What Very Small Numbers Mean

This article presents a theoretical and experimental framework for assessing the biases associated with the interpretation of numbers. This framework consists of having participants convert between different representations of quantities. These representations should include both variations in numer...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of experimental psychology. General 2002-09, Vol.131 (3), p.424-442
Main Authors: Cohen, Dale J, Ferrell, Jennifer M, Johnson, Nathan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Cognition
Concept Formation
Estimation
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Human
Humans
Judgment
Male
Mathematics
Models, Psychological
Number Comprehension
Numbers
Numbers (Numerals)
Numerosity Perception
Perception
Psychology
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Psychometrics. Statistics. Methodology
Statistics. Mathematics
Task Performance and Analysis
Thinking
Visual Displays
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Summary:This article presents a theoretical and experimental framework for assessing the biases associated with the interpretation of numbers. This framework consists of having participants convert between different representations of quantities. These representations should include both variations in numerical labels that symbolize quantities and variations in displays in which quantity is inherent. Five experiments assessed how people convert between relative frequencies, decimals, and displays of dots that denote very low proportions (i.e., proportions below 1%). The participants demonstrated perceptual, response, and numerical transformation biases. Furthermore, the data suggest that relative frequencies and decimals are associated with different abstract representations of amount.
ISSN:0096-3445
1939-2222
DOI:10.1037/0096-3445.131.3.424