Frequency format facilitates reasoning in simple numerical tasks

Abstract

This study examined whether it is easier to reason in terms of frequencies or with percentages for simple numerical tasks, Research on probabilistic reasoning has shown that humans can draw correct inferences when problems are presented in terms of natural frequencies but not when in percentages. Whether the same effect can be observed in other numerically simple tasks which are not probabilistic was studied with 40 undergraduate students who volunteered for the experiment (13 men, 27 women; M age of 23 yr.). In a simple numerical task involving frequencies or percentages (N=20), their performance showed representation in frequencies facilitates the task.