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Less Choice is Better, Sometimes

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  • Norwood Franklin B

    (Oklahoma State University)

Abstract

Psychological experiments have revealed that more choice does not always make one better off. For example, consumers are sometimes more likely to purchase a product from a small variety than a large variety. Some have suggested that this excessive-choice effect may have implications for how well markets serve society. This paper constructs an economic model where the excessive-choice effect results from search costs. The model shows that it is possible for markets to produce too much variety, but there are also incentives inducing markets to provide an optimal variety. Advertising, retailer market power, and slotting fees are not just signs of imperfect competition, but mechanisms of ensuring consumers are presented with an ideal choice set.

Suggested Citation

  • Norwood Franklin B, 2006. "Less Choice is Better, Sometimes," Journal of Agricultural & Food Industrial Organization, De Gruyter, vol. 4(1), pages 1-23, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:bpj:bjafio:v:4:y:2006:i:1:n:3
    DOI: 10.2202/1542-0485.1130
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Stephen F. Hamilton, 2003. "Slotting Allowances as a Facilitating Practice by Food Processors in Wholesale Grocery Markets: Profitability and Welfare Effects," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 85(4), pages 797-813.
    2. Train,Kenneth E., 2009. "Discrete Choice Methods with Simulation," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521766555, January.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Norwood, F. Bailey & Lusk, Jayson L., 2007. "The Dual Nature of Choice: When Consumers Prefer Less to More," 2007 Annual Meeting, February 4-7, 2007, Mobile, Alabama 34850, Southern Agricultural Economics Association.
    2. Fabrice Le Lec & Benoît Tarroux, 2012. "On attitude towards choice - Some experimental evidence of choice aversion," Economics Working Paper Archive (University of Rennes 1 & University of Caen) 201230, Center for Research in Economics and Management (CREM), University of Rennes 1, University of Caen and CNRS.
    3. Chavez, Daniel & Palma, Marco, 2015. "Off the reservation: Pushing the bounds of rationality in experimental auctions," 2015 AAEA & WAEA Joint Annual Meeting, July 26-28, San Francisco, California 202164, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    4. Ben Irons & Cameron Hepburn, 2007. "Regret Theory and the Tyranny of Choice," The Economic Record, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 83(261), pages 191-203, June.
    5. Fernando Branco & Monic Sun & J. Miguel Villas-Boas, 2016. "Too Much Information? Information Provision and Search Costs," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 35(4), pages 605-618, July.
    6. Dmitri Kuksov & J. Miguel Villas-Boas, 2010. "When More Alternatives Lead to Less Choice," Marketing Science, INFORMS, vol. 29(3), pages 507-524, 05-06.
    7. Marasteanu, I. Julia & Jaenicke, Edward C. & Dimitri, Carolyn, 2011. "Slotting Fees for Organic Retail Products: Evidence from a Survey of U.S. Food Retailers," 2011 Annual Meeting, July 24-26, 2011, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 103467, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    8. J. Miguel Villas-Boas, 2009. "Product Variety and Endogenous Pricing with Evaluation Costs," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 55(8), pages 1338-1346, August.
    9. Daniel E. Chavez & Marco A. Palma, 2019. "Pushing subjects beyond rationality with more alternatives in experimental auctions," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 50(2), pages 207-217, March.
    10. George, Morris & Kumar, V. & Grewal, Dhruv, 2013. "Maximizing Profits for a Multi-Category Catalog Retailer," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 89(4), pages 374-396.
    11. Malone, Trey & Lusk, Jayson L., 2017. "The excessive choice effect meets the market: A field experiment on craft beer choice," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 8-13.
    12. Knockaert, Jasper & Verhoef, Erik T. & Rouwendal, Jan, 2016. "Bottleneck congestion: Differentiating the coarse charge," Transportation Research Part B: Methodological, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 59-73.

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