Table 1.

Five examples that fit the scenario depicted in figure 1.

decision-maker	environment		action		cues available to decision-maker (examples)
	state 0	state 1	false positive	true positive
animal under predation risk	predator absent	predator present	run away when predator absent	run away when predator present	visual, auditory and olfactory stimuli
doctor	disease absent	disease present	provide treatment when disease absent	provide treatment when disease present	patient-reported symptoms, physical examination, medical images (e.g. X-rays, MRI)
search committee (e.g. job search, university admission)	candidate unsuitable	candidate suitable	hire/ admit unsuitable candidate	hire/ admit suitable candidate	CV, reference letters, interview, test scores
psychiatrist/clinical psychologist	patient harmless	patient dangerous	classify harmless patient as dangerous	classify dangerous patient as dangerous	information about past actions of person, patient self-reports, reports by third parties
security personnel	person harmless	person dangerous	take preventive actions when harmless	take preventive actions when dangerous	information about past actions of person, visual observations