Valeria Sabater for The Mind is Wonderfula good article on mental shortcuts:
Availability bias largely explains why advertising works. When we have to buy a product, on average, the brand that we have seen on television or on social networks comes to mind – in fact, there are brands so popular that they have become generic. People are not always aware of how, sometimes, we act and respond using very simple heuristics and, above all, in response to what first comes to mind.
For example, if you ask us what the most poisonous animal in the world is, we will most likely think of snakes, spiders or the classic pufferfish. We even consider that information stored in the brain, which is transmitted by word of mouth, as valid, without being critical of it. In fact, the sea wasp jellyfish is the deadliest creature today.
On the other hand, there is something important that we must consider. This bias is to blame for many of the distortions that we carry with us unconsciously and that blur reality. The fear of flying on airplanes is more common than the fear of driving, when it is much more likely to have a traffic accident with tragic consequences than an airplane accident.
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