Foreground-background salience effect in traffic risk communication
Journal Title: Judgment and Decision Making - Year 2014, Vol 9, Issue 1
Abstract
Pie charts are often used to communicate risk, such as the risk of driving. In the foreground-background salience effect (FBSE), foreground (probability of bad event) has greater salience than background (no bad event) in such a chart. Experiment 1 confirmed that the displays format of pie charts showed a typical FBSE. Experiment 2 showed that the FBSE resulted from a difference in cognitive efforts in processing the messages and that a foreground-emphasizing display was easier to process. Experiment 3 manipulated subjects’ information processing mindset and explored the interaction between displays format and information processing mindset. In the default mindset, careless subjects displayed a typical FBSE, while those who were instructed to be careful reported similar risk-avoidant behavior preference reading both charts. Suggestions for improving risk communication are discussed.
Authors and Affiliations
Tian-Yi Hu, Xin-Wen Jiang, Xiaofei Xie, Xiao-Qin Ma and Chao Xu
Keywords
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