RESEARCH_FILE
Daniel Kahneman
Princeton University
Known for:Prospect Theory (with Amos Tversky) — establishing that losses loom approximately twice as large as equivalent gains, foundational to understanding loss-driven chasing in gambling
Key findings
- 1974
With Tversky, Kahneman described the representativeness heuristic in Science, showing how people judge probability by resemblance to stereotypes rather than base rates — the cognitive foundation of the gambler's fallacy. Judgment under Uncertainty: Heuristics and Biases ↗
- 1979
Kahneman and Tversky's Prospect Theory established the loss-aversion ratio: subjectively, losses hurt roughly twice as much as equivalent gains feel good — a finding that directly quantifies the asymmetric pull to chase losses in gambling. Prospect Theory: An Analysis of Decision under Risk ↗