Decision makers often establish an early preference after being exposed to preliminary information about their choices and this early preference can affect how subsequent information about choice options is processed. Importantly, such information distortion can have a substantial influence on people's final judgments and decisions. This project would build upon the student's Honor's thesis research on information distortion--which has been well documented in decision-making contexts using textual stimuli--also extends to prediction contexts in which the key stimuli is primarily visual. The initial study of the thesis work involved a paradigm in which people predicted winners of an art competition, and the new work will involve development of a paradigm in which people predict employment outcomes. Participants will learn that their task is to view the portfolios of two applicants for a prestigious job and eventually make predictions about which applicant was awarded the job. By revealing the portfolio contents and stages and asking for a series of evaluations and predictions, the research team will be able to measure the degree to which and early leaning, set up in an initial stage, biases information processing and ultimately final predictions in later stages.

Student Statement

"This project greatly captures my interest as it builds upon my Honors Thesis work and explores a relatively new concept in the field of decision sciences in an applied context. I would love to learn from my research experience this spring and improve upon it in the summer. I always wanted my research to have a meaningful connect with the real world and working on these new paradigms motivates me to become an impactful researcher. Moreover, this project is also very important to me due to my mentor Dr. Windschitl. I have been working in his lab as a research assistant for 4 semesters now and have grown a lot as a researcher. My research interests align with the lab projects very well, ranging from desirability bias to decision aids. Dr. Windschitl's informed guidance, astute insights, and diligent work ethic along with the way he fosters a supportive environment for his students has helped me find my academic belonging. This project would help me continue my in-depth involvement in lab work and pursue another independent study that I am passionate about. Without classes in session, I would be able to focus on research more thoroughly and chase arduous goals like a journal publication. Ultimately, this project would also enhance my research experiences for a graduate school application as my next career goal is to pursue a PhD in Decision Sciences."