Zero-risk bias is the tendency to prefer eliminating one specific risk completely, even at a comparatively high cost, over an alternative that would achieve a larger overall reduction in risk. It appears especially in decisions concerning health, safety and the environment, and its influence on decision-making has been documented in surveys that present people with hypothetical risk-reduction scenarios and ask them to choose among them.
Facts
Core ClaimZero-risk bias is the tendency to prefer completely eliminating one specific risk over an alternative that would produce a larger overall reduction in risk. 1 Classification
Type of Phenomenon Connections
In Branch
Source Wikipedia: Zero-risk bias
Open Questions
Source Wikipedia: Zero-risk bias
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Zero-risk bias
Wikimedia FoundationWikipedia: Zero-risk bias, lead paragraph
Zero-risk bias is a tendency to prefer the complete elimination of risk in a sub-part over alternatives with greater overall risk reduction.
lead section, phenomenon-kind classification
Zero-risk bias is a tendency to prefer the complete elimination of risk in a sub-part over alternatives with greater overall risk reduction.
In Branch: Cognitive Psychology, Categories
Wikipedia article 'Zero-risk bias' is filed under Category:Cognitive biases.
View the Source Open Questions (1 open question)
In what year was zero-risk bias first described or named as a distinct concept?
The cited Wikipedia article cites Baron, Gowda and Kunreuther (1993) and Viscusi, Magat and Huber (1987) as early studies documenting the effect, and an economics study by Kunreuther (1991), but does not state in what year the bias itself was first named or described, and the 1987 study title does not use the term.
What would resolve this A citable source naming the specific year or publication where the term zero-risk bias was first coined.
Wikipedia: Zero-risk bias
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.