My employer, an electrical appliance supply company, has decided to purchase company cars for all sales staff. I was asked to select the range of automobiles to purchase. I decided that, for reasons of economy and longevity, it was in the best interest of the company to purchase Volvos. As a prudent and sensible buyer, I researched the web and found that experts agree that the Volvo is the most mechanically superior and safest automobile for the needs of my business. Before the meeting with Volvo salespeople, I discussed the decision with my boss who reacted with disbelief and concern. He says: "A Volvo! You're kidding. My brother-in-law had a Volvo and the first thing that had to be replaced was the sophisticated fuel injection computer that broke. Then the transmission and the clutch failed and had to be replaced. He eventually had to sell it for scrap in three years. I will explain two parts to you. The first part will be identifying and explaining the heuristics in my boss's reaction that resulted in his biased reaction. In part two, I'll explain how I intend to influence the merits of buying a Volvo. Then I will conclude with my own thoughts and views. The Heuristic My boss's reaction is an excellent example of the availability heuristic. He only had information on one Volvo owner. He never said he knew anyone else who had owned one before. The facts about this Volvo were very negative, which creates a negative bias towards all Volvos. What happened was that he was influenced by vivid information and created a decision biased by that information that he can easily remember (Plous, 1993). My boss's reaction is also an example of a representational heuristic. As previously stated, he has only had one bad experience owning a Volvo and he rates all Volvos as bad vehicles based on the one bad one. He was only presented with negative information and made a decision based on that information, without considering any research. This created a situation in which he made a snap judgment by representation (Plous, 1993).