SOMETIMES MORE IS MORE: EFFECT OF AMOUNT OF INFORMATION, DECISION-MAKING CONDITIONS AND COGNITIVE STYLE

We examined the effect of information amount on intuitive and deliberative decision-making. We verified a prediction of Unconscious Thought Theory (UTT) that intuitive thinking is more successful with complex problems and deliberative thinking with simple problems. Effect of cognitive styles (intuitive vs. deliberative) was also examined. 62 high-school students (mean age = 16,77; SD= 0,63) participated and they were allocated into intuitive vs. deliberative conditions. Then they solved two decision tasks -high vs. small amount of information and filled in one questionnaire of decision-making styles (PID). We found no evidence for advantage of intuitive decision-making for complex problems. On the contrary, the more complex the task was, the more appropriate it was to deliberate the decision. The biggest contribution to the debate about advantages of intuitive vs. deliberative decision-making is emphasizing the importance of knowing the individual cognitive preferences of participants.