Dispositional Self-Confidence in Judgment and Framing Bias Susceptibility in a Dynamic Decision Making Environment

Abstract

Decision-makers demonstrate framing bias when their decision making behavior is a function of the contextual presentation or framing (positive or negative) of the decision problem. Framing effects in simple, static situations (e.g., gambling) have been well documented, but past research on framing has typically ignored both dynamic environments and the effects of predispositional variables like risk-taking tendency and confidence in judgment. We examined the impact of these influences by exposing participants who measured either very high or low in decision making self-confidence to a high workload environment with either an “opportunity for gain” or a “threat of loss” decision frame condition. Participants performed a multi-task, computer-generated flight simulation program (the MAT) for 30 minutes. Results indicated that participants' actual performance on the MAT subtasks could be affected by the framing manipulation, and also that their decision strategies to optimize task performance were influenced by both by the framing manipulation and their self-confidence level.