Pavlovian Processes in Consumer Choice: The Physical Presence of a Good Increases Willingness-to-Pay

• Published in: The American economic review Vol. 100; no. 4; pp. 1556 - 1571
• Main Authors: Bushong, Benjamin, King, Lindsay M., Camerer, Colin F., Rangel, Antonio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Nashville American Economic Association 01.09.2010; American Economic Assoc
• Subjects: Auctions; Behavior; Behavioral neuroscience; Bidding; Consumer behaviour; Consumer expenditure; Consumer preferences; Consumer psychology; Consumerism; Consumers; Consumption; Currencies; Decision making; Dollar; Economic theory; Experimentation; Experiments; Food; Food economics; Hunger; Konsumentenverhalten; Medical research; Medical students; Neurosciences; Participation; Product displays; Produkttest; Snacking; Standard deviation; Studies; Test; Willingness to pay
• ISSN: 0002-8282; 1944-7981
• DOI: 10.1257/aer.100.4.1556

This paper describes a series of laboratory experiments studying whether the form in which items are displayed at the time of decision affects the dollar value that subjects place on them. Using a Becker-DeGroot auction under three different conditions—(i) text displays, (ii) image displays, and (iii) displays of the actual items—we find that subjects' willingness-to-pay is 40–61 percent larger in the real than in the image and text displays. Furthermore, follow-up experiments suggest the presence of the real item triggers preprogrammed consummatory Pavlovian processes that promote behaviors that lead to contact with appetitive items whenever they are available.