When Goal-Derived Assortments Lead to Goal-Inconsistent Choices

Geskens et al examine the impact of goal-derived assortment organizations on consumer choice. They propose that when assortments are organized based on goals, consumers are less likely to choose the option that offers maximum goal attainment. This is because goal-derived organizations make the items...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inAdvances in Consumer Research Vol. 44; p. 457
Main Authors Geskens, Kristof, Bonezzi, Andrea, Chernev, Alexander, Gorissen, Karen, Weijters, Bert
Format Conference Proceeding
LanguageEnglish
Published Urbana Association for Consumer Research 01.01.2016
Subjects
Consumer behavior
Consumers
Decision making
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Summary:Geskens et al examine the impact of goal-derived assortment organizations on consumer choice. They propose that when assortments are organized based on goals, consumers are less likely to choose the option that offers maximum goal attainment. This is because goal-derived organizations make the items appear equivalent in terms of their instrumentality for goal achievement, leading to a phenomenon called goal-based similarity. As a result, goal-relevant attributes become less important in decision-making, and consumers turn to other goal-irrelevant benefits to make their choice. They conducted four empirical studies to support their predictions. The results showed that goal-derived organizations decrease the likelihood of choosing the most goal-maximizing item and shift preferences towards other options. The studies also demonstrated that the effect of goal-derived organizations on choice is driven by the increase in goal-based similarity. When similarity effects were reduced, the impact of goal-derived organizations on choice was mitigated.
ISSN:0098-9258