Can we practice making good decisions?

Every day we make big and small decisions, but can we train our ability to make correct and good decisions? A research group at Umeå University is investigating this using a mobile phone game.

If politicians always made informed and correct decisions, we might not have to worry about climate change or other threats to the environment. Unfortunately, errors in thinking often occur, especially when there is only one correct alternative.

One explanation for why such errors in thinking occur is that people use mental shortcuts. It could, for example, rely on how similar this decision situation is to a previous one, or use readily available stereotypical information, says Gustav Wadenholt, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Psychology at Umeå University and project director of the Råda Villrådiga research project.

In the project, the researchers will investigate whether it is possible to find a training method to become better at making decisions when there is a clear right and wrong.

– With the help of feedback and repeated training, you can find out whether people can learn how to find better strategies on their own to solve problems and make the right decisions, says Gustav Wadenholt.

The research group notes that in many other contexts, feedback is very important in the process in order to learn something, and thus feedback can be the key to becoming better at making decisions.

– This kind of reaction is rarely something you get when you grow up or in everyday life, but we are expected to be able to make this kind of decision ourselves, but perhaps it can be trained, we think, says Sarah Stilicho. University lecturer in the Department of Psychology, in A press release.

Researchers' tips for making better decisions:

1) Avoid relying too much on past experiences and similar situations when making decisions.

2) Try to get feedback about the decisions you already make, for example by asking a friend or others who have been affected in different ways by the decision you have made. This way, through feedback, you can learn how to make better decisions.

3) Do not hesitate to receive help from others. Previous research has shown that people in groups are often better at making logical decisions.