The effects of impatience from waiting in line on choice overload

Abstract

Choice overload refers to the phenomenon whereby an excess of product alternatives overloads consumers and suppresses their intentions to purchase. Haynes （2009） demonstrated that overloads occur when time pressures are explicitly presented but subsequent replication studies have not yielded consistent results. In this study, we investigate whether choice overload might be elicited implicitly by feelings of impatience due to others waiting to make a selection （cue condition）. With a waiting line of ten people visible, 56 participants selected and ranked three desirable images from sets that ranged from four or 12 images and then rated their levels of satisfaction and regret concerning their rankings. Another 36 participants performed the same task without exposure to a waiting line （no cue condition）. The results showed that participants in the cue condition exhibited lower levels of satisfaction and higher levels of regret concerning their choices in the 12-image condition. This finding suggests that feelings of impatience due to waiting in line can inhibit selective behaviors by interfering with cognitive control.