Too many options could become a problem, why? Behavioral Science has the answer.
This article is part of the series I will write about Behavioral Science and how it’s the best way to make us better at any. My first post was dedicated to explain Cognitive Dissonance which is another bias that challenges our deepest believes constantly. My colleagues loved it.
History
I like to start explaining the foundation of these studies and this time would not be otherwise. Back in 1970 one of the greatest futuristic sociologist Alvin Toffler, coined the term Choice Overload in his book Future Shock. He anticipated that people of the future (our today’s version) would be suffering from what he called paralyzing surfeit of choice. Given that technology is unstoppable, many more options have been appearing almost every year. The latter is causing several conditions such as anxiety and depression among us.
Decades later, Sheena Iyengar conducted the famous Jam Study in 1995. She was one of the most contributors of Choice studies in psychologist. And in the early 2000 another great study was published conducted by Barry Schwartz: The Paradox of Choice.
In few words
When I moved to the US, I had to decide among many options for living. Different communities, amenities and way of living. People give you advice based on their experiences. Realtors trying to persuade you to make a quick decision and of course the fluctuation of rent prices put another brick in your shoulders to make things harder. But let me tell you that, even though I was not familiar on how things work here, by being conscious about the Choice Overload made me feel better, less stressed and allowed me to make the best decision available for me. Today I did not regret of the decision I made, and I love where I live. Have you ever been in situation like the previous example? Finding a car, a house, a school, and so on.
Another example, probably more structure and formal than mine, is the list of options that we have nowadays on Youtube. Every time we want to choose whether this or that we go to the famous video platform to call for comparisons. Think of smartphones, credit cards, 401k plans, stock options, even mattresses (I explored19 options to be precise, but that’s another story… LOL).
Conclusion and take always
You might be asking what to do once we are aware of it. Well dear readers, there is not one but many ways to avoid the stressful and overwhelmed feeling. The most effective for me is to enjoy the journey. By window shopping, you will find probably all the options available in the market and that way, whether you choose one over the other, I encourage you to enjoy it because is for you and for the rest of your day to day. Another tip is never regret. Once you have chosen something do not look back, stick to you decision and move forward. I understand that you might feel preoccupied but believe me, your mental health will thank you later. Moreover, I like to think that we are a little better than in the past, considering that year back people were forced to go in one direction or have no options for their lives. Internet has democratized tools, options, sites, information and so for.
Remember that great expectations could be toxic as The Decision Lab beautifully explained here. And there is nothing wrong if you always want to look for several options before making a final decision or if you want to explore few options to clear your mind. According to science, there are two types of decision makers: the maximizers and the satisficers. Depending on your personalities you might find identified with one or the other. I am a maximizer due to my unstoppable search of “the best for me”, I rather look the whole picture, compare features, characteristics, pros and cons to decide, but my mom like to be a satisficer to have from 2 to 3 options to decide. None of us are good or bad; both follow different ways.
To summarize, I will write the following bullets for you.
- Enjoy the window shopping. You do not need to decide immediately.
- Do never regret after make a choice. Move forward.
- Think if you are a maximizer or a satisficer. One would suit you better and vice versa.
- Use a gratitude journal. Write and be thankful for the things you can possess or have.
Thanks for reading. If you find it interesting and want to learn more, please visit my favorite source for behavioral science and biases: The Decision Lab here. See you in the next post.
