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Trade‐Off Between Accuracy and Cognitive Burden: Influence of Stated Attribute Non‐Attendance Questions on Participants' Choice Behaviors

Author

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  • Yefan Nian
  • Zhifeng Gao
  • Rodolfo M. Nayga
  • Yuning Zhao
  • Joanna Van Asselt

Abstract

Past studies have shown that asking stated attribute non‐attendance (ANA) questions at the choice task level can improve the accuracy of revealing participants' ANA information in choice experiments (CEs). However, the impact of such questions on CE participants' underlying choice behaviors in subsequent choice tasks remains underexplored. This study assesses whether and to what extent stated ANA questions within CE choice task sequences introduce learning and fatigue effects by influencing participants' behaviors in CEs, including response time, preference elicitation, choice randomness, and willingness‐to‐pay (WTP). Using a between‐subject design by assigning participants to one of three CEs with different types of stated ANA questions, we found that although choice task level stated ANA questions provided more accurate ANA information, they might lead to participants' longer response time, increased choice randomness, and altered WTP estimates with larger standard deviations, possibly due to increased cognitive burden for participants. Meanwhile, a single randomly placed stated ANA question could also influence CE participants' response time and preferences, but have minimal impact on choice randomness. Therefore, CE practitioners should carefully weigh the enhanced accuracy of ANA behavior measurement against potential disruptions to participants' choice behaviors when including stated ANA questions in CEs.

Suggested Citation

  • Yefan Nian & Zhifeng Gao & Rodolfo M. Nayga & Yuning Zhao & Joanna Van Asselt, 2026. "Trade‐Off Between Accuracy and Cognitive Burden: Influence of Stated Attribute Non‐Attendance Questions on Participants' Choice Behaviors," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 57(1), January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:agecon:v:57:y:2026:i:1:n:e70070
    DOI: 10.1111/agec.70070
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