Stories, statistics, and memory

Thomas Graber (), Christopher Roth and Florian Zimmermann
Additional contact information
Thomas Graber: University of Harvard

No 45, ECONtribute Policy Brief Series from University of Bonn and University of Cologne, Germany

Abstract: Widespread misperceptions shape attitudes on key societal topics, such as climate change and the recent pandemic. These belief distortions are puzzling in contexts where accurate statistical information is broadly available and attended to. This column argues that the nature of human memory may be key for understanding the persistence of misperceptions in practice. It documents that anecdotal information in the form of stories comes to mind more easily than statistical information, generating the potential for systematic belief biases.

Pages: 5 pages
Date: 2023
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-env and nep-ltv
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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https://www.econtribute.de/RePEc/ajk/ajkpbs/ECONtribute_PB_045_2023.pdf First version, 2023 (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Stories, Statistics, and Memory* (2024)
Working Paper: Stories, Statistics, and Memory (2022)
Working Paper: Stories, Statistics, and Memory (2022)
Working Paper: Stories, Statistics, and Memory (2022)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ajk:ajkpbs:045

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