Availability Bias in Estimates of Frequency of Death

Availability bias occurs when estimates of the frequency of an event are based on events that are more readily available in memory. This is often a result of shortcomings in judgement. For example, people often overestimate the likelihood of death by natural disasters such as hurricanes and tornadoes, because media coverage of these events can be more salient and, thus, more easily recalled than coverage of “quieter” deaths like cancer or heart disease, which tend to receive far less attention. In other words, it is likely that people overestimate the frequency of death by events that they can easily recall, rather than what is actually most likely to occur.

The media or how often we think about something biases how often we think that thing happens Judgments are clearly influenced by how often each factor appears in the media While homicide and fire are often reported, stomach cancer doesn't get as much press What about shark attacks!?