Judgement

The evaluative process by which actors make inferences, reach conclusions, compare objects, rank something on a scale, make a decision by comparing and critically reviewing two or more alternatives, apply a principle to particular cases, or make generalizations relying upon specific cases, based upon available material. Also the product of such mental activity.

About judgements

People have a limited memory and information-processing capacity. Memory works by a process of associations which imperfectly, but mostly effectively reconstruct past events. People cannot integrate a great deal of information at the same time - this processing is chiefly in a sequential manner, with acquisition of information across time.

Our perception of information needed in making judgements is not comprehensive, but selective, so actors' expectations and prior beliefs play a large role in this selection process. People attach meaning to information and this meaning weights the information and relates it to the actor's view of the world. Most judgements are the result of comparisons of points of reference or cues. In arriving at judgements people apply informal methods or rules known as ‘heuristics’ which in many situations produce correct or ‘near enough’ to correct answers, conclusions, or solutions.

Making a judgement involves relating this information to other pieces of information or events. Judgement will be accurate to the degree to which someone's worldview and judgemental rules correspond with the outside world, noting that one's way of making judgements must deal with an environment which operates on probabilistic principles. Judgemental accuracy is a function of both an actor's individual characteristics and the structure of the task environment.

(see also: evaluation, decision, inference, reasoning, interpretation, decision-making under uncertainty)