The water level example shows how faulty mental models operate when we are dealing with topics that pertain to the physical environment. The same principles apply when we interact with and make decisions about the social environment as well. In fact, we are more likely to be fooled by faulty models of the social world where the meaning of stimuli and responses are more ambiguous than in the physical world. Consider the following example that is more clearly psychological in nature.

On average, do you believe that females or males are more helpful? Select one.