Effect of Maximizing Tendency on Choice Deferral:The Serial Mediating Role of Processing Depth and Choice Difficulty

Wang Huaiyong; Wu Jun; Wang Xinhui

doi:10.16719/j.cnki.1671-6981.20240324

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Journal of Psychological Science ›› 2024, Vol. 47 ›› Issue (3) : 703-710. DOI: 10.16719/j.cnki.1671-6981.20240324

Social，Personality & Organizational Psychology

Effect of Maximizing Tendency on Choice Deferral:The Serial Mediating Role of Processing Depth and Choice Difficulty

Wang Huaiyong, Wu Jun, Wang Xinhui

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Abstract

People often do not decide right away. Instead, they defer their decision to return to it at later time, and it be defined as choice deferral. This phenomenon refers to a situation in which an individual chooses not to choose for the time being. Previous research mainly focused on the cognitive and emotional factors that affect choice deferral, however, with the rising of research on individual differences in decision making, recently more and more scholars begin to explore whether different people have different preferences on choice deferral. For instance, some studies demonstrated that older adults were more likely than young adults to choose the deferral option, and compared to promotion-focus individuals, prevention-focus individuals were more likely to delay their choices and so on. As one of the important individual difference variables, decision-making styles have become a hot research topic. Schwartz et al. (2002) suggested that people vary in the extent to which they seek the best during choice—some people were more likely to try to maximize, while others were content to satisfy. As far as we know, there is no research to explore the effect of maximizing tendency on choice deferral. Therefore, the purpose of the present research uses the information board technique to reveal the effect of maximizing tendency on choice deferral and the underlying information processing mechanism.
The current research employed one factor (decision-making style: maximizing/satisficing) between-subject design, used the revision of the Maximization Scale to measure decision-making style, and took choice deferral, information processing mode (processing time, depth and pattern) and choice difficulty as dependent variables. The experiment was conducted on computer. Firstly, the participants were required to complete multi-attribute decision task, and made their deferral choice. Secondly, subjects’ subjective rating of the difficulty experienced in the process of decision-making was record. Lastly, subjects reported the revision of the Maximization Scale and personal information, and the experiment was finished. The results from the experiment indicated that: (1) Maximizing tendency was significantly positively correlated with choice difficulty and choice deferral, specifically, compared to satisficers, maximizers were more likely to experience choice difficulty, and delay their choice; (2) Maximizing tendency was significantly positively correlated with information processing mode, specifically, maximizers were inclined to spend more time, search more depth on processing, and show more preference for alternative-based search pattern. (3) Processing depth and choice difficulty respectively mediated the effect of maximizing tendency on choice deferral. (4) Maximizing tendency affected choice deferral through the serial mediating effect of processing depth→choice difficulty.
In sum, these results suggested that maximizing tendency had different preferences on choice deferral, moreover, processing depth and choice difficulty could explain the effect of maximizing and satisficing style on choice deferral to some extent. Our findings could not only enrich the literature of decision-making style and choice deferral, but also contribute to understanding of how to provide the appropriate marketing strategy for individuals with different decision-making styles.

Key words

maximizing tendency / choice deferral / processing depth / choice difficulty

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Wang Huaiyong, Wu Jun, Wang Xinhui. Effect of Maximizing Tendency on Choice Deferral:The Serial Mediating Role of Processing Depth and Choice Difficulty[J]. Journal of Psychological Science. 2024, 47(3): 703-710 https://doi.org/10.16719/j.cnki.1671-6981.20240324

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