Framing Effect

The Framing Effect shows that identical information presented differently leads to systematically divergent decisions, as Tversky and Kahneman's 1981 Asian Disease Problem demonstrated: when a program was framed as saving 200 lives, 72% chose it, but when framed as 400 people dying—mathematically identical—only 22% did. This effect is more dramatic than the Anchoring Bias; while anchoring sets a single reference point, framing changes the entire context of a decision. The same surgery has 60% higher consent rates when described as having a 90% survival rate versus a 10% mortality rate. Advertisers, politicians, and doctors exploit this, guiding choices toward predetermined outcomes, making it a powerful tool for persuasion.