Relationship between the number of choices and regret in multiple-choice questions

Abstract

This study aims to investigate how the number of choices affects regret in the context of multiple-choice questions. We hypothesized that regret would be stronger when people failed on a question with fewer choices than when they failed on a question with more choices, and that the effect of choice would be mediated by perceived closeness to success. In both Experiment 1 (a scenario experiment) and Experiment 2 (a laboratory experiment), participants rated the degree to which they experienced regret when they failed to choose the correct answer option in a quiz with a prize. The number of alternatives presented in the quiz was manipulated (2 vs. 8). The results showed that in both experiments, a failure when choosing from a small number of alternatives produced more regret than when choosing from a larger number of alternatives. However, no mediating effect of perceived closeness to success was observed. The effect of the number of choices on regret was discussed.