Too Many Choices Don’t Help

You enter a Starbucks outlet because all you want is a cup of coffee. But the barista needs more details. Macchiato, Mocha, Cappuccino, Latte, Americano, or the new Toffee Nut? Hot or cold? Short, Tall, Grande or Venti? Preference of milk? Too many decisions to be made. You become aware of people in line behind you. Should you just go with the tried and tested Cappuccino? By now, you are feeling pressured and just want to hurry up and get something and catch a table. This scenario is by no ways a unique one. Baskin Robbins has 31 flavours vying for your attention. A huge wedding buffet has tables laden with dishes from different cuisines. Shopping for a bottle of wine. Buying toothpaste. Deciding which mutual fund to invest in from the thousands available. Consider this 1995 seminal study by Sheena Iyengar at Columbia University. In a California gourmet market, a booth of samples of...