Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/183374 
Year of Publication: 
2016
Series/Report no.: 
IFN Working Paper No. 1145
Publisher: 
Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN), Stockholm
Abstract: 
Several recent behavioral models of choice build on the idea that decision makers put more weight on attributes in which the available options differ more. We test this assumption in a controlled experiment where such biases will generate choice inconsistencies. As hypothesized, we find that subjects make more inconsistent choices when we add new options that affect the maximal difference in attributes among the options. Our findings suggest that the decision maker's focus is drawn to attributes that stand out. We also test the focusing effect against theories of decoy effects (asymmetric dominance), but we find that the focus effect dominates.
Subjects: 
Individual decision making
Focus
Attention
Salience
Decoy
Experiments
JEL: 
D03
D12
C91
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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