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Positive affect moderates the impact of assortment size on choice satisfaction

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  • Spassova, Gerri
  • Isen, Alice M.

Abstract

The present research proposes that positive affect mitigates choice overload. Results from four studies show that whereas people in neutral affect feel less satisfied when choosing from a large relative to a small assortment, people in positive affect do not experience a decline in satisfaction and may even feel more satisfied when choosing from a large, relative to a small assortment. It is proposed that positive affect has these effects by shifting people's attention from the difficulty of the choice task to the quality of the assortment, as a basis for judgment of choice satisfaction.

Suggested Citation

  • Spassova, Gerri & Isen, Alice M., 2013. "Positive affect moderates the impact of assortment size on choice satisfaction," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 89(4), pages 397-408.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jouret:v:89:y:2013:i:4:p:397-408
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jretai.2013.05.003
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    2. Mathmann, Frank & Chylinski, Mathew & de Ruyter, Ko & Higgins, E. Tory, 2017. "When Plentiful Platforms Pay Off: Assessment Orientation Moderates the Effect of Assortment Size on Choice Engagement and Product Valuation," Journal of Retailing, Elsevier, vol. 93(2), pages 212-227.
    3. G. Rejikumar & Aswathy Asokan-Ajitha & Sofi Dinesh & Ajay Jose, 2022. "The role of cognitive complexity and risk aversion in online herd behavior," Electronic Commerce Research, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 585-621, June.
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    6. Alibeiki, Hedayat & Li, Shanling & Vaidyanathan, Ramnath, 2020. "Market dominance or product cost advantage: Retail power impacts on assortment decisions," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 222(C).
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    8. Cristinel Vasiliu & Mihai Ovidiu Cercel, 2015. "Innovation in retail: impact on creating a positive experience when buying fashion products," The AMFITEATRU ECONOMIC journal, Academy of Economic Studies - Bucharest, Romania, vol. 17(39), pages 583-583, May.
    9. Aydinli, Aylin & Gu, Yangjie & Pham, Michel Tuan, 2017. "An experience-utility explanation of the preference for larger assortments," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 34(3), pages 746-760.
    10. Xinye Hu & Ofir Turel & Wanting Chen & Jia Shi & Qinghua He, 2023. "The effect of trait-state anxiety on choice overload: the mediating role of choice difficulty," DECISION: Official Journal of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Springer;Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, vol. 50(2), pages 143-152, June.
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