Is 1/10 > 10/100? The effect of denominator salience on perceptions of base rates of health risk

Priya Raghubir

International Journal of Research in Marketing, 2008, vol. 25, issue 4, 327-334

Abstract: This paper examines how people process base rate information (r = n/N) to estimate risk. We propose that the more salient the denominator of a base rate (N) is, the more the information draws attention to the people on which it is based. Information concerning smaller populations or sample groups (N = 1000 vs. 100,000), as well as geographically proximate populations, makes it easier for consumers to bring to mind the population involved. This increased salience of the denominator increases the attention paid to the numerator and translates into perceptions of greater risk.

Date: 2008
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:ijrema:v:25:y:2008:i:4:p:327-334

DOI: 10.1016/j.ijresmar.2008.07.006

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