Summary: It's a common belief in the modern world that the more choices we have the better we feel. Visit your local supermarket and you'll probably find at least 100 different choices of butter and 250 different types of crisps, all in varying sizes and types. It has been long perceived that more choice means that we'll buy more products. But experiments undertaken a few years ago by Columbia and Stanford Universities show otherwise. In what is often called 'The Jam Experiment' (although there was more to it than that), 3 experiments attempted to monitor buying habits, satisfaction and even motivation when given little choice and when given more choice. The first experiment is what gives them it's popular name. Shoppers in a supermarket were given the chance to taste samples of different types of jam, and every hour the displays were changed to give them the choice of either 6 different types or 24 different types. What was discovered was that 30% of shoppers given the choice of 6 jams went on to purchase some. But only 3% of shoppers offered the 24 went on to purchase any. It seemed that having too much choice actually hampered their later motivation to buy. If you've ever looked at a menu through a restaurant window and walked away because there's too much choice you'll understand what went on.
