7 Making a difference to decision making

7.1 Introduction

We have taken a brief excursion through three different perspectives on decision making (the rational-economic, the psychological and the social) and we have considered how we think about risk from these different perspectives. How can you use these ideas to improve your own and others' decision making? The first way is to use them to develop greater insight into the pressures and influences that may be affecting how you process information, think, and decide. By becoming more aware of these influences you will be able to exercise greater choice about the short cuts you take and the influences you succumb to. You should also be able to be more aware of the limitations of your information and analysis. Second, by consciously trying to understand the way in which individual and social factors are affecting how others make decisions, you should be more effective in influencing them.