Decision making biased: How visual illusion, mood, and information presentation plays a role

Abstract

This study aims to investigate whether information presentation, visual illusion, and mood lead to decision making bias in interpreting financial statements. This study is a quantitative research using an experiment method. The results of this study indicate that the information presented in the table provides a better accuracy, also that financial information presented in bar graphs is more informative and provides a higher level of accuracy compared to line charts. Graphical display without gridlines will cause bias in reading financial statements. This study also showed that when participants experiencing a natural/stable mood, they can make the decision correctly; but when they are in an unpleasant mood, they are not able to make the decision correctly. This paper contributes to examining the factors that influence decision making biases comprehensively.