Problem framing around base crime rates shifts how subjects allocate program funds

Evidence

The country of Delta is interested in reducing the crime rate among its immigrant groups. The Department of Justice has been allocated 100 million (100M) for establishing a crime prevention program aimed at immigrant youths. The program would provide the youths with job opportunities and recreational facilities, inasmuch as criminal acts tend to be committed by unemployed youths who have little to do with their time. A decision must be made between two programs currently being considered. The programs differ from each other primarily in how the 100M would be distributed between Delta's two largest immigrant communities, the Alphans and the Betans. There are roughly the same number of Alphans and Betans in Delta. Statistics have shown that by the age of 25, 3.7% of all Alphans have a criminal record, whereas 1.2% of all Betans have a criminal record. The following two programs are being considered. Program J would allocate to the Alphan community 55M and to the Betan community 45M. Program K would allocate 65M to the Alphan community and to the Betan community $35M. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 2476

Categorization

• QUESTION: The reader’s own interest is ‘small acts of decorum toward corpses’ — the connection here is thin; this is really the worked example for the framing principle. Score reflects modest standalone value.