Framing effect
The tendency to make different choices based on how the same information is presented, for example as a gain or as a loss. The facts stay the same, only the wording changes.
In everyday life
Shoppers prefer beef labeled '80% lean' over beef labeled '20% fat', though the two are identical.
A surgeon says nine out of ten patients survive an operation and you agree to it; a second doctor says one in ten die from it, and you hesitate.
Why your mind does this
Our senses and judgment work by comparison. Noticing differences from a starting point, or from what came just before, is faster and cheaper than measuring things in absolute terms, and changes are often what signal danger or opportunity.
How to spot it
Ask yourself how you would feel if the same facts were described the opposite way.
How to counter it
Rewrite the key fact both ways, such as success rate and failure rate, before you decide.