Framing effect

Biological Parallel

Honeybees presented with 'guaranteed 60% nectar' forage more than bees told '40% failure rate'—identical odds, different frames. Risk-sensitive foraging depends on framing: starving animals prefer risky '50% chance of 10 calories' over guaranteed '5 calories' (gain frame), but sated animals reverse preferences (loss frame). Hummingbirds accept 90% reliable flowers when energy-positive but reject them when energy-negative, demanding >95% reliability—same flower, different metabolic frame changes choice. Primates show endowment effect: monkeys value possessed tokens 2x higher than identical unpossessed ones. The mechanism: reference points (current energy state, ownership status) anchor valuation. Identical outcomes generate different preferences depending on whether framed as gain or loss relative to the reference point.