This study evaluated Tversky and Kahneman's model of decision framing among 90 children, 30 each from Grades 1, 3, and 6. Students were first tested to determine their level of cognitive development. They then responded to two sets of decision tasks to determine the extent to which they corresponded to Tversky and Kahneman's predicted departures from rationality. Analyses showed that older children utilized mechanisms similar to those described for adults, while first and third graders did not. There was no effect as a function of cognitive level. The implications of these findings for theory and research are discussed.
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