Decision Support Models – 2020/2021

Exercises handout no. 1 – Heuristics and biases

RULE: You cannot access the internet during the class!

Exercise 1
Dr. Swinkels’ cousin, Rudy, is a bit on the peculiar side. He has unusual tastes in movies and art, he is
married to a performer, and he has tattoos on various parts of his body. In his spare time Rudy takes
yoga classes and likes to collect 78 rpm records. An outgoing and rather boisterous person, he has
been known to act on a dare on more than one occasion. What do you think Rudy’s occupation most
likely is?

A) Farmer B) Librarian C) Trapeze Artist D) Surgeon E) Lawyer

Exercise 2
In one chapter of a best-selling novel, would you expect to find more words that (circle one):

a) end in -ing (——ing) OR b) have n as the second to last letter (——n—)?

Exercise 3
Two college roommates, Victor and Mario, are registering for courses for the spring semester. They
leave their dorm room together, stop and eat breakfast together, chat with a mutual friend, and arrive
at the registrar’s office at the same time. They both line up to enroll in their art history classes. Victor
is told the class he wanted was filled to capacity at the end of the previous day. Mario is told the class
he wanted was filled to capacity 10 minutes before he arrived. Who is more upset, Victor or Mario?

Exercise 4
a) Is the length of the Mississippi River greater or less than 3,000 miles?

b) What is the length of the Mississippi River?

Exercise 5
What, to your best knowledge, is more likely: being killed by a part that has fallen off an aeroplane or
being killed in a shark attack?

Exercise 6
A bat and a ball cost $1.10 in total. The bat costs $1.00 more than the ball. How much does the ball
cost?

Decision Support Models – 2020/2021, Exercises handout no. 1 1

Exercise 7
Relative to your classmates in this course, how would you rate your intelligence?

Exercise 8
Cognitive and motivational biases can shape the understanding of the world around us, affecting our
judgements and decision-making. These effects can be more exposed in times of crisis, like the one
we currently live in. Can you think of any cognitive biases you may have witnessed during COVID-19
times?

Main sources used in this handout:

• Swinkels, A. (2003). An Effective Exercise for Teaching Cognitive Heuristics. Teaching of
Psychology, 30(2), 120–122.
• Fay, R., Montague, N.R. (2015) Witnessing Your Own Cognitive Bias: A Compendium of
Classroom Exercises, Issues in Accounting Education, 20(1), 13-34.
• Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, fast and slow. Macmillan.

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