News and Events
Options must be unique
by Mark Henry, Inc. on 11/26/12
Hand-in-hand with limiting the number of choices one is to consider at a given time is the fundamental precept that the choices under consideration must truly be unique. An interesting finding by Ariely (2008) is that puffery, the highlighting of uncritical or useless features, generally results in irresolution. That is, when the options presented to choose from represent nothing but variations of the same option the unconscious mind instantly recognizes that no real choice exists and chooses instead to lump the alternatives into one category or group. The unconscious mind then feeds the assessment that no distinctive choices exist instantaneously to the conscious mind. Since the unconscious mind has tremendous influence over the conscious mind, the disparate information generally results in a cognitive dissonance, a discomfort caused by holding conflicting beliefs. In this example, the cognitive dissonance results from the conscious mind believing in the existence of multiple options to choose from while at the same time the unconscious mind is indicating a lack of genuine choice. The key is to use the understanding of cognitive dissonance during choice selection to your advantage. Generally, the cognitive dissonance will take the form of undo delay in the selecting of an option or the belief that the choice is difficult or hard. By recognizing, that the unconscious mind has performed an assessment and has determined that no choice exists between the choices presented the individual forces the conscious mind to critically re-examine the choices presented with an eye toward puffery. The identification and elimination of superfluous choices through close re-examination of the available options enables the decision maker to bolster the decision-making process and eventual outcome. Reference Ariely, D. (2008). Predictably irrational: The hidden forces that shape our decisions. NY: Harper Collins Publishers.
