had the objective, on the one hand, to describe the effects of the participation to a health network mental health at work and, on the other hand, to examine the variables and process accounting for the variability of these effects. This research privileges an approach to the health network as a place of socialization and personalization (Malrieu, 1979). The research on the ground is carried out in collaboration with the health network town-hospital Prevention and Taking charge of Pediatric Obesity Network (RéPPOP) Midi-Pyrénées. We have carried out semi-guided interviews with 20 private professionals (8 doctors, 8 dieticians, 3 psychologists, 1 physiotherapist) members of the RePPOP Midi-Pyrénées network. The main results show that the perception of positive and/or negative effects of networking on mental health varies according to the age of membership of the network and the processes of transfer of experience (from professional practice within the network to professional practice off-network and vice versa). Proposals are deduced in terms of continuing education within the network.