Questions: In a 1997 experiment, participants first were asked whether the Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi died before or after a certain age, and then were asked to guess the precise age at which Gandhi died. People who were first asked whether or not Gandhi died at age 9 gave an estimate ( 50 years) much lower on average than those who were first asked whether or not he died at age 140 ( 67 years). This experiment is a perfect example of which of the following? Click or top a choice to answer the question. the representative heuristic loss aversion anchoring the availability heuristic

The answer is anchoring.

The representative heuristic involves making judgments about the probability of an event based on how much it resembles existing stereotypes or known categories. This does not apply to the experiment described, as the focus is on the influence of initial information on subsequent estimates, not on resemblance to stereotypes.

Loss aversion refers to the tendency for people to prefer avoiding losses rather than acquiring equivalent gains. This concept is not relevant to the experiment, which deals with how initial information affects subsequent estimates rather than preferences related to gains or losses.

Anchoring is a cognitive bias where an individual relies too heavily on an initial piece of information (the "anchor") when making decisions. In the experiment, the initial ages (9 and 140) served as anchors, influencing participants' subsequent estimates of Gandhi's age at death. This is a classic example of the anchoring effect.

The availability heuristic involves estimating the likelihood of an event based on how easily examples come to mind. This does not apply to the experiment, as the focus is on the influence of initial numerical information rather than the ease of recalling examples.