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On Making the Right Choice: The Deliberation-Without-Attention Effect
Ap Dijksterhuis,*Maarten W. Bos,Loran F. Nordgren,Rick B. van Baaren
Contrary to conventional wisdom, it is not always advantageousto engage in thorough conscious deliberation before choosing.On the basis of recent insights into the characteristics ofconscious and unconscious thought, we tested the hypothesisthat simple choices (such as between different towels or differentsets of oven mitts) indeed produce better results after consciousthought, but that choices in complex matters (such as betweendifferent houses or different cars) should be left to unconsciousthought. Named the "deliberation-without-attention" hypothesis,it was confirmed in four studies on consumer choice, both inthe laboratory as well as among actual shoppers, that purchasesof complex products were viewed more favorably when decisionshad been made in the absence of attentive deliberation.
Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Roetersstraat 15, 1018 WB, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: a.j.dijksterhuis{at}uva.nl
Are Patient Decision Aids the Best Way to Improve Clinical Decision Making? Report of the IPDAS Symposium.
M. Holmes-Rovner, W. L. Nelson, M. Pignone, G. Elwyn, D. R. Rovner, A. M. O'Connor, A. Coulter, and R. Correa-de-Araujo (2007)
Med Decis Making
27, 599-608
|Abstract »|PDF »
Rethinking the Objectives of Decision Aids: A Call for Conceptual Clarity.
W. L. Nelson, P. K. J. Han, A. Fagerlin, M. Stefanek, and P. A. Ubel (2007)
Med Decis Making
27, 609-618
|Abstract »|PDF »
Unconscious Activation of the Cognitive Control System in the Human Prefrontal Cortex.
