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  • Back in the year 2000, two researchers conducted a psychology studywith jam.

  • The researchers set up a jam-tasting stall in a California supermarket and offered customers

  • varieties of jamsometimes 6, sometimes 24.

  • They found the display of 24 jams attracted more customers, but only 3% of jam tasters

  • actually bought jam. When they displayed 6 varieties, 30% of those who tasted the jam

  • bought some.

  • And the customers were more satisfied with their choice if it was from a smaller number

  • of options. The less choice, the better.

  • InThe Paradox of Choice”, psychologist Barry Schwartz labelled that feeling of too

  • many jams or the choice of too many candy bars or menu items aschoice overload”.

  • The idea isn't newin the 1300s French philosopher Jean Buridan theorised if you were faced with

  • the choice of two equally tempting options, you would delay your choice. Like an equally

  • thirsty and hungry donkey choosing between a bucket of water and a pile of hay. Things

  • don’t end well for the donkey.

  • Schwartz points out that modern society has more choices than ever before, which leads

  • to a decrease in your motivation to choose and dissatisfaction with your final choice.

  • But this is kind of counterintuitive when you consider the supreme number of options

  • stores and brands have.

  • At Domino's Pizza they have 39 menu options and at Starbucks, 120 beverage options. I

  • went and counted them.

  • Economist Tim Harford saidIt is hard to find much evidence that retailers are ferociously

  • simplifying their offerings in an effort to boost sales.”

  • Normally research kind of informs business practices... I’m confused.

  • A few years ago researchers in Switzerland did a big analysis of 50 experiments similar

  • to the jam study. These experiments offered participants things like jelly beans, coffee,

  • dating partners and wallpaper -- all where participants had to choose between a variety

  • of options.

  • But they couldn't find any evidence of the "choice is bad" effect.

  • Nothing was wrong with how the jam study was conducted, their findings were just... Different.

  • The reality is that we can't really say if more or less options motivate you to make

  • a decision. Or if youll be satisfied with that decision. And a lot of other things affect

  • your capacity to choose: like what mood you're in or how difficult the decision is.

  • Maybe choice isn’t as much of a paradox or brain jam as some psychologists have led

  • us to believe.

  • And if you don’t already, subscribe to BrainCraft! For a new brainy video every Thursday.

Back in the year 2000, two researchers conducted a psychology studywith jam.

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