Each Diary Entry Should Focus On A Decision Or Judgment

Each Diary Entry Should Focus On A Decision Or Judgment That You Made

Each diary entry should focus on a decision or judgment that you made very recently (preferably within the past day or two). The analysis should relate to that topic's concepts and should be about your own decisions, not a friend's. You can include course concepts from other weeks but the focus should be on that week's topic. The following attached 3 pdf which are course material. Each pdf requires 300 words self reflection (no more than 350 words). Please create 3 word files. Do not mix up. Each pdf requires an independent self reflection. The example should be daily life example and your own decisions, no complicated example pls.

Paper For Above instruction

This assignment focuses on writing reflective diary entries centered on recent personal decisions or judgments, analyzing them through relevant course concepts. Each entry should be based on decisions made within the last couple of days, ensuring immediacy and relevance. The task involves a total of three separate reflections, corresponding to three different PDFs provided as course materials. Each reflection must be approximately 300 words, not exceeding 350 words, and should be self-contained, meaning it is independent of the others. The reflections should employ everyday, straightforward examples from daily life—simple decisions rather than complex scenarios—to facilitate clear analysis of personal judgment processes.

The purpose is to connect personal decision-making experiences with theoretical insights from the course, thereby deepening understanding of concepts such as decision-making processes, biases, judgment errors, or cognitive strategies discussed throughout the semester. Students are instructed to focus each reflection solely on their own decisions, avoiding analyses of others’ choices. The reflections will be compiled into three separate Word documents, each aligned with one PDF, ensuring each paper is an individual, focused analysis.

Paper For Above instruction

Recently, I made a decision about managing my daily schedule, specifically whether to go for a morning jog or sleep a little longer. This decision exemplifies a common everyday judgment that involves weighing two relatively simple options. Drawing from course concepts, particularly the idea of bounded rationality, I recognized that my decision was influenced by limited cognitive resources and time constraints. Instead of thoroughly analyzing all benefits and costs of each choice, I subconsciously relied on heuristics—such as prioritizing immediate comfort and rest over physical activity because fatigue seemed more pressing at that moment.

In the context of heuristics, my choice was guided by a mental shortcut: choosing comfort over effort. According to Tversky and Kahneman (1974), heuristics enable quick decision-making but often lead to biases. Here, my bias was towards immediate gratification—rest—rather than long-term health benefits from regular exercise. This aligns with the concept of temporal discounting, where immediate rewards are valued more highly than future gains. Recognizing this bias helped me understand that my decision was not entirely rational but influenced by emotional and cognitive shortcuts.

Furthermore, my decision was affected by the availability heuristic—my recent experiences of feeling especially tired in the mornings made the option of sleeping longer readily accessible in my memory, thereby biasing my judgment. This indicates that past experiences can disproportionately sway daily decisions, often unintentionally. By reflecting on these influences, I realize the importance of consciously evaluating the long-term implications of my decisions rather than relying solely on immediate comfort.

In conclusion, this decision exemplifies how heuristics and biases, such as temporal discounting and availability, shape everyday judgments. Understanding these concepts enables me to recognize the influence of cognitive shortcuts and encourages me to adopt more deliberate decision strategies, perhaps by reminding myself of health goals or scheduling morning routines more intentionally. This awareness is essential to improving judgment quality in routine life, aligning my decisions more closely with my larger objectives.

References

• Tversky, A., & Kahneman, D. (1974). Judgment under Uncertainty: Heuristics and Biases. Science, 185(4157), 1124-1131.
• Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, Fast and Slow. Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
• Gigerenzer, G., & Todd, P. M. (1999). Simple Heuristics That Make Us Smart. Oxford University Press.
• Kahneman, D., & Tversky, A. (1979). Prospect Theory: An Analysis of Decision under Risk. Econometrica, 47(2), 263-291.
• Simon, H. A. (1957). Models of Man: Social and Rational. Wiley.