Mental simulation serves several functions in nonroutine decision making. It helps us to explain the cues and information we have received so that we can figure out how to interpret a situation and diagnose a problem. It helps us to generate expectancies by providing a preview of events as they might unfold and by letting us run through a course of action in our minds so we can prepare for it. And it lets us evaluate a course of action by searching for pitfalls so we can decide whether to adopt it, change it, or look further.
